Have Your Say: Is The Future Electric?

[Strahil Kotlarov]

It might be the future but i refuse to drive hairdryer on 4 wheels .

 

[Will Mazeo]

I have no idea if it is a natural future, it sure is a forced one considering how people are using govt to force it instead of letting people do this evolution naturally. The sad thing is that one single way is being forced, maybe better ones would appear if people kept the govt out of the way (better things always appear when we do this).
In the future these same people will ban humans from diriving, don't be surprised when it happens.
I won't watch motorsports when they are all electric tho. Probably won't buy in sims either. It's not about only the noise, the tech itself is not as interesting as the different ways of building a ICE is (to me).

 

[Knoxstar]

We're gonna run out of oil at some point, and unless we come up with a fuel that is renewable, relatively inexpensive to produce and sell, and be clean burning, I think we'll all be driving EVs within our lifespan.

Hydrogen mate in answer to your question which meets all of your points and can power electric and internal combustion motors.

 

[BoogerMac]

Oh RD staff...you're not baiting me into this one!

 

[Crekkan]

I feel as if that, by the time we get to a point where electric power is nigh-perfect (battery, power, etc.), the older combustion engines of the past would have become cheap and a novelty. Wouldn't be surprised if engine supplies/car manufacturers create older engines and slap on (what would then be) classic hybrid systems. Even if it's just for sponsorship only.

The sport and various series gain a permanent "retro" feel but don't lose out on further electric development thanks to the above, aero advancement, etc.

Only have to look at recent news from the UK about the banning of petrol and diesel engines by 2040 to think that a few retro, loud but hybrid racing engines won't hurt much.

I don't know, just a more optimistic view for those who still want the sound, which I think is most people X)

 

[BoogerMac]

Hydrogen mate in answer to your question which meets all of your points and can power electric and internal combustion motors.

Except hydrogen fuel cells still cost way more to make and with the worlds supply of platinum dwindling, it'll be even more expensive. Also, hydrogen cells are very temperamental with temperatures (pun intended) and especially at high temps, which all racing will force on it.

 

[Knoxstar]

You might think I'm being sarcastic but the future of motorsport is Sim Racing.

 

[tonio duran]

Porque no ponen el biocombustible todo el ruido arian feliz que no contamine. Espero que en la otra vida no me gusten los coches no puedo soportar las eléctricas si tienes un accidente y dejo la batteria quemas y también todo el producto químico que libera ya abierto contaminado más que la vida de un gas ... .

 

[tonio duran]

Porque no ponen el biocombustible todo el ruido arian feliz que no contamine. Espero que en la otra vida no me gusten los coches no puedo soportar las eléctricas si tienes un accidente y dejo la batteria quemas y también todo el producto químico que libera ya abierto contaminado más que la vida de un gas ... .

 

[Tobiman]

It's the future but I think Hybrids should be the epitome of electric technology in racing. Kind of funny that Porsche is leaving hybrids and going full electric but I guess it's a lot cheaper to run and it holds the most challenges going forward.

 

[Xero]

Add into the mix that the UK and France now aim to ban new petrol and diesel cars by 2040. Expect many more countries to follow suit, particularly Germany. Now we have a full on tech race to have practical and long-range electric solutions in what is a relatively short time. The jump to Formula E for the big car manufacturers all of a sudden makes perfect sense. FE might seem a bit tame right now, but 5 years down the line I expect the cars to gain speed massively. One day they will reach the level of F1, and merge with it. Sounds lame now, but it will become the norm.

 

[Jordan Dion]

Electric is the future. As sad as it may be for motorsport. The sound will be gone. But Electric racing has its pros... 100% power delivered instantly. Its environment friendly (For the green police) and The more Manufacturers that get involved the quicker electric technology can be improved and implemented into our road cars of the future. But even still it does not feel the same when watching it. And apparently the experience of a Formula E GP is not the best either.

And if anyone is interested... Here is the Season 5 Formula E car concept.
View attachment 204091
High Quality pictures in the link below.
http://www.sparkracingtechnology.co...ing-technology-develop-formula-e-season-5-car

So ugly omg !!!! Batman car for kid ?? I miss F1 of early 90S

 

[Michel Forest]

On a long term basis, yes, absolutely, it is the future of the car industry. I'd say within 15-20 years. And that's a good thing. You don't have to be a bleeding-heart liberal to see the horrible consequences of global warming caused by the oil and coal industries. It is real, it is happening and we all must do something about it. If motor racing does not want to be seen as a wasteful, indefensible activity, it must act now. There is a reason all these manufacturers are leaving DTM and WEC for FE. They know that it is the future and that it is a question of staying relevant in a changing society.

As per me, I don't care about the way a race car is powered. Whether it's gas, methanol or electricity, I care about the racing. I've seen every single FE race since the beginning and I enjoy it. Some races are good, some are crap, just like F1.

 

[Matt Horst]

People identify with what they grew up watching on tv or at the track live.For young people growing up watching more and more silent electric cars race they won't care as much about the sound aspect of racing.I think it will take many years and a difficult transition for motorsport,but yes the combustion engine is eventually going to disappear.

 

[Chazz Ranger]

Meh. Until we get to this point in non-combustion engine racing, I'll stick with beautiful, angry noise.

 

[Leigh Nielsen]

If you live in a country the size of a shoebox then electric might be an answer for city traffic. But when you have to haul goods further than the corner shop, good old hydrocarbons are the way to go - and will be for some time to come. King Coal and Oily Oligarchs will reign at the top of the power heap for the foreseeable future. The trendites who run the various corporations (F1, Porsche, etc) might think petrol is dead, but us petrol sniffers will have the last laugh!
Electric F1!? Is it April 1 or something?

 

[Matt Lenart]

hydrogen fool cells have been a distraction to EV adoption for almost 20 years now, coincidentally developed by big oil. the future of transportation will be electric... since well-to-wheel nothing comes even remotely close to solar+battery. tesla is definitely NOT the answer and neither are gov't subsidies to pay for toys for the rich.

as the saudi arabia of rare earth metals, china w/ their manufacturing dominance will mass produce batteries and EVs in the foreseeable future.

as far as racing is concerned, i think toyota will also pull out of LMP1 since hybrid technology has matured. the race will be to prove battery tech (solid state) on the track and bring it into the showroom for consumers.

i'm including a link for sunny boy inverter solar installations in case you want to see how much kWp solar generates monthly/annually in your neck of the woods. the installation in the link is in the GTA (greater toronto area) and has 10 kWp making the math easy to scale.

https://www.sunnyportal.com/Templat...5cd7-5c36-4034-a4fa-a693fa18e022&splang=en-US

 

[protonv5]

Interesting how most agree that it's the future. I'm not sure what people base these claims on. I think they do just because it "sounds" correct. Or it's what the big companies want, for now anyway. They all seem to be jumping on the electric bandwagon. But I've seen the math, which I know some here will nitpick and say I'm wrong blah blah. That's fine. To me it's simply not the future. There may be electric vehicles alongside petrol based vehicles. But to say, we'll be all electric in 15-20 years to me is not based on facts and it simply is not possible. Battery powered vehicles across the board simply is not viable. I also find it interesting that we have basic proof of this point but many ignore it. Look at LMP1. A series that was fantastic and flourishing. When did it all start to fall apart? When did it become cost prohibitive? Just the past few years. What technology made it this way? Hybrid technology.

 

[Boby Kim]

Well....apparently it is and there is nothing we can do to stop it. For public cars i would say: go electric all the way but for racing series its bullshit. I want the old famous combustion with a lot of noise...thats racing.

 

[Racer67]

Except hydrogen fuel cells still cost way more to make and with the worlds supply of platinum dwindling, it'll be even more expensive. Also, hydrogen cells are very temperamental with temperatures (pun intended) and especially at high temps, which all racing will force on it.

This is true today, but the big oil companies are aiming for a hydrogen future. They are not going to lay over and die when the oil runs out. They have a plan. We don't know yet how they are going to achieve it, but I think it is going to happen. Electric cars will probably have their place in large cites, due more to curb noise pollution than anything. I think hydrogen will be powering more things than we can dream of in the future, but as you say there are a lot of technical hurdles to overcome.