| By Mark Glendenning | |
| AUTOSPORT US editor | |
|
You don't have to know a lot about IndyCar racing to be able to look at a picture of the recently-retired Dallara IR03 alongside the new DW12 and spot a few differences.
After nine years with a chassis that wasn't intended to form the basis of a spec car, last nearly a decade, or even to race on road and street courses (at least, initially), the series has aggressively pursued change for the coming season. And change is what the teams have got.
The DW12 is faster, safer and far more modern than the car that came before it. Visually, the most striking features are the enormous sidepods and chunky bodywork sections behind the wheels. Both were designed with safety in mind – the sidepods are designed to prevent wheels interlocking; the rear blocks to lessen the chances of cars launching each other skywards.
The late Dan Wheldon began testing the car midway through 2011 LAT |
Dallara's head of research and development for the IndyCar project, Andrea Toso, believes that the new bodywork could lead to a new style of racing.
"Drivers will not be able to bang wheels together, so there might be a different form [of racing]," he says.
"They will probably be banging bodywork. With old cars, when you first designed seatbelts, all of a sudden the drivers felt more secure. If you happened to drive without the seatbelt, then you felt unsafe, and you got slower. So when they all have the seatbelts, they will try harder. And the same for the body on the new car. I hope they will not try too hard and be too aggressive. They will learn. But it gives them more opportunity to bump each other."
Plans to allow third parties to design and run their own bodywork have been put on ice until 2013 due to concerns from some teams about the cost, but the current aero kit has already been tweaked since the car was first launched – an additional safety structure has been installed behind the front wheels and a new rear-wing configuration and rear-wheel guard have been developed especially for Indianapolis.
The changes continue under the skin, most obviously with the engine. Two new (or rather one returning and one new) manufacturers; Chevrolet and Lotus, have arrived to join Honda, and they'll all use 2.2-litre V6 turbo units. Honda has opted for a single-turbo system, while Chevrolet and Lotus will use twin turbos.
Pullrod suspension has given way to a pushrod system, while carbon brakes will be used at all circuits rather than just ovals. Up until now, the cars were fitted with steel brakes at road and street courses. In the cockpit, the foot clutch has been dropped in favour of a hand-operated system.
Chevrolet returns as an engine supplier, while Lotus joins as well LAT |
Even less obvious from the outside are the aerodynamic changes beneath the car. The previous generation chassis generated most of its downforce from above, and the underneath was more or less just going along for the ride. For this year, more work has been put into harnessing the power of the air moving beneath the car.
IndyCar project manager Tony Cotman was one of those responsible for getting the 2012 chassis concept into shape, and he believes that the DW12 is reasonably faithful to the original philosophy.
"The only real difference is that we originally intended the cars to look a lot different, aero kit-wise, in 2012," he says.
"But I don't think that's a big deal. There's a lot of work to be done on chassis development by the teams and I think they probably don't need the headache of the aero kit right now. There's a lot of development still to be done from the engine manufacturers too, and they don't need the headache either."
The initial reaction to the DW12 from teams and drivers was, at best, cautious. Some of the concern was justified, particularly with regard to the weight distribution problems that the car suffered early on.
But some of it had more to do with a simple resistance to change. Teams are still a long way out of their comfort zone with the new car, but by the end of pre-season testing it was quicker than its predecessor and drivers were becoming a lot more enthusiastic in their appraisals.
The DW12 has a highly-distinctive rear end LAT |
Cotman expects a few growing pains in the first few races, but argues that this is simply one more reason to tune in to the season opener at St Petersburg this weekend.
"The racing is going to be good," he said. "Will there be issues? Absolutely. Will engines blow up? Absolutely. But from my selfish perspective, that's all great for racing. I think the winner of the championship this season will be whoever gets through the early part of the season without making stupid mistakes. And I think there will be some surprises early on.
"The good teams will always rise to the top; it's just a matter of how long it will take. Looking at testing, it's not going to take very long. But like it or not, they're going to have their issues too."
| By Mark Glendenning | |
| AUTOSPORT US editor | |
|
You don't have to know a lot about IndyCar racing to be able to look at a picture of the recently-retired Dallara IR03 alongside the new DW12 and spot a few differences.
After nine years with a chassis that wasn't intended to form the basis of a spec car, last nearly a decade, or even to race on road and street courses (at least, initially), the series has aggressively pursued change for the coming season. And change is what the teams have got.
The DW12 is faster, safer and far more modern than the car that came before it. Visually, the most striking features are the enormous sidepods and chunky bodywork sections behind the wheels. Both were designed with safety in mind – the sidepods are designed to prevent wheels interlocking; the rear blocks to lessen the chances of cars launching each other skywards.
The late Dan Wheldon began testing the car midway through 2011 LAT |
Dallara's head of research and development for the IndyCar project, Andrea Toso, believes that the new bodywork could lead to a new style of racing.
"Drivers will not be able to bang wheels together, so there might be a different form [of racing]," he says.
"They will probably be banging bodywork. With old cars, when you first designed seatbelts, all of a sudden the drivers felt more secure. If you happened to drive without the seatbelt, then you felt unsafe, and you got slower. So when they all have the seatbelts, they will try harder. And the same for the body on the new car. I hope they will not try too hard and be too aggressive. They will learn. But it gives them more opportunity to bump each other."
Plans to allow third parties to design and run their own bodywork have been put on ice until 2013 due to concerns from some teams about the cost, but the current aero kit has already been tweaked since the car was first launched – an additional safety structure has been installed behind the front wheels and a new rear-wing configuration and rear-wheel guard have been developed especially for Indianapolis.
The changes continue under the skin, most obviously with the engine. Two new (or rather one returning and one new) manufacturers; Chevrolet and Lotus, have arrived to join Honda, and they'll all use 2.2-litre V6 turbo units. Honda has opted for a single-turbo system, while Chevrolet and Lotus will use twin turbos.
Pullrod suspension has given way to a pushrod system, while carbon brakes will be used at all circuits rather than just ovals. Up until now, the cars were fitted with steel brakes at road and street courses. In the cockpit, the foot clutch has been dropped in favour of a hand-operated system.
Chevrolet returns as an engine supplier, while Lotus joins as well LAT |
Even less obvious from the outside are the aerodynamic changes beneath the car. The previous generation chassis generated most of its downforce from above, and the underneath was more or less just going along for the ride. For this year, more work has been put into harnessing the power of the air moving beneath the car.
IndyCar project manager Tony Cotman was one of those responsible for getting the 2012 chassis concept into shape, and he believes that the DW12 is reasonably faithful to the original philosophy.
"The only real difference is that we originally intended the cars to look a lot different, aero kit-wise, in 2012," he says.
"But I don't think that's a big deal. There's a lot of work to be done on chassis development by the teams and I think they probably don't need the headache of the aero kit right now. There's a lot of development still to be done from the engine manufacturers too, and they don't need the headache either."
The initial reaction to the DW12 from teams and drivers was, at best, cautious. Some of the concern was justified, particularly with regard to the weight distribution problems that the car suffered early on.
But some of it had more to do with a simple resistance to change. Teams are still a long way out of their comfort zone with the new car, but by the end of pre-season testing it was quicker than its predecessor and drivers were becoming a lot more enthusiastic in their appraisals.
The DW12 has a highly-distinctive rear end LAT |
Cotman expects a few growing pains in the first few races, but argues that this is simply one more reason to tune in to the season opener at St Petersburg this weekend.
"The racing is going to be good," he said. "Will there be issues? Absolutely. Will engines blow up? Absolutely. But from my selfish perspective, that's all great for racing. I think the winner of the championship this season will be whoever gets through the early part of the season without making stupid mistakes. And I think there will be some surprises early on.
"The good teams will always rise to the top; it's just a matter of how long it will take. Looking at testing, it's not going to take very long. But like it or not, they're going to have their issues too."