While saying its V8 tech isn’t going anywhere, Chevrolet debuted a Blazer EV race prototype.
In the grand scheme of things, if there’s one racing series where electric race cars are less welcome, I’d wager it’s NASCAR. That hasn’t stopped the association or automakers from thinking up what such a series might look like, and Chevrolet is the latest example. This week, it debuted the Blazer EV.R concept — a glimpse at the sort of technology and engineering that could well make its way into consumer EVs, even if it doesn’t ultimately make its way onto the track as a real stock car.
“Motorsports is a test bed for innovation, and a training ground for our engineers,” the company said in its statement on the Blazer EV.R. “[It] allows Chevrolet to try out new technologies in a fast-paced environment against the best competition”. To wit, Ford debuted its own electric prototype Mach-E stock car a couple weeks ago.
Using a modified version of the Next Gen chassis underpinning its current V8-powered stock cars with the same suspension, the Chevy Blazer EV.R packs in three six-phase electric motors, all-wheel drive and a 78-kWh battery. And against your typical stock car’s 670 horsepower output, this electric concept manages a stratospheric 1,300 horsepower.
GM says its design department and motorsports engineers worked to build a stock car prototype based around — you guessed it — the standard Blazer EV SS, with lower and wider proportions as well as far more aggressive aerodynamics. It honed the EV.R prototype through laps “at race pace” at Carolina Motorsports Park before its official Daytona debut.
Again, this is strictly a concept, at least for the time being. NASCAR’s own prototype and Ford’s operate around a similar set of parameters as the Chevy Blazer EV.R (like the Next Gen chassis and suspension components). On that basis, it could evolve into an electric race series if other automakers jump on. But will spectators actually be excited about that sort of racing and want to tune in, especially when questions arise like how many laps will the battery last, and what would pit stops involving battery charging or swaps look like? There is some precedent with Formula E…though it’s struggled to really gain traction in the 10 years it’s been around.
Then after all that, there’s the cultural question surrounding it all, and the answer to that one will (probably) keep EVs out for awhile yet. As ever, we’ll have to wait and see whether NASCAR gives it a shot, at least as an experiment.
