Porsche unveiled its Formula E Gen4 race car, the 975 RSE, ahead of the championship’s next technical era, marking a significant performance leap in electric single-seater racing.
The new vehicle delivers 600 kW (816 PS) of power, a 71 percent increase over its predecessor, and exceeds 330 km/h in top speed, according to Porsche Motorsport. Permanent all-wheel drive and new tyre specifications accompany the power gain, enabling higher cornering speeds through increased aerodynamic downforce.
For the first time in Formula E history, aerodynamic downforce is a necessary performance factor, with the Gen4 capable of generating up to 150 percent more downforce than the Gen3 Evo model, said Olivier Champenois, Technical Project Leader for Formula E at Porsche Motorsport. To manage the associated drag and energy consumption, Porsche developed two distinct aerodynamic packages: a low-downforce configuration for races and a high-downforce setup for qualifying.
Despite adding more in-house components than in the previous generation, Porsche limited the total weight increase of its parts package to just five kilograms, Champenois noted. The 975 RSE benefits from weight reductions across many components, even as drivetrain efficiency remains above 97 percent, with less than three percent of energy lost from battery to wheel.
The Gen4 car represents the culmination of a decade-long evolution in Formula E, where early seasons required drivers to swap vehicles mid-race due to battery limitations, said Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President of Porsche Motorsport. Since 2024, Porsche has developed a race car now comparable to Formula 2 machinery, signaling that electric vehicles are not only matching traditional benchmarks but revealing new strengths on track and road.
Porsche will present the 975 RSE at a media event at Paul Ricard next Tuesday and Wednesday, alongside Jaguar and Stellantis (through Opel), as confirmed by The Race. The event will showcase the Gen4 car, which has undergone rigorous testing since late 2024, including private runs at Varano in Italy with drivers Pascal Wehrlein and Nico Müller.
Jaguar TCS Racing similarly unveiled its Gen4 prototype livery ahead of the Paul Ricard event, featuring data-derived speed tracings from the Monaco circuit across all four generations of Formula E machinery. The design, praised by Formula E’s official Instagram and driver Lucas Di Grassi as “a work of art” and “beautiful,” reflects the team’s technological evolution over ten years in the championship.
Using simulator data, Jaguar predicts its Gen4 prototype in high-downforce mode will reach 277 km/h exiting the Monaco tunnel toward Nouvelle Chicane — over 30 km/h faster than its current Gen3 Evo car and nearly 80 km/h quicker than its Gen1 vehicle, according to The Race.
Group testing for the Gen4 regulations has already occurred at Monteblanco and Almeria since November 2024 among the original signatories: Porsche, Jaguar, Stellantis, Lola, and Nissan. Further tests may continue through September before homologation, with pre-season testing scheduled for early November and the first Gen4 season expected to launch in December 2026.
Mahindra committed late to the Gen4 framework at the end of 2025 and will not initiate on-track testing until June 2026. No customer supply deals have been formally announced, though The Race reported strong indications of a confirmed Andretti-Nissan partnership awaiting disclosure.
Porsche, Jaguar, and Stellantis are set to continue their existing team partnerships with Envision, Cupra Kiro, and others, while Porsche will field a second works team. Penske’s post-DS Techeetah programme remains undecided.
The Gen4 era introduces a shift in development priorities for manufacturers, moving beyond pure efficiency gains to focus on weight reduction, durability, and cost optimization — parallels to advancements in consumer electric vehicles, as noted by Champenois.
With the Gen4 car now capable of sustained high-speed performance without mid-race car swaps, Formula E closes a chapter on its early technological constraints and enters a phase where outright speed and aerodynamic grip define competitiveness.
What is the significance of the 975 RSE’s power increase?
The 975 RSE produces 71 percent more peak power than its predecessor, rising to 600 kW (816 PS), which Porsche says places its performance level on par with Formula 2 cars.
How does Porsche manage the trade-off between downforce and energy efficiency?
Porsche uses two distinct aerodynamic packages: a low-downforce setup for races to minimize drag and energy use, and a high-downforce configuration for qualifying where energy consumption is not a limiting factor.
When is the first Gen4 Formula E season expected to begin?
The start of the first Gen4 season is expected to take place in December 2026, following homologation at the end of September and pre-season testing in early November.