Six weeks after the Indianapolis 500 was held in May, the NTT IndyCar Series joined the world of hybrid racing. With the marriage of the series’ twin-turbo V6 motors and spec energy recovery systems becoming its new standard from July onwards, its teams have needed to get back to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and start the learning process around IMS with the new technology used from Mid-Ohio through Nashville.
IndyCar will have 11 teams in attendance – the 10 full-time entrants from 2024 plus the Indy-only Dreyer & Reinbold Racing outfit – on October 10-11 who will have the 60hp on-demand ERS units installed and a range of activities to work though on Thursday and Friday. Previous iterations of the hybrid package were tested on the 2.5-mile oval during its years-long development process, but this week’s outing marks the debut of the system in its as-raced configuration.
Beyond the educational items that will be gathered by the teams, the test will also give IndyCar its first accurate picture of how the weight of the ERS units, which add 105 pounds to the cars, and the mechanical drag produced by the ERS’s motor generator units, will affect lap speeds.
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Based on the results, IndyCar is expected to decide whether changes should be made in peak power output from the Chevy and Honda internal combustion engines and/or an adjustment to the maximum power from the ERS units—and a possible increase in deployment time—to counteract any performance losses. No new aerodynamic components will be included in the test, but Firestone will have a range of new tire compounds and constructions to be evaluated during the visit.
Thursday’s schedule starts with a three-hour window for Arrow McLaren’s Nolan Siegel to complete his Rookie Orientation Program from 9am-12pm. Siegel went through ROP earlier in the year with Dale Coyne Racing, but after failing to qualify, the 19-year-old needs to go through the process once more ahead of next year’s event.
Once Siegel is finished, IndyCar will make use of the rest of the day as it runs through its fact-finding hybrid mission with Andretti Global’s Marcus Ericsson, Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou, and Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden from 1-5pm.
Friday’s running from 10am to 12pm and 1-5pm is reserved for the 11 teams to use the track as desired, led by AJ Foyt Racing’s Santino Ferrucci, Andretti’s Ericsson, Arrow McLaren’s Christian Lundgaard, Ganassi’s Palou, a driver that’s yet to be named for Dale Coyne Racing, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing’s Ryan Hunter-Reay, Ed Carpenter Racing’s Alexander Rossi, Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Conor Daly, Meyer Shank Racing’s Helio Castroneves, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Graham Rahal, and Penske’s Newgarden.