NASCAR has announced a new partnership to develop a prototype electric stock car as it works toward becoming more sustainable.
NASCAR is teaming up with ABB, an electrification and automation solutions company, to work on the new prototype and push both companies toward long-term goals for sustainability involving EVs and EV charging.
The partnership's first big milestone is a demonstration EV that draws both on NASCAR's existing history of vehicle innovation and on new developments in electrification.
NASCAR worked with Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota to build the new car, which was on display ahead of NASCAR's Chicago Street Race on July 7.
It uses a modified chassis from NASCAR's existing Next Gen vehicles, which debuted in 2022.
It has a 78 kilowatt-hour battery and three motors, two in the rear and one in front. At maximum output, NASCAR says the powertrain can put down 1,000 kilowatts, or more than 1,300 horsepower. Other modern improvements include regenerative braking and composite body panels made with flax.
It's a symbolic vehicle, for an organization that's inextricably linked to the gas engine. NASCAR says it doesn't plan to leave traditional engines behind.
"While NASCAR is committed to the historic role of the combustion engine in racing, it is also committed to decarbonizing its operations and reducing its own carbon footprint to zero across its core operations by 2035," NASCAR said in a press release.
NASCAR plans to make a lot of the other operations that support stock car racing more sustainable — including by switching fully to renewable energy at racetracks and other facilities, experimenting with sustainable fuel for racing cars and improving long-haul trucking.
Related story: Stewart-Haas Racing to close NASCAR teams at end of 2024 season, says time to 'pass the torch'
