MEDIA INFORMATION Putrajaya, November 6, 2015 2015/2016 FIA FORMULA E CHAMPIONSHIP Putrajaya ePrix (Round 2)
The MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV’s heat and humidity test in Malaysia
After the mild weather encountered in Beijing, China, home of the opening round of the 2015/2016 FIA Formula E Championship on October 17, and before heading for the southern hemisphere's summer climate in Punta Del Este, Uruguay, in December, the series faces the heat and humidity of Putrajaya, Malaysia, this Saturday (November 7).
Putrajaya, which means “princes’ success”, is Malaysia’s new administrative capital and is situated around 20 kilometres south of Kuala Lumpur. The 2.5km, 12-turn, clockwise street circuit hasn’t been modified compared with 2014 and runs from Putrajaya Boulevard to the huge Perdana Putra building which houses the offices of the Malaysian Prime Minister.
The MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV, the tyre developed specifically for Formula E, will be on familiar ground after the championship’s first Putrajaya ePrix on November 22 last year.
Even so, Serge Grisin, the manager of Michelin’s Formula E programme, believes that Saturday’s clash will be one of the hardest of the season in terms of weather conditions: “At this time of year, the temperature easily exceeds 30°C and humidity levels are very high. There is also a high risk of storms. The timetable of last year’s race was even modified because the region was threatened by a hurricane. That said, even if the weather is hot, humid or wet, the drivers won’t need to change tyres. That’s because the advanced technology that has gone into the development of the MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV means it is capable of racing in dry and wet conditions. It is the first time that a world class motor racing series has seen single-seater cars use just one type of tyre. It’s a considerable step forward in the world of motor sport.”
Performance and durability In addition to being exceptionally versatile, the MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV is particularly durable, too. The same tyres cover all the race day’s action, from free practice to qualifying and the race itself, with little wear to report afterwards. As a result, after Beijing, and in compliance with the regulations, the teams kept one tyre per driver as a spare for Putrajaya. The bottom line is an exemplary footprint in terms of budget and the environment, in perfect keeping with the philosophy that drives that the new championship. Accordingly, Michelin has only taken 160 new tyres to Malaysia for the 40 cars (i.e. four per car).
The Michelin Pilot Sport 4: the transfer of technology has already begun In all the disciplines in which it is involved, Michelin uses motor sport as a laboratory to foster and accelerate the emergence of new technologies, and the inaugural Formula E season has already born fruit. Thanks to the data collected in a wide variety of weather conditions and at tracks with very different profiles in the course of the 2015/2016 championship, Michelin has already taken advantage of the compound and construction it uses for the series. Engineers from Michelin Motorsport have handed over all this information to their Research and Development colleagues who dialled it into the final specification of the brand’s new sports tyre, the MICHELIN Pilot Sport 4, which was presented at September’s Frankfurt Motor Show.
Says Michelin Motorsport Director Pascal Couasnon: “This technology transfer was made possible thanks in part to the fact that the MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV has numerous similarities with road tyres, beginning with its size. Using 18-inch tyres for a single-seater racing car is a first in motor sport and opens up opportunities to carry technologies over from track to street that simply don’t exist anywhere else.”
[email protected] MEDIA INFORMATION Putrajaya, November 6, 2015
The FIA asked for the specification of the MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV to be frozen for 2015/2016 due to the bigger freedom offered by the latest technical regulations. Indeed, for the current season, the teams have been authorised to modify the motor, gearbox, electronic management system and rear suspension mountings they use, so the FIA believed it was preferable for them not to have to work from a fresh sheet of paper with regard to their tyres, as well, especially as the performance delivered by the MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV exceeded expectations in 2014/2015.
Technical data - MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV
Size: Front: 24/64-18 / Rear: 27/68-18 (according to the system employed by Michelin Motorsport, i.e. tread width in centimetres / exterior diameter in centimetres / rim diameter in inches).
That’s equivalent to road tyre sizes of 255/40R18 (front) and 305/30R18 (rear), i.e. overall tyre width (mm) / aspect ratio (sidewall-height to tyre-width ratio) / rim diameter (inches). The letter ‘R’ signifies ‘radial’.
Because of its patterned tread and 18-inch interior diameter, the MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV resembles a road tyre. Yet it packs numerous technologies that are currently being tested with a view to their being carried over to Michelin’s catalogue tyres over the years ahead.
The 2015/2016 FIA Formula E Championship calendar
Like the inaugural season, the 2015/2016 calendar features 11 rounds at 10 venues, with two races to conclude the campaign in London. The season’s kick off in China was postponed to October 24 (instead of September 13 in 2014), while the action will terminate on July 3, 2016 – one week later than in 2015 (June 28). Monaco has been replaced by a race in Paris and a new venue that the organisers have yet to specify will be announced at a later date. Miami doesn’t feature at this moment in time.
- October 24, 2015: Beijing (China) - November 7, 2015: Putrajaya (Malaysia) - December 19, 2015: Punta del Este (Uruguay) - February 6, 2016: Buenos Aires (Argentina) - March 12, 2016: TBC - April 2, 2016: Long Beach (USA) - April 23, 2016: Paris (France) - May 21, 2016: Berlin (Germany) - June 4, 2016: Moscow (Russia) - July 2-3: London (United Kingdom)