Nissan and Andretti have confirmed the long-held rumour that it will work together in the Gen4 period, beginning later this year.
The multi-year agreement between the two entities was signed some time ago but was formally confirmed today in Tokyo close to the home of Nissan in Yokohama.
Nissan will supply its Formula E GEN4 powertrain to Andretti Formula E from Season 13 onwards and is believed to be until at least 2028 with the likelihood the two will be inter-linked for the entirety of the Gen4 period, until 2030.
Upon the announcement, Nissan re-emphasised that Formula E was ‘a key pillar of Nissan’s global electrification strategy, making success in the championship an important part of the company’s long-term ambitions.’
Nissan previously supplied the NEOM McLaren team for the first three seasons of the Gen3 period until the demise of the British based team last summer. That has left Nissan potentially disadvantaged slightly via data acquisition in the final year of the Gen3 rule set. It has also meant that Nissan had no hope of challenging in the manufacturers title and it currently sits fifth of the six manufacturers and 233 points behind leaders Porsche.
Andretti has had a complex relationship with manufactures dating back to the second ever season of Formula E. It was then that it set out to build its own powertrain as a registered manufacturer with the offering it initially intended to race in the 2015-16 season known as the ATEC-01.
But those plans were discounted after the powertrain, designed with technical partnerships including TE Connectivity, saw the car suffer poor reliability with Robin Frijns and Simona de Silvestro failing to log meaningful mileage during pre-season testing at Donington Park in the summer of 2015.
Andretti was then forced to revert to the original Spark-Renault set-up for the second season before an amalgam of several suppliers under the Andretti ATEC-2 banner was used for the remainder of Gen1.
By September 2016 though an official tie-up with BMW was public knowledge as the Bavarian manufacturer eyed a full commitment to the series which was about to experience an explosion of manufacturer interest.
So it was that by the start of Gen2 in 2018, Andretti and BMW were full-on partners with the BMW i Andretti Formula E team being established, winning the first Gen2 era race with Antonio Felix da Costa in Diriyah, Riyadh.
It proved though to be a short-lived partnership with BMW unfathomably giving its intention to withdraw at the end of 2020, although the powertrain continue to be supplied up to the end of the Gen2 period in 2022.
By that time a deal with Porsche had been agreed and the Gen3 era kicked off memorably when Jake Dennis began what ultimately proved to be his title season with a win in Mexico City.
But the relationship proved to be a volatile one as multiple clashes between Dennis and Porsche factory driver Pascal Wehrlein mixed with disagreements over sporting orchestrations were two of the significant divisions that ultimately drove the two entities apart. Confirmation of them not renewing their relationship came in May at the Berlin EPrix.
Nissan and Andretti stated in the confirmation of their new alliance that beyond supplying powertrains, they would ‘work closely throughout the GEN4 era, combining technical expertise, engineering knowledge and sporting experience.’
“Andretti is one of the most successful names in motorsport, including Formula E, where it has established itself as one of the leading teams in the sport, consistently competing at the front and securing a Drivers’ World Championship. We look forward to working closely together and building a strong partnership.”” said Tommaso Volpe, managing director and team principal, Nissan Formula E Team.”
Roger Griffiths, who is the only ever-present team principal in Formula E since the first ever race in 2014, said that Andretti Formula E appreciated Nissan’s “motorsports legacy lasting over 80 years and multiple wins and championships across a diverse range of categories including the current Formula E World Drivers’ Championship.
“Nissan has more than proven its pedigree at the highest echelons of the sport. As an early pioneer of electric vehicles, Nissan has developed vast knowledge in this category and through their time in Formula E have shown how immensely competitive they can be. It’s these characteristics that align so well with the approach of Andretti Formula E and why we are extremely proud to be aligned with the Japanese manufacturer entering the highly anticipated GEN4 era in Formula E.”
