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Rüsselsheim/Le Castellet. Opel is setting the next milestone on the way to the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship with the new Opel GSE 27FE celebrating its world premiere at the Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet in southern France. With the prototype of the GEN4 race car and its striking design, the brand with the Blitz bolt is showing the next chapter of its Formula E commitment – for the first time live on the racetrack.
“We have a clear strategy with Opel GSE: Race. Drive. Play. And 2026 is clearly dominated by racing,” announced Rebecca Reinermann, Vice President Marketing. “We are showing how exciting and at the same time relevant electric performance is for and at Opel.”
Over 800 hp: Opel GSE 27FE for the new era of Formula E
“What we are unveiling today is much more than a prototype,” said Jörg Schrott, Team Principal of the Opel GSE Formula E Team. “The Opel GSE 27FE is a strategic technology accelerator for our development in series production and GSE performance models in particular.”
The Opel GSE 27FE is the race car for the GEN4 generation of the Formula E World Championship, which starts with the coming season. The prototype has permanent all-wheel drive, an output of over 800 hp, achieves a recuperation output of up to 700 kW, thus taking electric motorsport to a completely new level. Other strategic elements such as different aerodynamic configurations promise even more excitement during the races.
The preparation is correspondingly extensive. “After many intensive hours on the test bench, we are now integrating the entire powertrain into the car and will be on the racetrack from the beginning of May,” explained Jörg Schrott. In the coming months, test bench runs and test operations on the track will alternate in a targeted manner. “We are currently planning to complete around 15 days of testing on various European racetracks before the start of the season.”
Design with high-speed DNA
The design of the GSE 27FE follows a clear idea: If a car is so fast – what does it have to look like so that this speed is conveyed even when stationary? The answer is provided by the striking ‘Lightspeed’ graphics of the body. The decal with strong yellow accents ties in with Opel’s motorsport history and racing DNA with its eye-catching yellow design.
“With the design of the Opel GSE 27FE, we want to make speed and performance unmistakably visible even before our GEN4 race car hits the track,” said Pierre-Olivier Garcia, Head of Opel Global Brand Design. “‘OMG! in a blink’ perfectly describes this intent: immediate effect, maximum presence and the focused energy of modern electric racing. Every line, every surface, every detail is driven by a clear vision – precision engineering expressed through design made in Germany.”
The Opel Compass features prominently at the front and clearly identifies the vehicle as an Opel. At the same time, the GSE 27FE continues to develop the GSE design language introduced in 2025 with the Mokka GSE Rally – from a rugged rally look to a new visual world designed for high-tech and high-speed Formula E.
The final design, with which the Opel GSE 27FE will make its world championship debut, will be shown in October as part of Opel’s presence at the 2026 Paris Motor Show, which will also focus on the GSE line-up.
Sophia Flörsch on the track for the first time in the GEN4 prototype
The first driver to pilot the GEN4 prototype on the racetrack was test and development driver Sophia Flörsch. The 25-year-old German completed the first kilometres in Le Castellet. The Munich-based driver will be closely involved in development from the very beginning – from simulator sessions to the upcoming test drives with the GSE 27FE and other generations of Formula E.
“After initial tests in the simulator, to drive here for the first time in Opel’s Formula E GEN4 race car is an indescribable moment. The brutal torque, this completely new performance – it feels like the future of motorsport, and I’m ready to push the limits,” said Sophia Flörsch.
GSE all along the line
In Le Castellet, Opel shows how closely Formula E and the GSE models interact: In addition to the Opel GSE 27FE, the Opel Mokka GSE, the prototype of the new Opel Corsa GSE, the Opel Manta GSe and the Opel Mokka GSE Rally complete some laps together. At the Circuit Paul Ricard, Opel is showcasing the entire range of its electric performance: from a rally competition car to a concept icon to sporty production models and the future Formula E racing car.
“We are impressively demonstrating how all elements of our GSE story come together today,” said Rebecca Reinermann. “We are consistently expanding GSE as an emotionally charged performance brand. Formula E plays a key role in this because it combines technology, high-tech innovation, sustainability, fan culture and enthusiasm in a unique way.”
Formula E as the emotional face of GSE
Opel officially announced its entry into Formula E as a German works team in mid-March and is using the World Championship as a global stage for its all-electric high-performance models with the start of the GEN4 era. The abbreviation GSE stands for ‘Grand Sport Electric’ and thus for particularly dynamic electric vehicles. After the Mokka GSE last year, the new Corsa GSE will be launched in 2026. “Formula E is the fastest growing racing series in the world – and that’s exactly where Opel belongs,” insisted Rebecca Reinermann. “We don’t want to reserve this uncompromising performance just for motorsport professionals. Opel customers should also be able to enjoy this sporty, direct ‘OMG! driving experience’. That’s why we are further expanding our GSE series model range with the Corsa GSE.”