As this year's racing
draws to a close Cadillac is already gearing up for the start of the next racing
season. An all-new Cadillac Northstar Le Mans Prototype (LMP) will take to the
track as Cadillac celebrates its centennial in 2002.
"Constructing an entirely new car and creating a totally new team to
campaign it is a complex undertaking," said Herb Fishel, GM Racing
executive director.
The new Cadillac LMP to be assembled and tested in U.S but will be designed
and fabricated in the UK. Initial testing will take place on American soil.
"We have applied all of the hard lessons we learned in the last two
years to the new Cadillac LMP," said GM Racing LMP program manager Jeff
Kettman. "It really is a clean-sheet-of-paper approach."
The twin-turbo Northstar V8 racing engine will be revised for the 2002
Cadillac LMP. A revised induction system and redesigned cylinder heads will
complement the 180-degree crankshaft and upgraded engine management system that
were introduced in 2001.
"The Northstar engine program has made impressive progress over the
last two seasons, and we fully expect this steady improvement to continue,"
said Kettman. "Working with our development partner McLaren Performance
Technology, GM Racing project engineer Ed Keating and his group have produced an
extremely reliable engine package. With the enhancements that will be introduced
next year, we anticipate improvements in outright speed while maintaining the
reliability and fuel efficiency that are absolutely essential in endurance
racing."
Team Cadillac will compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the third
consecutive year and will enter five ALMS races in North America. The 2002
Cadillac LMP will make its competition debut at the 12-hour race in Sebring in
March.
