MINI’s latest vehicle isn’t for sale, but it’s worth mention because it… is… awesome. This electric Cooper SE is the official pace car of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship race series. It’s basically…
The post MINI Electric Cooper SE Formula E Pace Car first appeared on Cool Material.
BMW has shown the new official safety car for the Formula E championship. Unveiled at the Yacht Club de Monaco, the safety car is based on a BMW i8 Roadster that has gone through some modifications.
With its design partially based on the fixed-head i8 Coupé Formula E Safety Car shown earlier, the roadster is rather more striking in its appearance. That’s largely due to the windshield-replacing aero screen, which dominates the car’s looks. BMW says the vehicle’s center of gravity is 15 millimeters lower, and that no major structural modifications were needed in the customization, as the Roadster is reportedly stiff enough for safety car duty.
The aerodynamics package has been tailored for the occasion, with a front splitter and a rear wing, and above the latter stands the light bar. The brakes are M Carbon Ceramic and the car benefits from the addition of an FIA-approved roll bar – just in case. BMW says the i8 Roadster is the world’s first open-cockpit Safety Car, too.
It’s probably down to personal taste which Formula E safety car looks cooler: the aero-screen i8 Roadster, or the i8 Coupé. Other BMW models in use include i3s as race director cars, and the medical car is a BMW 530e.
We first got word last month, and how we have the official announcement: Indian automaker Mahindra has launched Automobili Pininfarina as a new standalone sustainable luxury vehicle brand, with plans for a new electric hypercar in 2020.
The company will be a client of Italian design house Pininfarina SpA, known for its work with Ferrari and more recently for designing battery-electric concept vehicles for Hong Kong-based Hybrid Kinetic Group. Mahindra acquired a controlling stake in Pininfarina in 2015. It will be led by Michael Perschke, a 25-year auto industry veteran who was formerly managing director of Audi in India and a member of the management board of Volkswagen Group Sales India. Automobili Pininfarina will be based in Rome.
First up will be an electric car flagship that will go from 0-62 mph in less than 2 seconds and have a range of more than 300 miles, according to Automotive News Europe. Codenamed PF-Zero, its price will approach €2 million (U.S. $2.5 million). Mahindra says the new brand will borrow from its experience in the Formula E electric-car racing circuit.
Motor Authority reports the hypercar will also use technology developed by Rimac and that it will boast output of 1,500 horsepower, rivaling the Bugatti Chiron. It’ll be built in limited numbers, though future models, including SUVs and sedans, will be built in higher volumes.
Pininfarina most recently has been seen designing concept vehicles under the Hybrid Kinetic brand, most recently teasing the H500 sedan and K350 crossover ahead of their debuts in Beijing.
Separately, Pininfarina plans limited production of 12 units of its H2 Speed, its 653-horsepower hydrogen fuel cell track car that goes from 0-62 in 3.4 seconds, reportedly this year.
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