Comments on: Should The IRL Go Radical?

By: hiroshi

hiroshi — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 18:14:23 +0000

Radical is just an escape from failing at convention. Don’t want. Back 2 Basics, plz. No Radical, no Danica, just good drivers, good cars, good manufacturers, and great racing.

By: Mr. 20 Prospect

Mr. 20 Prospect — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 18:34:14 +0000

All I want for Christmas is a fantastic looking, cutting edge technology, open wheel race car that makes EVERYONE who sees it, stop and say “Ooooooo…”

Please Santa! I’ve been a good boy this year!

By: AZZO45

AZZO45 — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 01:59:18 +0000

Cockpit controled adjustable aero (like the 60′s era Jim Hall Chaparral racers)

By: Little birdie

Little birdie — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 23:40:51 +0000

When you see Ben’s machine you won’t be sorry if they race it. Don’t believe the hype, it’s not THAT radical, it doesn’t have any more or less wheels than the cars have now, it doesn’t look like the COT or a Grand Am car. It is different, but in a good way, vastly better looking than the Dallara and it will use something Indy cars and sports cars haven’t been allowed to use in years (hint hint) and it will lose things that aren’t needed in current cars(hint hint). Now, I’ll shut up before I get sued for breeching my contract.

By: John McLallen

John McLallen — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:58:45 +0000

I would like to see a rebirth of the days when you knew what was required and what would pass spec and then race it. Open this baby up and see if a new generation of Andy Granatelli is out there. Why can’t a team come up with something like Penske did and run it? If its cost then bring the cost down. I would like to see Lotus or McLaren find the opportunity to come in.

By: AZZO45

AZZO45 — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 01:48:18 +0000

This optional, non Dallara concept from the ex-LOLA guy must be legit because Robin Miller says he has signed a confidentiality agreement to even review images of it

I would love to see this happen… however I would also like to see Dallara bring out their concept for 2012 I’m sick of Indycar being a spec series :idea CART had something right… March/ Lola/ Penske/ Eagle in the 80s Lola/ Penske/ Reynard/ Swift (briefly) in the 90s.

Chevy & Ford. Mercedes, Toyota, & Honda. Geez even Alfa & Porsche had motors that were put into a variety of chassis. Crowds were NOT an issue back then… coincidence

By: Flintstone Flyer

Flintstone Flyer — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:02:29 +0000

I, for one, love radical thinking. How about three wheels on the outside, and one on the inside?

http://www.jakessite.com/2005/reece/reece.html

By: Dylan

Dylan — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:40:07 +0000

I like the idea of a radical car design, although I worry a little it will turn out like NASCAR’s COT. I don’t think it needs to be similar to the current formula. I hope it looks more like a P1 car from ALMS and Le Mans

By: Travis R

Travis R — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 19:39:11 +0000

I might be the weird one here, but I like the idea of a radically different chassis. The reason for that is because so many people I know can’t tell the difference between an IndyCar and a Formula 1 car. For the uninformed, they just look like they’re not “NASCARs”. So, I guess I would like something that differentiates IndyCar.

By: Martin

Martin — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:28:35 +0000

I, too, think it’s too early to draw any conclusions about chassis selection. I think the only things we can infer from Cavin’s and Miller’s comments are that there is an innovative chassis being worked on, and that it must not be stunningly outrageous or one of them, surely, would find a way to report that, non-disclosure agreement or not.

George, I’m of your generation–the first 500 I saw was in the early 60′s at a theater in Minneapolis on black-and-white closed circuit TV. And it would be fun to have again what boiled down to rules that were essentially “race what you bring.”

But I don’t know how you do that anymore, since we’ve hit the speed limits. There are two of them, it seems to me. The first is the speed limit that keeps cars from going through the catchfence. I suggest that’s the reason we haven’t seen very many 230mph laps at Indianapolis. The second was discovered by CART when they had to cancel the race in Texas in the late 90′s. G forces were so high the drivers couldn’t withstand them.

If the purpose of innovation is to be safer, that’s great. But the point of innovation is also to go faster. But how do you write rules which allow innovation and variety, but still enforce the speed limits?

Heck, all these guys are racers. They like the technical challanges. If it were possible to write simple rules that encouraged innovation and still kept the sport as safe as it has become, they would have been written a long time ago.

Wish that were the case, but I don’t think it is.