The Future after the 94th Indy 500

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Originally Posted by Bob Riebe

Remove wings front and rear, that would slow the cars down considerably.

Go back to trim tabs and spoilers such as were run up to 1971.

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How would that make them slower at Indy? They already trim the wings to -5 degrees for qualifying; they're sacrificing drag for lift!

In the corners they'd be slower

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Originally Posted by racer69

In the corners they'd be slower

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Not in qualifying trim. In fact they would actually be quicker down the straights without any appreciable loss of cornering speed.

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Originally Posted by call_me_andrew

How would that make them slower at Indy? They already trim the wings to -5 degrees for qualifying; they're sacrificing drag for lift!

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When wings were allowed, speeds jumped amost twenty mph in just two years.

There is a HUGE difference between trim-tabs and spoilers, and wings- front and rear.

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Originally Posted by anthonyvop

Not in qualifying trim. In fact they would actually be quicker down the straights without any appreciable loss of cornering speed.

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They would be slower by a great degree in the cornes; straight speeds might go up.

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Originally Posted by e2mtt

I've said it many times... one of the big reasons why I'd like to see a LOT more variation & heavy use of bolt-on parts is for sponsorship & fan involvement reasons. Rather then have a chassis totally built by Dallara (some Italian race-car company) with engines leased from Honda (engines you can't buy for any other reason), you could have cars with parts bolted on from Brembo & Roots & Stillen & K&N & BBS & American Racing & all of the hundreds of other small manufacturers specializing in performance aftermarket parts. Maybe even bolted onto Ford & Honda engines that are the same displacement as what's in street cars.

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I don't see how aftermarket bolt-on parts will increase sponsorship and fan involvement. There are other forms of motorsport that fit your description but don't get the exposure the IRL gets (as small as it is).

The genie was let out of the bottle when F1 engineers came in the 60's and displaced the regular old mechanics. Science and engineering (and it's associated cost) became the new source of innovation rather than the one off specials built in someone's backyard.

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Originally Posted by racer69

In the corners they'd be slower

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By taking the aero off the cars, the corner speeds would be less, but the straightaway speeds might be higher. What you would see however is a differential, and it would require the drivers to drive and feel out that sweet spot through the corners. It would add an element of skill and feel to this sport to an extent we don't see now. We would see people getting out braked going into the corners.....

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Originally Posted by Mark in Oshawa

By taking the aero off the cars, the corner speeds would be less, but the straightaway speeds might be higher. What you would see however is a differential, and it would require the drivers to drive and feel out that sweet spot through the corners. It would add an element of skill and feel to this sport to an extent we don't see now. We would see people getting out braked going into the corners.....

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BRAVO!

Mario Andretti same pretty mfuch the same thing last year in Motorsport magazine.
He also said now any competent driver can flat-foot it around the track, it used to be being truly fast separated the good from the great.

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Originally Posted by px400r

I don't see how aftermarket bolt-on parts will increase sponsorship and fan involvement. There are other forms of motorsport that fit your description but don't get the exposure the IRL gets (as small as it is).

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From the sponsors point of view: Common parts mean that there is only one part supplier involved in the race. That one part supplier may use its involvement in the series as a means of advertising the quality of its products, but it would be the only one doing so. Multiple suppliers mean that different companies could use examples of how their parts preform in a race compared to other companies to promote their product.

From the fans point of view: If everyone has the same parts save for a few "gray area" pieces, then whoever invests the most money in this "gray area" will win the most races. When we expand this "gray area", it becomes harder to dial-in a "perfect car".

EDIT: That means different teams will win oval races.

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Originally Posted by Mark in Oshawa

By taking the aero off the cars, the corner speeds would be less, but the straightaway speeds might be higher. What you would see however is a differential, and it would require the drivers to drive and feel out that sweet spot through the corners. It would add an element of skill and feel to this sport to an extent we don't see now. We would see people getting out braked going into the corners.....

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Many of us have been repeating this mantra for a long time. Aero is NOT our friend, taken to its extreme it has taken the driver too far out of the equation. I want to see lots of oversteer due to less aero, more horsepower and harder tire compounds (not to the point of lots of marbles though). I want to see the drivers actually drive the cars. From the stands, they appear to be passengers most of the time. Change that and the fans get a more exciting product than what we have.

Gary