After years of effort, IndyCar is set to unveil its hybrid engine system this weekend in Ohio

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — On the second floor of an upscale steakhouse in downtown Indianapolis, just days before their engines were to be put to the test against each other in the Indianapolis 500, engineers from Chevrolet and Honda sat side by side and shared a toast.

Together with their rivals, they worked to propel the IndyCar Series into a new era.

In one corner, propped up on a stand, sat the fruit of their labor, a hybrid unit that will fit seamlessly into Dallara’s existing chassis and work with each manufacturer’s existing twin-turbocharged 2.2-liter V-6 engines. Once installed, this one-of-a-kind design promises to radically change the way IndyCar racing is conducted.

“It’s going to be a radical change,” Team Penske driver Scott McLaughlin said. “We think we have a sense of what it’s going to be like from the testing we’ve done previously with the hybrid. But it’s going to be different for everybody.”

They’ll find out exactly how different things are this weekend.

After no issues during a final full test on June 11, the hybrid system is set to debut Sunday at Mid-Ohio in an IndyCar regular-season race presented, appropriately enough, by the 2025 Honda Civic Hybrid.

“I think we’re in a good position to do that,” said Gavin Ward, team principal of Arrow McLaren, whose Formula One teams are already familiar with hybrid systems. “We were keen to have a hybrid system. We were very interested in hybrid systems in general. We’re looking for a new car. We’re keen to catch up in some areas. Frankly, it’s an opportunity for us.”

Back to the future

The hybridization of engines began a few years ago, when Chevrolet and Honda wanted to better align their racing programs with a shift in consumer demand toward hybrid and electric vehicles. U.S. automakers are facing a slowdown in electric vehicle sales, even though invest billions to produce them in hopes that Americans will embrace battery-powered cars. Last year, sales of electric and hybrid vehicles jumped to more than 16% of all light-duty vehicle sales, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Initially, engineers struggled to integrate a completely unique hybrid unit into an IndyCar chassis designed more than a decade ago and work with engines that had been refined for almost as long.

It was only when engineers at Chevrolet and Honda — bitter rivals on the track, but compatriots in this particular effort — each chose to focus on a small part of the larger whole that the project took off.

Chevrolet focused its attention on the generator unit, or MGU, which produces electricity when the driver brakes or changes the accelerator position. Honda focused on the energy storage system, or ESS, where electricity is stored in 20 supercapacitors.

The parts work together in a system that fits into a void inside the bell housing, between the engine and the gearbox.

The hybrid system was first tested last August at Sebring and has logged more than 20,000 miles during its development. Teams have tested it everywhere from ovals like the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and World Wide Technology Raceway to road courses like Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama and Road America in Wisconsin.

“The partnership between Chevrolet and Honda has been phenomenal,” said IndyCar President Jay Frye. “The IndyCar-specific hybrid powertrain is dynamic and an engineering marvel, and we are fully committed to its successful introduction.”

So committed that, despite a myriad of delays that cost IndyCar its chance to introduce the hybrid system earlier this year, the decision was made to implement the technology at Mid-Ohio, right in the middle of the current season.

It would be like changing the rules of football at halftime, except football players aren’t driving 200 mph on a race track.

“We just want to introduce it at the right time,” Ward said, “and I think midseason is pretty aggressive.”

How hybridization works

“The world is changing. We all know that,” said Honda Racing President David Salters. “We want to be part of that change, to be responsible. We want to educate our engineers. And we want to show what we can do. Racing is supposed to have a kind of innovation, and it does. This is new.”

In some ways, IndyCar has had to play catch-up in the hybridization race.

Formula 1 began working on kinetic energy recovery systems 15 years ago, and new engine regulations a decade ago made hybrid engines the norm. Similar designs have been used in prestigious endurance races, such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Daytona, while an entire series, Formula E, has been championing all-electric cars for the past decade.

NASCAR is expected to debut an electric stock car prototype this weekend at its race in Chicago.

In other respects, the product produced by the Chevrolet and Honda engineering teams is entirely new.

Rather than relying on heavy batteries to store energy, like hybrid systems found in other racing series, IndyCar turned to ultracapacitors. While they can’t hold as much energy, they have some advantages: They’re much lighter and provide quick, powerful boosts that can be deployed by drivers similar to existing systems. push button to switch.

The boost provides about 120 additional horsepower, bringing IndyCar’s engine total to more than 800 for the first time in decades.

“This system is really our first step,” said Eric Warren, executive director of global motorsports for General Motors. “It gives us an option that can be adapted to the current car. It’s something that teams can absorb. It gives the driver more control, and as engineers, of course we like to have more options. And it gives you a different strategy for deployment.”

It should also speed up races: drivers could use electric power to power their own engines. In the past, crew members had to use an external electric motor to turn the engine over at the start of a race or if the car stalled.

Arrow McLaren isn’t the only team with experience with hybrids. Most of IndyCar’s major teams — Team Penske, Chip Ganassi Racing, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Andretti Global, among others — have worked with them on their IMSA sports car programs, which went hybrid last year. Andretti has an all-electric Formula E team. IndyCar owner Roger Penske’s son, Jay, also has a Formula E team.

As for drivers, most have tested the hybrid system enough to have an idea of ​​what to expect. But they also admit that there will be a steep learning curve as they learn its nuances, such as when to deploy that extra dose of power.

“I think it’s something that our series needs,” said Santino Ferrucci, who drives for AJ Foyt Racing. “As far as technology goes, adding this hybrid is going to add a whole different dynamic for a driver, and I think it’s going to make the series more challenging and more rewarding for those who can process things quicker and be more adaptable.”

However, the hybrid system also marks the end of an era in IndyCar.

“We grew up falling in love with the sport as it is today. At the same time, if you look at where the world is going, where the manufacturers are going, you have to evolve,” said Arrow McLaren driver Alexander Rossi. “It’s an exciting time for the series to take this step into the future. It’s something that’s important for all of us and the partners involved.”

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