Extreme H testing continued at Fontjoncouse in France last week, with a group of Extreme E’s top drivers, as well as a World Rallycross race winner getting their first taste of the hydrogen-fueled Pioneer 25 set to race next year.
Up to now, testing of the new car has been exclusively carried out by Extreme E podium finisher Hedda Hosaas and two-time Le Mans winner and Pikes Peak record holder Romain Dumas, but among the latest testing contingent was Kevin and Timmy Hansen — both of whom tested the car’s predecessor, Extreme E’s Odyssey 21, early in its gestation.
“It’s crazy to think that five years ago me and my brother were testing the Extreme E car for the first time, in France as well,” said Kevin Hansen. “And here we are, five years later, with the brand-new future of Extreme E, Extreme H, and to see how far this series has come as well, it’s absolutely fantastic.”
The latest testers echoed the positive reaction of the car’s initial testers, with the younger Hansen saying, “It’s really fascinating to try a new part of the future of motorsport. It’s been a really good test so far, trying to feel the development of this new Extreme H car, working with the team to work on every bit of the car, from wipers to the tires — everything we can imagine when you start from scratch with a new car. So it’s super exciting times, and hopefully we can have a great championship next year.”
Hansen’s elder brother, 2019 World RX champion Timmy Hansen was impressed by how far the new car has advanced from its Extreme E predecessor.
“They’ve done fantastic work,” he said. “They have put a lot of effort into improving both on the Extreme E car, but they’ve taken all the learnings from that, improved it, made it wider, longer, improved the suspension, and, of course, the hydrogen system — massively complex in the car — but it’s great to drive.”
To the uninitiated, the Pioneer 25 looks broadly similar to the Odyssey 21, but the car’s increased mass — up from 1,900 kg to 2,200 kg (4,189 lbs to 4,850 lbs) on account of the hydrogen fuel cell and the subsequent improved safety measures that come with it — has been a standout observation.
“There are a lot of similarities, so I do feel kind of at home,” said Timmy Hansen. “Now you sit in the middle of the car, the suspension is working a bit differently, you feel the weight a bit.
“Now you have the hydrogen system as well, so you feel the car is heavier, but overall, you can tell it’s a better car. It’s a better design, and there’s so many more tools for the teams to use to optimize the setup for each track, which will be very interesting.”
But while the mass and size increase might seem like a negative, especially in the context of a racing car, it does bring with it benefits as well.
“It’s a bit of a beast, honestly,” says Catie Munnings, who has been teamed with Timmy Hansen at Andretti since the first season of Extreme E in 2021. “We’re storing hydrogen in the car, so because of that, we’ve got a lot more protection. We’ve got a 15 milimeter steel plate on the roof, we’ve got a lot of side protection and you can see how wide the door is…
“And obviously from the driving side we have to counter that and predict that it’s going to be a bit heavier. But because of that, we’ve got better (suspension) geometry with the car this time. The chassis handles better in the corners.”
Niclas Gronholm, who hasn’t competed in Extreme E, but has eight World RX wins, a trio of top-three championship finishes, and a Nitrocross podium to his name, also pointed out that the increased dimensions of the car brings about a positive driving experience.
“It’s impressive how you can take all the bumps and all the big rocks and jumps,” he noted. “That was a pretty cool experience.
“It was better than I expected in terms of how you can play with the car. Even if it’s a long wheelbase and the car is pretty big, you can still kind of approach it with the similar driving technique that you use in a rally car or rallycross car or whatever smaller race car. So I think from that perspective, it was even better than I thought.”
Much of the focus of the Pioneer 25 so far has, of course, centered around the hydrogen fuel cell technology and the improved driving dynamics, but ultimately it’s still a racing car. And Kevin Hansen says there will be improvements in that regard, too.
“I think, compared to the Extreme E car, this car feels bigger, it feels heavier, but it does feel, for sure, more racy,” he says. “It’s a step forward in the right direction.”
Timmy Hansen added that the new car will encourage teams to work harder, with teams needing to extract the most out of it.
“It’s more stable on the ground; I’m sure we’ll be able to have a great race with this. I think this car will race in a slightly different way,” he said. “There will be a bigger difference between the team that puts in a lot of effort versus the team that doesn’t, because there are more things you’re able to do with this car. And maybe that could lead to one team being strong in one area and another team not.
“There is always fine-tuning in the setup, but that will come later when we’re with the team, to set the car up for each single driver.”
While improving upon the previous generation has been a key focus during the transition from Extreme E to Extreme H, dispelling myths around hydrogen technology is another. And after her first taste of the car, Munnings is entirely onboard.
“The biggest misconception with hydrogen is the safety side,” she said. “But when you see the crash testing that it’s gone through with the FIA, it’s insane.
“I’d say it’s actually one of the safest if not the safest off-road cars out there now. And I think that the testing it has gone through has made it safer than some of the combustion cars out there.”
Gronholm, whose “day job” is racing in a series that pits combustion against electric cars, is excited to see another option being brought to the table.
“It’s positive that we have these alternatives, that it’s not only internal combustion and electric, but there is new technology coming in,” he says. “I’m positive that it’s not only black and white, with only electric and fuel. I’m positive that they’re actually experimenting with how it could work — that’s good.”
