INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indianapolis Motor Speedway returned to its original purpose Thursday, serving as a test track for new automotive technology.
Lessons learned about IndyCar’s new hybrid car could have an impact throughout next season.
Four drivers, including reigning series champion Alex Palou, took to the 2.5-mile brick Thursday in race cars equipped with paddles and buttons used to store and deploy extra energy during track runs. We did laps in the yard.
Early reviews were mixed.
“It’s not fast at all,” said 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi. “Right now, I’m experimenting and experimenting with different types of theories. I think you’ll see more benefits running in a group than running alone.”
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The Arrow McLaren driver spent his final two F1 seasons in 2014 and 2015 driving hybrids in the then-new series, but the cars are not the same. Instead, they are series-specific.
The new part fits between the engine and gearbox of these rear-drive cars, but the hybrid concept functions similarly to the push-to-pass components IndyCar drivers have previously used.
The biggest differences are more weight, less speed, and more work in the cockpit.
two-time series champion 2018 Indy winner Will Power also tested the car. Anyone who has been in one of the four cars we tested at Sebring, or anyone who has tested at five different venues, understands that. But like everyone else, he’s still figuring out how to get the car to work at its best.
“I haven’t driven in traffic yet. That’s what’s really important,” Power said. “I don’t see anything going wrong. It’s very simple. You pull the paddle and it regenerates (the energy). You push the button and it deploys (the energy). But this has to be managed in the cockpit. It’s another Tour that’s going to be tough. I have to say it’s pretty hectic on the first lap, just like qualifying (for the 500).”
Testing isn’t the only work in progress.
The manufacturer has so far only had four vehicles available for testing. They hope to add six more cars (one for each IndyCar team) before another test is held in December.
That’s not all. Series officials are still discussing new guidelines that apply to technology not previously used on the series. Drivers seem to even be wondering if the system can be deployed on road and street courses with more corners and braking areas.
“When I left Barber, I think we were at a stage where we were automating everything, manualizing everything, trying automatic deployments and manual regions,” Parow said. “So I think we’re trying out the most effective formula.”
There are other questions, such as reliability, especially under the long, hot race day conditions of the fastest race in Indianapolis. IndyCar president Jay Frye said engineers from the series’ two engine manufacturers, Chevrolet and Honda, are collaborating on what he expects will be the spec parts of the car.
“All we’re interested in is participating in the various sustainable technologies that are out there and allowing our engineers to develop and work with them,” said Honda Hybrid Project Leader Matt Niles. I think so,” he said. “Then you come here, you come to such an extreme environment, you test it in races and see what it does in the future.”
That could mean Indy fans adopting a different strategy.
“If you’re in the lead, you can’t regenerate. If you regenerate, you’ll be overtaken,” Palou said. “If you’re in second place, you can recover little by little so that the third place (car) doesn’t pass you, but not too much. You can play actively in the third run, and if you can, you can actively develop it and get the third We can pass from the main to the second and have more movement and I think that’s what we want.”
“Not this year, not next year,” Power said. “We have more capacity. But reliability comes first, and then I think we can incrementally increase the amount of power we use during deployment.”
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