Goodwood outright record holder Nick Heidfeld set another new class best as he sprinted up the hill in the Mahindra M4Electro last weekend.
His best time of 48.59s set a new electric single-seater record for the 1.86km run, and meant he was fourth fastest overall. Over the course of the weekend, Heidfeld managed to shave eight seconds off his time, and was only 1.2s off the outright electric record set in 2013 by the 850bhp Lola-Drayson B12 69/EV
“I’ve been coming to the Goodwood Festival of Speed for many years, and it never disappoints!” said Heidfeld. “The variety and volume of cars and people is always astonishing. It was great fun to drive up the hill with the target of setting a new electric single-seater record, which we managed to do – but I think we have to come back to challenge the outright electric record! It’s positive to see that next season’s drivetrain, which we showed here for the first time, ran problem-free. We haven’t had many tests with it before so, all-in-all, it was a very good, productive and fun weekend.”
The run also represented the first public outing for Mahindra’s Season 4 M4Electro and team principal Dilbagh Gill was delighted with the way things went.
“We really enjoyed our time at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Not only have we unveiled the M4Electro to the public, but we have also challenged the sceptic’s view of electric vehicles being neither fast nor exciting. It’s been great to invite the fans to walk around the garage and ask as many questions as they like. To showcase the latest Mahindra Racing technology to such an incredible audience, both at Goodwood itself and through the online and social media coverage, was special. To then set a new open-wheel eRecord was the perfect conclusion to a wonderful event.”
You can see Mahindra and Heidfeld in race action in the first-ever Qualcomm New York City, ePrix on July 15/16.
By Renato Bisignani