BMW: Flax as a racing car component
FORWARD ROLLER The BMW iFE.20 uses a cooling shaft made of flax. The electric racer with components made from renewable fabric fibers is a pioneer for series development. BMW i Andretti Motorsport made a successful start to its sixth Formula E season in November with a victory in Saudi Arabia. Alexander Sims will enter the new year and the next [...]
BMW i Andretti Motorsport got off to a successful start to the sixth Formula E season in November with a victory in Saudi Arabia. Alexander Sims will enter the new year and the next race in Santiago de Chile in mid-January as the leader of the drivers' standings.
Advantages over carbon fiber
Even off the racetrack, the BMW iFE.20 is already an asset for BMW i Motorsport. A cooling shaft made of flax underscores its high status as a tech lab for the BMW Group. It is the first factory-fitted BMW racing vehicle with components made from renewable fabric fibers - and thus a pioneer for series development.
Jens Marquardt, BMW Group Motorsport Director: "The cooling shaft made of flax that we use in the BMW iFE.20 is further evidence of the enormously important role of motorsport as a tech lab for the BMW Group We consistently use Formula E as an innovation platform for series development - in this case for testing flax under extreme competitive conditions. What's remarkable here is that in certain areas this renewable material even offers advantages over materials established in racing, such as carbon."
Expansion in the development phase
Compared to carbon, flax has higher damping and impact resistance, which can bring advantages on the road courses with their bumps and guard rails where Formula E races. The same applies to enemy contact with other vehicles during races.
The BMW iFE.20 is the first factory-fielded BMW race car to use the material. The expansion of this concept to other BMW Motorsport racing vehicles is already in the development phase.
