Sébastien Buemi won the Drivers' Championship by 2 pointsLucas di Grassi finished the season second, following a controversial crash with Buemi in the final raceNicolas Prost (pictured in 2012) finished the season thirdRenault e.dams won the Teams' Championship
The2015–16 FIA Formula E Championship was the second season of theFIAFormula E championship, held from 24 October 2015 to 3 July 2016. The season saw seven new manufacturers, who were allowed to develop new power trains, specifically the e-motor, the inverter, the gearbox and the cooling system.[1]Nelson Piquet Jr. was the defending Drivers' Champion andRenault e.dams the defending teams' champion. After ten rounds,Sébastien Buemi won the championship by just two points overLucas di Grassi after setting the fastest lap in the final race, where neither driver finished following an opening lap crash and several attempts to set the fastest lap in their second cars. Renault e.dams retained the teams' championship.
The second season was planned to again feature ten teams that were essentially identical from the inaugural season. But, the withdrawal ofTrulli after failing to enter the first two races left nine teams competing for the 2015–16 season.[2] Additionally, there were eight manufacturers of power trains that worked together with or were part of the individual teams. Initially onlyTeam Aguri decided to keep the power train from the previous season, while Dragon used the Venturi power train. Due to the regulations, all teams used the same chassis as in the first season. The eight manufacturers were homologated by the FIA in August 2015.[1] After troublesome preseason testing,Andretti decided to revert to the power train from the inaugural season.[3] All teams used the mandated Spark chassis.
All ten teams from the first season intended to compete in season two, with some name changes due to sponsorship changes or manufacturer cooperations.[1]
Eight teams became manufacturers and produce components either by themselves or with a technology partner: Abt (withSchaeffler), Andretti, e.Dams (withRenault) Mahindra, NEXTEV, Trulli (with Motomatica), Venturi, and Virgin (withDS Automobiles).[1] On 25 August 2015,Andretti decided to retain the powertrain from the previous season.[3]
After failing to pass scrutineering of their new drivetrain for the first two races,Trulli withdrew from the championship, leaving 9 teams to compete for the rest of the season.[2]
After three rounds with the Venturi team,Jacques Villeneuve left due to a "disagreement on the direction of the team". His seat was taken byMike Conway.[31]
The rules were opened up for the second season, in keeping with the series' long-term plan to use a single car over the course of a race instead of two separate chassis. Teams were free to pursue their own development of the powertrain, including the e-motor, inverter, gearbox and cooling system.[36]
The maximum power usage during the race was increased from 150 kilowatts (200 bhp) to 170 kilowatts (230 bhp). The total allowed energy consumption from the battery remained limited to 28 kWh.[37]
The season was scheduled to include 11 races, held between October 2015 and July 2016. The final calendar was approved by theWorld Motor Sport Council in October 2015.[38] However, in May 2016, the Moscow ePrix was cancelled "due to recent and unforeseen circumstances related to road closures", reducing the season to 10 races.[39]