Chevrolet has joined Ford in launching an electric NASCAR prototype. It’s called the Blazer EV.R, and it makes over 1,300 horsepower with three electric motors and a 78-kilowatt-hour liquid-cooled battery on board.
Chevy says it built the EV using chassis and suspension components from NASCAR’s Next-Gen cars racing today. However, unlike those V-8-powered race cars, the EV has a programable all-wheel-drive system, delivering the power with Goodyear Racing Eagle tires, just like the ABB NASCAR EV prototype that the racing series introduced last year.
The prototype borrows styling cues from the Blazer EV SS, the 615-horsepower crossover pacing the Daytona 500 this weekend. The road-going EV can hit 60 miles per hour in 3.4 seconds, with just half the power of the NASCAR prototype and street rubber.
Last year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Champion and Team Chevy driver Justin Allgaier tested the car in January at the Carolina Motorsports Park in South Carolina, saying, “I’m used to knowing my speed through gearing and listening to engine revs, so I had to totally change how I judge corner entry speed.” He also noted that the regenerative braking “has a big impact on braking sections and cornering balance.”
Ford introduced its Mustang Mach-E NASCAR prototype at the end of January with the same specs—it just looks like a squished version of Ford's EV. The prototypes preview what’s possible in meshing new powertrain technology with NASCAR’s current platform. When they'll actually race each other is anyone's guess.
Source: Chevrolet
