New Indycar concepts............seriously?

[Mr Red Barron]

I mean, come on......i'm all for bringing a change to make single seater racing more exciting........but this???????

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/81386

Surely they can't think they're going to be taken seriously with a car like this? I mean, how many drugs have they taken?

Now this:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/81362

is still pretty radical, but I can see the design growing on me.

What do all you guys think? Is this the shape of things to come?

[Martin Keene]

I used to race in an indoor kart league with a team called Desperate Measures.

'nuff said...

[Graebob]

I actually like the first one

The second one looks pretty cool though, and I like the "mushroom busters", needs a better name though!

[LocoBlade]

I was going to post a similar thing, that Deltawing design is just ludicrous. I can sort-of seeing it work on ovals but Indycars now go to quite a few road courses and with a front track like that with the seemingly overly wide rear track, it's surely going to handle abysmally and make passing on narrow circuits all but impossible.

Great for the next Batman film though

[Asterix]

1st one will stay on paper - the 2nd looks very traditional with a bit of extra bodywork at the front.

[Scuffers]

looks like a 3-wheeler!

that will corner well *NOT*

[Blue Meanie]

I've often said that we need to have alsorts of designs to give the designers and engineers some space to let their imagination run free. Those designs would be cool as fook!

[ErnestM]

Regarding number two:







Where's the monkey?

[mattikake]

I was going to comment on this the other night, but got distracted.

There's some good stuff on the Swift website: http://www.swiftengineering.com/news_press-izod.sh... conceptually speaking... and I like the way the designs are a result of 'mushroom busting', than a result of commercialism. Most of these designs look pretty workable, but pretty typical of the-mag-that-lost-it's-head[up-it's-own-rse] to concentrate on the more radical interpretations...

[LocoBlade]

The thing they're perhaps forgetting is that one of the reasons that Indycar is still reasonably big in the motorsport world is because of the quality of drivers such as Franchitti, Dixon, Wilson, Castroneves etc, who are as good as anyone outside F1 and probably at least the equal of many in it.

One of the draws for this calibre of driver is the fact they're staying in open wheel racing and some see it as a stepping stone back towards F1, as Glock, Villeneuve and Bordais did. If the series runs what amounts to an LMP sports car with three wheels, do they honestly think they're going to attract similar calibre drivers in future?

[skwdenyer]

Mr Red Barron said:

I mean, come on......i'm all for bringing a change to make single seater racing more exciting........but this???????

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/81386

According to DeltaWing, this is the future of open-wheel racing. Unfortunately, they forgot to leave the wheels open...

[Flat_Steve]

Ferrari submitted a design too:

[SkinnyBoy]

when they look like this, I'll be interested

Edited by SkinnyBoy on Thursday 11th February 07:18

[kambites]

I quite like that first one.

[GT Kodiak]

The first one could be a bit of a sleeper because although it's not a bulls testicles on wheels aesthetically as the second one appears to be imagine in a race (providing it can handle, dont rule out air brakes and wind deflectors built into that nosecone) whereby the leading car has the oppositions nosecone trying to push a gap up the inside of every corner, a possibility given is slim nature...

I completely agree that the second one would probably provide a better race series given it's Mushroom Buster engineering...

Neither seem particularly bad ideas though...

[Mazda Baiter]

SkinnyBoy said:

when they look like this, I'll be interested

Edited by SkinnyBoy on Thursday 11th February 07:18

Already been done in 1967.

[A911DOM]

Surely the first design is only ever going to be any good going in a straight line - and Im pretty sure the drag racing guys have that covered.

The second design looks very nice and swoopy lines etc, but whats the point in trying to make it look all modern and racey, when the current design and the F1 design are clearly more efficient and effective.

Good bit of publicity, but what are they trying to achieve?

[Streetrod]

Mazda Baiter said:

SkinnyBoy said:

when they look like this, I'll be interested

Edited by SkinnyBoy on Thursday 11th February 07:18

Already been done in 1967.

Cosmic Motors I have the book and absolutely love the designs. As for the original designs at the top of the page, having read the article in Autosport this morning I can see where they are coming from. Current Indy Cars are massively inefficient and out of date. A lot of the science on these new designs makes sense.

Also would it not be cool to radically shake up the norm. Think of the interest these casr would produce if they ever made it onto the grid. Basically they would fore fill all my boy hood Buck Rogers fantasies in one fell swoop. Bring it on I say.

[chevronb37]

While I applaud any desire to increase efficiency and approach matters in a new way, the Deltawing car looks ridiculous. The delta wing may have worked for Concorde and the Vulcan, but Watkins Glen and Long Beach? I'm not convinced.

Indycar has a golden opportunity to create a new, exciting vehicle. With a spec. formula they can use tyre compounds and aero to control corner speeds, employ every weight saving measure in the book and hook Honda up for a fuel efficient engine. It's an open goal for new technology and a car which will sound good, go well and promote environmental interests. Talk to anyone with an interest in American open-wheel racing and they'll say the 1990s CART days were probably the highlight so they need to consider some serious firepower. 300bhp, even in the most lightweight chassis I don't think will cut the mustard. I would suggest adding 500bhp to that figure.

But, I don't live in the States and bar attending the three Champ Car rounds in the UK at Rockingham and Brands Hatch, I'm hardly a regular spectator so there is doubtless a more crucial demographic they need to be tapping up. I hope they don't make a mess of this...

[paulmurr]

Holy stupid looking car Batman...