The DS E-Tense FE 19 has been demonstrated close to the DS Performance factory near Versailles, France, and in doing so became the first of the next-gen single-seater Formula E race car for the 2018/2019 championship to spin a wheel.
The race car was unveiled earlier this month after DS Performance staff had spent many months working on innovative technical solutions ahead of the roll-out of a field of new-generation cars in this year’s fifth season of the FIA Formula E Championship.
DS E-Tense FE 19’s combination of a 250kW power unit and 54kWh battery will allow it to complete races without the mid-ePrix car swaps that have been part of the series until now. Brake-by-wire systems and an increase in maximum power regeneration to 250kW will be other new features of the 2018/2019 championship, which kicks off later this year.
Xavier Mestelan-Pinon, DS Performance operations director, said, “With just days to go before Formula E’s first official pre-Season 5 test, it was great to see the DS E-Tense FE 19 run at our test track in Satory. The car’s different assemblies had previously been tested on the bench but this is the first time the fully assembled car has turned a wheel.”
DS E-Tense FE 19’s release coincides with a soon-to-launch new line-up of electric powered DS vehicles which includes the DS 7 Crossback E-Tense 4×4. This will be the DS brand’s first model to feature the E-Tense system, which comprises a petrol engine and two electric motors for a peak power output of 300hp.
