The new Qualcomm Safety Car BMW i8 Coupe celebrated its debut in February in the Chilean capital Santiago. The car is now featured in all the ABB FIA Formula E Championship races, including this week’s Rome race. BMW has been running the i8 Safety Car in the Formula E championship since 2014 when the i8 received a series of upgrades to meet the FIA regulations.
Among the upgrades, we have a roll bar inside the cabin, a rear wing and rear hatch made of carbon fiber, a front splitter, sports seats from the BMW M4 GTS, 4-point belt, a roof-mounted signal light system, BMW M carbon ceramic brakes and a sports chassis.
The extravagant rear wing is mounted directly on the carbon cover which has always been installed on the safety car instead of the standard rear window. Under the additional ventilation openings, two large fans are placed, which help regulate the inside temperature.
A set of Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires were fitted to the i8 Safety Car, providing the grip needed during the race.
One other thing that make the i8 Safety Car stand out from its production series brother is the “Qualcomm Halo Prototype Technology” inductive charging system. The system uses no cable connections and charges this special BMW i8 Coupé up to 80 per cent in just one hour, with a performance of 7.2 kilowatts. To do so, the Safety Car drives over a special bottom plate, which immediately initializes the wireless charging procedure.
In addition to the top performance of at least 380 hp and the unmistakably modified aerodynamics, the BMW i8 Safety Car carries a few hidden technology updates that are officially required only for racing.
Here is a live photo gallery from Rome, Italy.
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