NASCAR’s Electric SUV Prototype Has 1341 HP, AWD

Bradley Barnes/NASCAR/ABB

NASCAR has unveiled a prototype version of an electric SUV—officially. Precious little information was shared in February, when fans snapped various shots of the naked-looking prototype ahead of the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum, in Los Angeles. The debut was rescheduled because of rain, and the prototype finally hit the track for a demonstration in Chicago, for last weekend’s street race, accompanied by proper fanfare and some of the information we’ve been waiting to hear.

Underneath the curvaceous bodywork, reminiscent of the Ford Mach-E and the Chevrolet Blazer EV, is the modified chassis of a Next Gen stocker. The steering, suspension, brakes, and wheels, says NASCAR, are all based on those of the Cup Series car, though here the brakes are integrated into a regenerative system that can charge the battery. The pack is a 78-kWh, liquid-cooled unit. The electric prototype has three motors, two in the back and one at the front. They’re made by STARD, an Austrian racing team at the forefront of EV race car development, and together capable of producing nearly 1000 kW of power, or 1341 horsepower.

ABB NASCAR electric EV SUV Prototype
Bradley Barnes/NASCAR/ABB

These STARD UHP Six-Phase motors will ring a bell for fans of Ford Performance: The brand used the same ones in the SuperTruck it built for this year’s Pikes Peak Hill Climb and in the SuperVan it built for the year prior. The presence of the motors also suggests that Ford had a heavy hand in the development of the electric NASCAR prototype, though it is supposedly a product of all three of the manufacturers that currently participate in the series: Ford, Toyota, and Chevrolet.

The ABB NASCAR EV Prototype is the product of NASCAR’s Research and Development Center and was built by the same people who worked on the Garage 56 Camaro that raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans last year. NASCAR says that the electric car will be best suited to road courses and short ovals—no surprise there.

Bradley Barnes/NASCAR/ABB

The electric SUV prototype is a joint effort between NASCAR and ABB. The latter is a multinational corporation that dates to a merger in 1988 between ASEA and BCC—the former a Swedish industrial company that built the first entirely commercial status plant for high-voltage DC transmission and nine of Sweden’s 12 nuclear powerplants. The latter was a Swiss company that spent much of its early days developing electrical motors for trains and building steam turbines for industrial use. Today, ABB is the title sponsor of the 2024 FIA Formula E championship. The conglomerate is also a founding partner of NASCAR Impact, an umbrella platform launched spring of last year. Its chief goal is to reduce NASCAR’s carbon footprint to zero by 2035.

Perhaps aware of the shock value of an all-wheel drive EV, specifically one with decidedly un-race-car-like proportions, NASCAR decided a brief smoke show was in order for the fans watching the festivities in Chicago. With driver David Ragan behind the wheel, the car lit up all four tires in a blistering, if uncharacteristically quiet for NASCAR, launch on the street circuit. For a corner of motorsports that has typically taken an evolutionary path rather than a revolutionary one, this concept represents a big potential change in NASCAR’s future, and something of a curious step with other forms of motorsport pursuing sustainable fuel alternatives over full-on electric powertrains. So, NASCAR fans: Would you watch a series of 1300-hp EV-powered racers with Blazer, Mach-E, and RAV-4 silhouettes?

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Comments

    I think this will end up answering a lot of interesting questions about EVs… like what kind of power service your local NASCAR tracks are going to need to power these behemoths, and what happens when they collide with solid objects at high speeds. I wonder how much the American Petroleum Institute is investing in this little experiment

    No!

    Just think about a car weighing up to 6,000 pounds crashing. Track safety will need to change on many levels. Also a very steep learning curve. Not sure fans will sit well with that.

    That is incredibly ugly. Not interested and decreases what little Nascar interest I might have.

    Not interested at this point. Certainly you want NASCAR thinking long term, but this is premature. The US population is still soundly rejecting EVs and is not likely to get too enthusiastic about the NASCAR EV for a long time, if ever. Formula E has been a much more viable platform for electric powered competition and it seems to get as much attention as lawn mower racing.

    “US population is still soundly rejecting EVs” Not to be a picker of nits 🙂 but it should be pointed out the the best selling car in the world last year and into the first quarter of this year was an EV.

    “So, NASCAR fans: Would you watch a series of 1300-hp EV-powered racers with Blazer, Mach-E, and RAV-4 silhouettes?”
    Not quite sure how to answer this, since I’m not a NASCAR fan (or not for a pretty long time, at least), but I can answer whether or not this would entice me to come back into the “NASCAR fan” ranks. Answer: Oh hell no.

    eNASCAR will be like an acoustic Zeppelin set with no vocals and no percussion. You’ll recognize it, but it won’t be the same.

    Maybe, I’m not really a Nascar fan but I’ll put it on while the chicken is baking on a Sunday. Check in while I’m getting ready to have a fine meal and check out for the day. Until.- ‘Here’s the restart. Caution turn 3! Parade Laps. Here’s the restart.Caution .. What else is on? I don’t know what Nascar is or wants to be or is pretending to be. I don’t think they really have a clue either and are just following along with the prevailing tide to keep making the all mighty dollar. It’s become Christian values wrapped in the American flag as a marketing ploy.- ‘It’s all about family’. – ‘ A fight has broken out it’s..’ Is it part racing, part… WWE Raw you’re selling ? You’re telling me over and over these are the worlds best drivers.. seriously? The Nascar family is as dysfunctional as Nascar. – ‘He GITS Us’

    I can’t relate to the new NASCAR cars as of date, growing up with the Petty’s and Allisons. An electric car would now kill NASCAR for the future.

    I used to watch NASCAR when it was NASCAR. I quit watching shortly after 1988.

    What do the letters NASCAR actually stand for anymore.
    At one time it was National Association of STOCK Car Auto Racing.

    NASCAR needs to quit lying to their audience. If it’s a pig, call it a pig.

    Maybe they should have changed the meaning in 1988 to
    National Association of Spec Car Auto Racing
    I’m tired of big dollar entertainment companies claimed they are something they are not.

    They should be sued for a “truth in advertising” violation.

    The new EV Spec racer SUV now bring the term “car” into question

    Isn’t there an SCCA class for Spec cars?
    If yes, What’s different with this high dollar entertainment business?

    I used to watch NASCAR when it was NASCAR. I quit watching shortly after 1988.

    What do the letters NASCAR actually stand for anymore.
    At one time it was National Association of STOCK Car Auto Racing.

    NASCAR needs to quit lying to their audience. If it’s a pig, call it a pig.

    Maybe they should have changed the meaning in 1988 to
    National Association of Spec Car Auto Racing.
    I’m tired of big dollar entertainment companies claiming they are something they are not.

    They should be sued for a “truth in advertising” violation.

    The new EV Spec racer SUV now bring the term “Car” into question.

    Isn’t there an SCCA class for Spec cars?
    If yes, What’s different with this high dollar entertainment business?

    Quit lying, be truthful!

    Growing up a half an hour from Darlington in the ’50s & ’60s defined to me what NASCAR was.

    It has already deteriorated into a carnival huckster presentation to suit the video game generation’s short attention span and desire for instant gratification.

    The introduction of EVs is, as far as I’m concerned, is the final nail in its coffin. RIP.

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