IRL Engine Announcement Leaves Many Unanswered Questions

Members of the IRL's ICONIC Advisory Committee, from left: Retired Air Force general Bill Looney, TMS president and general manager Eddie Gossage, former IRL vice president of competition Tony Cotman, IRL president of operations and competition Brian Barnhart, former driver and current team owner Gil de Ferran and IRL CEO Randy Bernard.

Members from the Indy Racing League’s “Innovative, Open-Wheel, New, Industry-Relevant, Cost-Effective” (ICONIC) Advisory Committee addressed the league’s new engine initiative at Texas Motor Speedway, but the briefing left more questions than answers.

Few technical specifics were addressed in the 30-minute press conference, which was cut short before reporters had the opportunity to ask about which, if any, engine manufacturers had expressed interest in joining Honda in the Izod IndyCar Series.

As previously announced after the Indianapolis 500, the league will implement new race engines in the IndyCar Series, beginning in 2012. League rules will dictate engines of no more than six cylinders, a displacement of up to 2.4 liters. The engines will be fueled with ethanol and will be equipped with turbo chargers. The current Honda engine is a naturally aspired 3.5 liter, V8.
Many of the technical specifics will hinge on what chassis the ICONIC Committee will recommend to IRL officials. Committee members will leave Texas after the IndyCar Series race and head to Indianapolis, where they will hear presentations from five finalists that submitted proposals for the next car to race in the series.

So for the time being, committee members declined to specify whether the new engine will be a stressed or non-stressed member. Probably one of the most important variables other than the specifics already outlined is whether the engine will be a structural component of the car’s frame, or will be independent of the car’s frame. Currently, the Honda engines are stressed members. In addition, it is yet to be determined how fuel flow will be controlled.

“We’re looking seriously at monitoring the fuel flow rate in the total fuel allocation as our priorities to start with, along perhaps with a maximum boost level as well,” said IRL president of operations and competition Brian Barnhart.

But what committee members readily discussed was what impact the new engine, along with the new chassis, will have on American open-wheel racing, a sport that’s struggled to find its place among fans in the face of NASCAR’ massive popularity.

One of the main goals of the new engine rules is to attract new manufacturers in the sport, which the committee believes will increase on track speeds (particularly at road and street courses), promote better competition and reduce the cost to compete in the series. By creating a loose framework, that opens the door for more manufacturers to explore interest in participating.

“The burden is on us to attract manufacturers to the series,” Barnhart said. “We feel developing the rules in conjunction with the automotive manufacturers is a more rational approach. We feel it’s more inclusive and welcoming, rather than creating a rules package that is an obstacle to participation.”

Of course, all these initiatives are aimed at the ultimate goal of bringing more race fans to the series. Fans are clamoring for more diversity and better performance on track, said Texas Motor Speedway president and general manager Eddie Gossage.

“The thing we hear from [fans] is they want great performance, they expect high-quality performance out of the Indy Racing League,” he said. “If there are more manufacturers, there are more people marketing, advertising their involvement in the sport.”

Gossage has moderated two fan forums, one at Indianapolis, the second at TMS. Despite all the variety that could be coming to the engines of the IndyCar Series, fans want more American drivers racing. It’s important to fans, Gossage said, adding he’s heard suggestions from fans that he never would have thought of.

“You get great ideas by listening to the fans,” Gossage said.