dp35

After all that, this does not look "modern" or even significantly different than the current (ugly, outdated, slab-sided...) Indy cars. At least this one will actually be as cheap as it looks.

The other good news is that the rules will allow others to build "aero kits", to change/improve the looks & performance.

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/artic...-car-revealed/

DHI

Looks like something ripped off the cover of a vintage Popular Mechanics magazine.

This will take some getting used to.

dp35

Those side pods literally look like something I could build in my garage. The good news is Dalara will sell them along with the other body work for "only" $70,000.

Circuit Motorsports

The body work that isn't included in the chassis must be under 70K that includes the wings and such that have much more variablility than years past.

The chassis with the required standard bits is 350,000. I think the side pods are part of the standard bits. They wanted something that would minimize any chance of wheel overlap.

You think they would have learned from the last go round the Dallara makes UGLY cars.

dp35

I understand that, and the other designs shown did incorporate this. But this one has huge openings behind the front wheels, larger than any other open wheeled car I can think of. Makes no sense.

Circuit Motorsports

No way for the wheels to get interlocked other than pulling a Webber though with that big sidepod shielding the rear wheels. The closing of the gap behind the rear wheels keeps that side to side interlocking from happening just as well as covering the entire gap.

The other thing the sidepods now are supposed to do is incorporate more crush structures.

mdrums

Well this was not one of the designs I voted for.

Matt Romanowski

it's fugly.

gums

It was actually shown with multiple side pod config's, this was just one, and they may be interchangeable for different circuit types. Agreed, this one is "fugly".

Larry Herman

Looks like some said "Dallara - build us a delta wing car that will actually work".

Hey what did you expect? It's the IRL.

CCA

Why they couldn't have used the Panoz car that Champ Car ran for 1 season, I don't know. It was easier to look at then the current car and this new thing. Or if they wanted a semi-spec series why not use the F3 chassis and open up the engine suppliers & rules a little. They look modern and are already proven and well sorted. That would save the teams some $$ and provide for close competition.

Also, I heard Gil de Ferran, a team owner on the selection panel, speaking of the new car. He was saying Indy Cars are not easy to drive and we don't want the new car to be, we want the driver’s ability to come through. Personally, I thought this was stupid. Drivers want their cars to be easy to drive to the limit. Not some unpredictable beast that may throw you into the wall, off the track or into a rival; possibly leading to injury, death or damaged cars. Difficulty to drive shouldn't be one of the parameters of the car design. It's a race car, aim for easy to drive and let poor setup take care of "difficult to drive".

BrianKeithSmith

AMEN!

Bryan Watts

That's actually a pretty fair price for developed wings, sidepods, and engine cover. Especially when you consider what all goes into the sidepods...crash structure, mounting for hoses, radiators, etc. And Dallara will sell their aero kit for for $45,000 for the first year.

Bryan Watts

For those hung up on looks...have you actually read about the Formula? It's a pretty safe bet that few, if any cars, will run the "stock" Dallara aero at all IMO. The top teams will develop their own, over time, perhaps some other aero companies will produce an option or 2, and the smaller teams will buy from the big guys for a max price of $70K. It will work a lot like a claiming rule...if Penske develops a killer setup, they'll have to provide it to any other teams that want to buy it from them. With aero development allowed, the oval setup will look VERY different from the road course setup, which is a good thing.

Bryan Watts

Side pods will be "open" for development, along with the front/rear wings and engine covers. Will be interesting to see how much development is allowed.

Quoted from here:
http://www.indycar.com/news/show/55-...tion-for-2012/
Personally, I liked some of the other "starting points" better, but it's hard to argue with the rules setup IMO, no matter what chassis was chosen. A standard chassis with room for development in the looks/aero department, multiple engine manufacturers/layouts, and very fair costs.