Porsche’s first all-electric sports car, the Taycan, has been named as the new safety car for the ABB FIA Formula E world championship race series. The speedy zero-emissions vehicle will celebrate its racetrack debut at the opening round of the Formula E season on 28/29 January in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia.
The Taycan, which has become a best seller for Porsche, replaces the MINI Electric Pacesetter inspired by John Cooper Works used in the 2021 championship.
Thomas Laudenbach, Porsche Motorsport vice president, said: “With the Taycan Turbo S as the official safety car, we’re making an important contribution to track safety and also underlining the importance of Formula E for Porsche Motorsport.
“Although we’re rivals out on the track, we’re spreading this message to the world together. What’s more, we hope that this also enables us to appeal to a younger target audience who are not yet motorsport fans.”
The high-performance Taycan Turbo S is the ideal choice in the critical role of a safety car for racing in the heart of iconic world cities including London, Mexico City, New York City, Berlin, Monaco and Seoul. With Launch Control, the flagship model of the Taycan range accelerates from 0-62mph (0-100kph) in just 2.8 seconds and reaches a top speed of 162mph (260 kph).
Jamie Reigle, Formula E CEO, said: “Formula E is delighted the Porsche Taycan Turbo S will serve as the Championship’s safety car from Season 8. The Porsche Taycan Turbo S is the pinnacle of high performance electrified vehicles and will light up Formula E city racetracks around the world.
“In designing the Formula E safety car, Porsche reimagined the critical on-track safety function to be a powerful symbol of the championship’s commitment to an electrified future and the unity of the competitors in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.”
The conversion of the Porsche Taycan Turbo S into a safety car required the installation of a roll cage and racing bucket seats with six-point seatbelts as well as wire harnesses for the safety car lighting and the Marelli Logger System.
Flashing lights were integrated into the bumpers. The new workplace of Bruno Correia (Portugal), the long-standing FIA Formula E safety car driver, was also equipped with a fire extinguisher and a high-tech communication system. As a result, the safety vehicle meets all requirements for service in a highly competitive series such as the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.
