MINI Electric Pacesetter made its debut as the new safety car for Formula E World Championship

MINI’s Electric Pacesetter inspired by JCW makes its official debut as the new safety car that will be accompanying the tracks at the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship series 2021. The car is a resultant collaboration between BMW Motorsport, MINI Design, the FIA, and Formula E.

Talking of the offering, the new safety car was initially developed as a Mini Cooper SE. The automaker claims that their offering was purpose-built, to be used in the racetracks. Marking itself as the most dynamic interpretation of all the electrical Mini sports cars, the track-ready piece is more like mechanical art. 

Talking of the exterior enhancements of the car, the Electric Pacesetter eliminates the radiator grille area to improve aerodynamic configuration. On the front, the only open areas are  square apertures that help cooling of the brakes. Being a safety car, the physical attributes of the car dawn white flashing lights that are designed to fit seamlessly into the hood. 

The car is well-equipped with yellow accent lines that run across the body of the Pacesetter to enhance its aerodynamic elements. Accompanied by lightweight 18-inch forged wheels, the rims sport a bi-color black-neon/orange design.

Inside, the stripped-out interior of the car retains its front seat, paired to six-point safety harnesses for enhanced security of the driver. Further, the car also highlights a digital instrument cluster, paired with a carbon-fiber steering wheel. Interestingly, the designers also decided to strip off the center display for a carbon-fiber cover to reduce its weight.

Overall, the Electric Pacesetter loses weight of around 130 kg, making the car a total of 1,230 kg in its overall curb weight. Interestingly, there seem to be no changes in the drivetrain of the car, giving it the same 181 hp of power and 280 Nm of peak torque.

Lastly, Bernd Körber, head of MINI concluded that “This extreme version of the MINI Electric has been developed as the Safety Car in Formula E, so is not intended for use on public roads.” 

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