Penske Racing Team and General Motors announced the re-entry of Chevy engines into the IZOD INDYCARS SERIES for the 2012 season at a news conference at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.The new, purpose-built Chevy twin-turbocharged, direct-injected V-6 racing engine will be developed jointly by GM and Ilmor Engineering of Michigan. It will have an aluminum block and cylinder heads, and will be a fully stressed chassis member supporting the gearbox and rear suspension. INDYCAR’s technical details and specifications will be released at a later date.
The American automaker will join current IZOD IndyCar Series engine manufacturer Honda, which would build and supply a new twin-turbocharged V-6 engine, designed by California-based Honda Performance Development, for the series in 2012.
INDYCAR CEO Randy Bernard commented:
“We've heard time and time again from fans that they want competition. We are excited to have engine manufacturer competition again in the IZOD IndyCar Series, beginning in 2012. Chevrolet brings a strong passion for racing, technology, relevance and innovation, which is a great fit for our new car platform. We are excited about the future of IndyCar racing with the addition of Chevrolet as well as the continued involvement of our longtime engine supplier Honda."
The program also will reunite one of the most successful partnerships in motorsports as Team Penske will introduce the Chevrolet engine in 2012. Team Penske posted 31 Indy car victories with Chevrolet engines (in 1986, GM’s Chevrolet brand was attached to the Ilmor-built V8 engine in CART) and four Indianapolis 500 victories (Chevy posted its first Indianapolis 500 victory in 1988 with Rick Mears).
Chevrolet competed previously in Indy car racing as an engine manufacturer in 1986-93 and 2002-05 with V-8 engines, winning 104 races, powering six driver champions and recording seven Indianapolis 500 victories.
Tom Stephens, GM vice chairman of Global Product Operations commented:
"Our vision is to design, build and sell the world’s best vehicles – and racing is one of the best ways to showcase what we can do. Re-entering Indy-style racing will help us take our advanced engine technology to the upper bounds of what’s possible. And it will also provide a dynamic training ground for engineers, who’ll transfer the technologies we develop for racing to the products we sell to our customers.
GM has become a recognized leader in implementing direct-injection technology in both four-cylinder and V-6 engines by leveraging knowledge already gained from racing. Building on this foundation, our new partnership with Ilmor will give us even more opportunities to accelerate our engine technology. It will help our effort to continue to expand and improve the DI technology for street cars. Indy racing will also let us compete at the cutting-edge of key technologies like safety, aerodynamics, electronics and materials so we can make our vehicles even more efficient, safer, more innovative and, especially, more fun to drive."
Chris Perry, vice president of Chevrolet Marketing.
"Indianapolis Motor Speedway has been a proving ground for manufacturers since Louis Chevrolet, our co-founder, first raced here in 1909. Our return to IndyCar as Chevrolet enters its centennial year is natural. At the same time this engine program will be a showcase for the efficient and powerful engine technologies that parallel new Chevrolet vehicles like the Camaro, all-new Cruze compact and Equinox crossover.”
The IZOD IndyCar Series announced June 2 that that its next generation of engines would be more powerful and efficient than the current formula -- along with being relevant to the public and automobile industry. The platform allows manufacturers to produce engines with a maximum of six cylinders and 2.4 liter displacement. The ethanol-fueled engines will produce between 550 and 700 horsepower to suit the diverse set of tracks on which the IZOD IndyCar Series competes and will be turbocharged to allow for flexibility in power
