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33 AUDI POWERTRAIN AD&P; ∕ NOVEMBER 2017 electric vehicles (the company anticipates that by 2025, one in three Audis will be an EV), there is one Audi EV that has absolutely nothing mild about it: the Audi e-tron FE04. It is the first fully electric race car for the Formula E series to come from Audi, and it is the first to come from a German OEM. Audi is working with Tier One supplier Schaeffler ( schaeffler. com ; which has powertrain expertise not only for internal combustion engines, but for hybrids and EVs, as well, with products including hybrid modules, electrical axle drives, range extender transmissions, hydrostatic clutch actuators, and electrical wheel hub drives). When it comes to racing and advancing technology, Audi has a powerful pedigree. Although "diesel" is not generally thought out in a particularly positive light nowadays, when Audi went racing at the 24 Hours at Le Mans with the diesel- powered R10 TDI, it claimed the first victory for a diesel in 2006. Then it won again in 2007 and 2008. Then the R10 TDI was replaced by the R15 TDI, again, diesel powered, and it won at Le Mans in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. It also developed a hybrid race car for Le Mans, the R18 e-tron quattro. And it took the top place at the podium in its class three times running: 2012, 2013 and 2014. So arguably its participation in Formula E is being done so with the same underlying concept of technology advances. (E.g., during its run of the diesel powertrain at Le Mans, it managed to improve overall fuel efficiency by 46 percent.) The e-tron FE04, the Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler vehicle, has a powertrain—motor and transmission combination—that was jointly developed by Audi and Schaeffler. A key area of focus was on the motor-generator unit, where they sought effi- ciency that would help propel the car more effectively when it comes out of corners. The series requires that the maximum output of the motor for qualifying is 200 kW (272 hp) and 180 kW (245 hp) during a race. To make Formula E more engaging for the fans, there is what is called "FanBoost." A given Formula E race lasts about 50 minutes. Given that the cars accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in about 3.5 seconds, the 34 kWh lithium-ion battery pack developed for the series by Williams Advanced Engineering has developed and that is identical for all cars, and of which 28 kWh can be used can't make the entire run. So about halfway through the race each driver has a mandatory pit stop—and during this stop, the driver gets into a second car to continue the race. Which brings us back to the FanBoost. Fans vote on Twitter, through the Formula E website, and through a Formula E app before the race and six minutes into the contest. The three drivers who get the most votes get the FanBoost, which provides them with an additional 100 kJ of energy once they're in a power window of 180 to 200 kW. They push a button on the console and the additional electricity is released. The just-started Formula E series is its fourth. Next year, there will be a whole new vehicle design for the series (which means, of course, that the e-tron FE04's debut year is going to be its only year) that will include a battery with twice the capacity as the current one, so there will be no obligatory car change during the middle of the race. The e-tron FE04 that Audi is campaigning in the 2017 Formula E series. It developed the powertrain for this electric vehicle with Schaeffler. The maximum output of the motor during qualifying is 200 kW; it is 180 kW during the race. The transmission that has been developed for the car has one gear, whereas the previous one had three.