Extreme H has completed its final testing on its new hydrogen-powered race car, the Pioneer 25, in Fontjoncouse in the south of France.
The session focused on fine-tuning performance, testing technical components and evaluating the vehicle’s latest tire developments, all critical enhancements designed to handle the series’s unique and demanding race environments.
The Pioneer 25 hydrogen race car, designed and manufactured by Spark Racing Technology, has undergone an intensive testing program that the developers say is equivalent to more than three seasons of Extreme E racing.
Hydrogen- powered
Equipped with cutting-edge hydrogen fuel cells powered by green hydrogen gas, the cars emit only water vapor, which can either be consumed or used elsewhere on site for crucial aspects such as car washing.
The vehicle’s peak 400kW (550hp) output is capable of firing the 2,200kg, 2.4m wide race car from 0- 100km/h in 4.5 seconds and scale gradients of up to 130% to help it tackle the toughest terrains with precision and speed.
Thoughts from the driver’s seat
Former Extreme E champion and E.ON Next Veloce Racing driver Molly Taylor said of the test drive, “The suspension has a lot more scope, especially in the tough conditions, as where we are testing the car it is really rough. You feel like you can lean on it a lot more in those areas and the car will take a lot more [than the Extreme E car]. It’s also a very different experience the first time you jump in.”
Taylor also discussed the hydrogen fuel: “It was really interesting when they started the hydrogen up and you see all this steam coming out of the exhaust. Normally, if my car at home has steam coming out, things are going really bad, but it was really cool in a way, makes you realize you are driving something that’s very different.”
Kevin Hansen, Molly’s teammate at E.ON Next Veloce Racing in Extreme E, said of the testing process, “We are making progress, trialling different things and trying to make the car the best it can be. It feels much better than the previous car. It’s in a strong shape and once we get to racing, when we get to optimize for top performance, it will be really interesting to see what more we can squeeze out of the final product.”
Leading the testing program was Extreme H ‘s technical director, Mark Grain, who said, “The tires we have been testing here this week are a big step forward in performance from our last test, and have received great driver feedback. We’ve also been performing some endurance tests with a lot of the components and fine-tuning of the hydrogen fuel cell so that we are ready to go racing later this year. Now that we understand a lot more about the types of racing that we want to achieve at the World Cup, we’ve also been able to simulate a lot of those conditions and fine-tune the car around those formats.”
In related news, Prema Racing has joined forces with artificial intelligence (AI) software provider Monolith, which will become its AI development partner effective immediately and for the ongoing season. Read the full story here
