Mercedes F1 team to support FE project

The German manufacturer will quit the DTM at the end of 2018 to focus on the all-electric single-seater series, which it will enter at the start of the 2019/20 season.

Mercedes will develop its Formula E powertrain at its Brixworth engine base, which has been responsible for its dominant Formula 1 power unit in recent years, and will now "expand its scope of attention to include the unique challenges of Formula E".

It will also receive support from its F1 operation in Brackley, and its trackside operations will be run by longtime factory partner HWA, which is entering Formula E as a Venturi customer team next season.

"The combined know-how of the Mercedes family at Affalterbach [HWA], Brixworth and Brackley provides the perfect foundations for our new Mercedes EQ Formula E team," said Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff.

"I cannot imagine a better combination to take on this kind of project.

"Formula E is a unique series with some very specific challenges for its teams.

"We know the level of competition is extremely high and we will approach the challenge with energy and humility.

"There can be no other approach when we are up against 10 competitive manufacturers, many of whom have years of experience in the series."

Mercedes believes the experience its High Performance Powertrains division has gained from the hybrid F1 project "will form the cornerstone of the Formula E technical project".

It added that its work on the F1 Energy Recovery System (ERS) "led to rapid in-house learning around both hardware, including the high-power electric motors, and the associated deployment systems which optimise the power delivery of hybrid energy in the racing environment".