At each IZOD IndyCar Series race, Honda Performance Development and technical partner Ilmor Engineering provide trackside support (an engineer for two cars), additional technical specialists, logistics support and management personnel.
Away from pit lane, Honda is involved in multiple IZOD IndyCar Series race sponsorships, while American Honda provides major advertising support. Honda also supplies the safety cars and trucks used in the series. Above, Helio Castroneves signs autographs and Dan Wheldon poses for a photo during an open house for HPD associates.
Click it: Check out the HPD Web site | Printable IZOD IndyCar Series schedule
As Honda Performance Development ramps up for the 17-race season, Development Division Manager Roger Griffiths fields a few questions about life in the off-season at the Santa Clarita, Calif., base.
Q: Relay what associates in the various Honda Performance Development departments and the engineering groups do during the mid-October to mid-February off-season?
A: We're actually quite busy this time of the year, but in ways you might not expect. One of the biggest projects we have right now is called 'program maintenance,' where we address issues that came up during 2009. Logistical problems, unanticipated expenses, areas where we can improve our efficiency and updating our data base are all included as we plan for 2010.
We're also working on some engineering programs, such as the installation of reverse gears for the season, and our ongoing work to develop a gear lockout so drivers can't pull out of their pit boxes with the fuel hose still attached. Finally, as you would expect, engines are being rebuilt and budgets prepared. And there's been a fair bit of testing going on this winter.'
Q: Is the full complement of 80-plus Indy V-8 engines overhauled so everyone starts fresh in 2010 or does the rebuild cycle carry over from year to year?
A: We're rebuilding engines as needed. Our peak 'demand' for engine rebuilds revolves around the Indianapolis 500. We ended the 2009 season with a bunch of fresh engines already race-ready and 'sitting on the shelf.' We aim to get a good head start on the engine builds prior to the start of the racing season, so we will have freshly rebuilt engines lined up and ready to go out the door.
Q: Could you take us through what a rebuild cycle entails?
A: Once the engine come back to us, the first step is to completely disassemble it, then thoroughly clean and inspect all parts. All components, right down to the fasteners, have an individual 'service life' that is continuously documented and updated. Many parts - piston rings, seals, valves, bearings, et cetera - are replaced with each rebuild. Other components are replaced as dictated by the amount of time they have been used. When their 'life' is up, they are replaced with new parts.
Once a rebuild is complete, the engines are run in and power-tested on one of our dynos to ensure that their performance is within our very narrow (plus or minus 1 percent) parameters prior to being assigned to a team and car.
Q: Are new materials ever tested in components to potentially make the engine unit lighter or even more wear-resistant?
A: Any new components or materials would first have to be thoroughly tested, which would necessarily raise costs in a time when we're in a pretty severe cost-cutting mode. So, at this point in time, with most likely just two more seasons of use, we consider the current 3.5-liter, normally aspirated engine to be just about fully developed.
Q: Has the target mileage between rebuilds been altered from 2009 to 2010?
A: We're going to continue to rebuild the engines after 1,400 to 1,600 miles of use in 2010. We've investigated extending the time between rebuilds to 2,000 miles, but that also would require significant R&D, including a lot of testing. Just as with trying new materials or components, the cost/benefit ratio doesn't add up with just the 2010 and 2011 seasons left for this engine.
What we have accomplished is a continuing reduction of costs to the teams through increased efficiencies. In 2006, our first year of supplying engines to the entire IndyCar Series field, the lease price per full-season entry was $1.3 million. Despite rising material costs and general inflation, we've been able to reduce that figure every year since, and for 2010, the full-season lease price will be $935,000.
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