Accidents prompt IRL to cut speeds

By Curt Cavin
curt.cavin (AT) indystar (DOT) com
December 12, 2003


In the wake of two horrific crashes in October, the Indy Racing League
is slowing its cars in time for the 2004 Indianapolis 500.

League officials confirmed Thursday that engines are being reduced
from 3.5 liters to 3.0 liters, effective in May.

Engine manufacturers predict the move will cut horsepower by more than
10 percent.

The change should lower speeds by more than 10 mph at the Indianapolis
Motor Speedway. Helio Castroneves won the pole this year at 231.725
mph.

The reduction is driven by the death of promising young driver Tony
Renna at the Speedway on Oct. 22 and Kenny Brack's horrific flip at
Texas Motor Speedway 10 days prior to Renna's accident.

Tony George, the CEO of the Speedway and the IRL, said a change had to
be made. "More than anything for our own peace of mind," he said.

The news of the reduction comes as the IRL is set to release its
findings from Renna's accident. George said he had not read the full
report and was not prepared to comment.

The IRL will have two races before the engine change is implemented,
allowing the manufacturers time to use some of the crankshafts that
will become obsolete. The manufacturers declined to say how much extra
cost they will incur, but they support the decision.

"With the accidents that have happened and the potential for cars
flying into the audience . . . there's no way we can criticize that
this is the right thing to do," Toyota's Lee White said. "We have to
control the speeds, and this is the best way."

White said his staff expects the speeds to fall 15 mph to 17 mph at
the Speedway.

Said Chevrolet's Joe Negri: "We have no problem with it."

George said the goal is to have top speeds at Indy below 220 mph,
where they have not been since the first year of the IRL's new
equipment formula in 1997. Arie Luyendyk won the pole that year at
218.263 mph.

Two IRL drivers recently tested in excess of 230 mph. Without
restrictions, George feared qualifying speeds in May would reach into
the mid-230s.

"We were already at the upper end of our (targets)," George said. "We
got there about a year quicker than we anticipated, perhaps because of
the increased competition."

In other speed-containing measures, IRL senior vice president Brian
Barnhart said aerodynamic changes will be announced in early February.
Reducing the width of the Firestone tires is being discussed.

Negri applauded the IRL for not changing many of the other key engine
components, like the cylinder heads, which would force the
manufacturers to design a new engine and escalate costs. He said the
change will be similar to 2000, when the IRL went from 4.0 liters to
3.5 liters.

"That basically wasn't painful at all," Negri said.

The reduction, which refers to the pistons' travel distance, should be
worth about 90 horsepower, White said.

Toyota initially requested the change to 3.0 liters for the 2003
season, its first in the IRL. The issue arose again in August at the
league's race at Kentucky Speedway.

Indy is the track where speeds need the most control. Not only is the
500 attended by 300,000 people, but its 5/8-mile-long straightaways
allow for some of the season's fastest racing.

Team Penske president Tim Cindric said changing the engine capacity
will be beneficial if the IRL continues to allow the rear wings to be
adjusted by at least five degrees.

"Because some people get (the sweet spot) right and some don't, it
separates the cars in qualifying and, more importantly, in the race,"
he said.

"With drivers at different levels, too, there's even more
opportunities to pass."

------------------

Speed traps
This is the third time the Indy Racing League has altered its V-8
engine since its inception in 1996. That year, the IRL used CART's
existing turbocharged engines. Pole speed at Indy was 233.718 mph (by
Scott Brayton), with Arie Luyendyk running 239.260 mph in practice.
• In 1997, IRL went to 4.0-liter normally aspirated engines; Indy pole
speed fell to 218.263 (by Luyendyk).
• In 2000, IRL went to 3.5-liter normally aspirated engines; Indy pole
speed fell from 225.179 in 1999 (Luyendyk) to 223.471 (by Greg Ray).
• In 2004, IRL will go to a 3.0-liter normally aspirated engine. Last
year's pole speed was 231.725 (by Helio Castroneves).

On 12 Dec 2003 12:24:12 -0800, scottrevision (AT) yahoo (DOT) com
(scottscottscott) wrote:


Why wait to reduce speeds??? Isn't safety important?? What if there
is an accident in the first two races that results in a fatality??

what a piss poor decision. Eat the costs IRL. Its for safety! Isnt
it??

Ok, yeah let's narrow the tires, and make them even MORE dependant on downforce
.........more flying cars.

On 12 Dec 2003 12:24:12 -0800, scottrevision (AT) yahoo (DOT) com (scottscottscott)
wrote:

Yes. The right thing to do and the right way to do it.

"scottscottscott" <scottrevision (AT) yahoo (DOT) com> wrote

Good to see.

Is this report going to be available to anyone, or just circulated within
the IRL? Hate to sound morbid, but it would be interesting to see.

Yikes.

What speeds were CART running at TMS when the drivers were starting to
grey-out?

Ewww. Not the changes I'd prefer to see. Sounds a bit too much like F1's
grooved tyres bullshit - increasing the car's relative reliance on
aerodynamic grip at the expense of mechanical.

Tim
--
----------------
That pain behind your eye sockets is probably your synapses trying in
vain to fire. Take four hundred aspirin and call me in the morning.
- David Melville - Usenet outtake

On Sat, 13 Dec 2003 01:32:28 UTC, "Helicon_One"
<helicon_one (AT) yahoo (DOT) co.spam.uk> wrote:

Or the cars will have to 'gasp', slow down on the turns...

--
David Eckard
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On Sat, 13 Dec 2003 01:32:28 +0000 (UTC), "Helicon_One"
<helicon_one (AT) yahoo (DOT) co.spam.uk> wrote:

I agree. Not sure what the aero changes are gonna be but narrowing the
tire width can bring on more safety issues than it solves.

What I specifically like about the HP reduction is it'll be accomplished
the right way thru smaller motors rather than thru some fuel or rev
restriction. I've never understood why NASCAR (and CART formerly) have
such difficulty understanding something so basic.

Glad to see the manufacturers getting on board so willingly. Hard to
say but I wonder how willing they would have been to make this
relatively quick change sans the Renna incident.

They're talking about the high teens at Indy which probably means the
low teens at Texas. I was hoping for just a tad slower maybe making
Indy the only track with 200MPH+ lap times.

Lots of comment from the IRL, Journos, Manufacturers etc....are there any
comments from any drivers about as to what they think this might achieve?

I.

On Sat, 13 Dec 2003 13:21:05 -0000, "Iain Miller" <donot (AT) spam (DOT) me> wrote:

Haven't read anything but the announcement. But I suspect anything that
gives the drivers more reaction time will be welcomed.

Wondering what the Renna investigation will turn up and how definitive
it can be with practically no visual evidence.

On Sat, 13 Dec 2003 06:51:48 -0600, tjmc <tjmc.enteract (AT) rcn (DOT) com>
wrote:

I also hope they don't make the tires more narrow. Not discounting the
safety factors, but they look too F3ish.

Are they removing the rev limiter? I haven't read all of the info, but
I thought it would stay???

I'm glad the Toyota guy seemed pleased, with a 11th hour decision and
all that...don't want those engine guys pissed off or anything ;-)