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[h=2]WEC LMP1 regulation tweaks announced[/h] Friday, 01 September 2017


By Stephen Kilbey / Image by Toyota Racing








The ACO and FIA have announced multiple changes to the LMP1 regulations from 2018 onward.
There will be just one LMP1 class going forward, balancing hybrid and non-hybrid prototypes through equivalence of technologies. It means that the regulations will support very similar lap times for hybrid, non-hybrid privateer and non-hybrid factory entries, though there will be a slight advantage for the hybrid-engined cars due to their lower fuel consumption.


In terms of chassis regulations, there will be no changes made – meaning DPis are not eligible, though LMP2 cars re-designed to fit into the LMP1 rulebook will. This decision will apply for the next two WEC seasons.
In a push to ensure that the LMP1 numbers remain healthy throughout the upcoming seasons, FIA WEC CEO Gerard Neveu told RACER that Toyota will not be able to compete at Le Mans in LMP1 unless it enters the full WEC season in 2018-19 and beyond. RACER also understands that the other chassis suppliers – including Ginetta and Dallara – should be able to enter the LMP1 Manufacturers World Championship, by paying a fee which is currently just under $430,000.
Other regulatory decisions, which are still being finalized, will be announced later, covering areas such as a reduction in the number of private tests and collective tests proposed.
Further down the line, the 2020 LMP1 regulations – which included the introduction of plug-in hybrid technology – will be "substantially altered" from the announcement made during this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans. RACER believes the rules stating that LMP1 Hybrid cars will need to start each stint under full electric with zero emissions, and finish the race at Le Mans, will be scrapped.
"With all these decisions, we are confident of seeing a full and very competitive grid next season," ACO President Pierre Fillion said today. "We are already discussing with several manufacturers and privateer teams who are investigating very seriously entrance from 2018-2019 season in LMP1, taking into consideration that the LMP2 and GTE grids are already strong with a high level of commitment for the future."
More details on the technical regulations will be presented over the coming weeks.

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INSIGHT: Navigating the LMP1 rule changes

Wednesday, 06 September 2017


By Stephen Kilbey / Images by JEP/LAT

When the FIA and ACO announced major changes to the FIA WEC calendar last week, it also revealed a renewed direction that the LMP1 division will take until 2020.

Despite speculation as to whether the IMSA DPi formula would find come into play, LMP1 hybrids and non-hybrids will form a single LMP1 division that allows for manufacturer involvement in either camp.


Additionally, the perimeters for LMP1 chassis have been relaxed, effectively allowing LMP2 cars to be re-engineered to meet LMP1 regulations, and house any engine that fits into the rulebook.
It's a similar solution to DPi in some senses, although there's a key difference: LMP2 and LMP1 cars will be separate, with a similar performance gap to the current rule-set, and a clear divide between the Pro and Pro/Am formula, with Bronze-graded drivers unable to compete at the top level.
It creates an interesting set of questions about the future of hybrid and non-hybrid competition at that level, starting with whether or not LMP2 will suffer a max exodus of teams wanting to use modified versions of their current machinery in LMP1; whether the other LMP1 constructors – like Ginetta and Dallara – can still therefore sell cars; and, importantly, how it affects the factories, who will have to decide whether the extra budget required to go hybrid racing holds the same value that it has for the past few years.
RACER collected a selection of reactions from a number of key players in and around the FIA WEC paddock who are now in a race against time to consider their position for the upcoming 'Super Season.'
In the LMP1 hybrid ranks, Toyota has yet to decide whether or not to continue its program into next year, despite its original commitment – like Porsche's – to race until 2019. Peugeot meanwhile, is known to be taking a serious look at a return to the class, after it ceased its previous effort at the dawn of the FIA WEC era in 2012.
Toyota clearly favors a short program in 2018, with sources suggesting it intended to compete in no more than three races (Spa, Le Mans and Fuji) before the transitional arrangements were made public.
Consequently, the ACO and WEC's insistence that Toyota would have to contest a full WEC season in 2018/19 in order to be allowed to race at Le Mans clearly came as a surprise to the Toyota camp, which immediately switched from offering some guidance on its future direction to a blunt statement that "a decision and an announcement will be made in October."
And continuing the theme of uncertainty for the months ahead, head of Peugeot Sport Bruno Famin made it clear that the French constructor still hasn't made a firm decision about a potential program despite further developments on cost reductions, which it had always pointed to as a barrier for entry.
"Nothing's changed: We have not taken any decision yet," he told French newspaper Ouest France. "Porsche's decision to stop its endurance prototype program is both a threat and an opportunity for us. We are looking at three competitions: endurance racing, rallycross and rally-raid. Everything is being looked at. I really can't tell you today what we will be doing after the Dakar 2018.
"Endurance racing is Peugeot and [PSA Peugeot Citroen chairman] Carlos Tavares's Plan A. With that said, it would not be impossible for us to manage a development program in endurance racing while racing rallycross and rally-raid cars."
Then there's the current list of potential privateers who are set to make up much of the numbers for the coming years.
SMP Racing, and its BR-Engineering/Dallara/ART Grand Prix program is progressing as planned, with the car set to go testing imminently. RACER believes the current plan is for a two-car, AER-engined full WEC program with customer cars to be made available.

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Ginetta's program though, is still an unknown in customer terms, as no full orders for its 2018 chassis placed at time of writing.


There are plenty of players who have been in talks to race with the Yorkshire-brand however, including CEFC Manor TRS Racing. Team principal Graeme Lowdon explained to RACER that the level of uncertainty prior to the WEC's announcement had limited the team's amount of progress and ability to make a decision.
It therefore remains to be seen whether the outfit, headed by former members of its F1 crew, will make the leap from LMP2 into LMP1 as intended.


"I think they [the FIA and ACO] should be given credit for sticking to their brand," Lowdon said. "In my eyes the decisions that have been made are being made for a long-term plan [and] growth, and that's always better than swaying with the breeze or with any individual competitor.
"I think a single, balanced LMP1 class for factories and privateers alike makes sense. Where there's a difficulty [is] in the balance. Hybrid technology is incredibly expensive and requires a lot of investment. It's currently outside the reach of a small private team, but that's not to say that the opportunity for the fans to see cars race wheel-to-wheel shouldn't be rewarded.
"What you don't want to see is a single LMP1 class where there's always a car two seconds quicker than everyone else. That doesn't sit right.
"As soon as you give technical freedom on the engine and commercial freedom to make things happen, [you need] equivalencies to give everyone a chance to race each other.
"You're never going to get an ideal solution, but this looks on the face of it [like] a prospect that commercial partners can understand. Fundamentally, if it's easy for us to explain commercially, then it can happen.
"We're doing a lot of work on it at the moment, but the focus is very much on the commercial model. Part of the jigsaw was put in place when this was announced, because before there was no clarity and no certainty to sell to a commercial partner. Uncertainty is something that's the hardest to sell.
"We've always said that LMP1 is attractive, but only viable if there's a sensible commercial model behind it."
For the other WEC teams currently racing in LMP2, who now see the potential to challenge for overall wins with adapted versions of their current ORECA 07s, it's the same story. Some have ruled out a move categorically, like TDS Racing, which told RACER that it will be pushing to stay in LMP2 rather than embarking upon an LMP1 project.
On the other hand, it's not quite as simple for a team like Jackie Chan DC Racing. Sam Hignett from Jota Sport, who handles the Jackie Chan DC Racing effort, told RACER that getting a program together "is an immediate and real challenge. Not insurmountable, but with marketing budgets generally finalized in October for the following 12-month period, there is not a lot of time to achieve either the budget or the transition for clients and sponsors for the 'Super Season.'"
David Cheng, owner of DC Racing, echoed that sentiment, explaining that the team is "working hard already to be there, but we're not ready yet to say anything about which category a program might emerge in. Much of that will inevitably be decided by where our partners want to be."

There is much interest in the new LMP regulations from Vaillante Rebellion too; the Swiss-flagged team an LMP1 privateer entrant until the end of the 2016 season.
RACER understands that there is interest within the team in evaluating a short-term return to the LMP1 ranks, although the team's recent programs and successes in North American IMSA enduros means that it is not as simple a decision to make as it was previously, when LMP1 cars were eligible in both championships.
Outside of the prototype ranks, RACER also took a litmus test from Aston Martin Racing, which in the past has pursued overall wins at Le Mans in LMP1 prior to being taken over by Prodrive.
However Prodrive's managing director John Gaw counted out any move into the prototype ranks from Aston Martin Racing for the foreseeable future.
"We're fully focused on GT, and we're saying nothing, about a new car or not at this point," Gaw stated. (David Richards has said publicly that there will be a new GTE car for 2018 however, which RACER understands is based on the forthcoming AMG turbo-engined Vantage, and is already out testing.)
"The key for us is getting more exposure for the GTE Pro class," he continued. "There will be five factory teams next year, and the reality is that there needs to be much more attention on those efforts – which let's not forget, will be making a proportionality higher financial contribution than some of the ultimately faster LMP teams do.
"More thought needs to go into what value we get from the championship, because one thing is for sure, the interest levels are growing, but to maintain that, the value has to be readily displayed."

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Am I understanding that there are changes, but no one knows what they are?????

2018 'Joker' upgrades for LMP2

Saturday, 23 September 2017


By Stephen Kilbey / Images by JEP/LAT


557 Shares The ACO/FIA rule makers have made a series of decisions regarding the "Joker" upgrades for the LMP2 chassis manufacturers heading into next season. The changes will affect the LMP2 cars racing in the FIA WEC, ELMS and IMSA.
"It was clearly in the regulations, and it was a technical discussion," FIA WEC CEO Gerard Neveu told RACER. "I understand that the FIA and ACO received requests from some of the manufacturers regarding performance from this year. So, the technical committee have worked hard for the last three months with the data to investigate that point, and their conclusion was clearly that for one of the three manufacturers, they have a large joker to ameliorate the performance of the car. That's the Riley – it was very far from the others.
"And for the two others, there are some possibilities to adjust the performance from next year in different levels, be it Le Mans or the normal race packages. The gap was not the same, and the idea is not to balance, but give all the cars a similar level of performance in LMP2, as the interest is to have the same level in each car."
RACER understands that for 2018, the plan is currently to allow the Riley/Multimatic Mk 30 (pictured below) to have amendments made to the chassis and to both the regular and Le Mans aero kits. This effectively permits the Multimatic outfit to progress with a fully-redesigned car.
Onroak and Dallara, meanwhile, will be permitted to amend their aero kits only. Ligier can update its regular and Le Mans aero on its JS P217, while Dallara will only be allowed to amend the Le Mans-only aero kit on the P217.
Because of the nature of these updates – the purpose being to close the performance gap to ORECA – no 'Joker' has been approved for the ORECA 07 (pictured below).
However, Neveu explained to RACER that no final decisions have been taken regarding the exact details of the 'Joker' updates to the LMP2 chassis manufacturers.
"There have been communications with the teams, but they have not made final decisions about that (which chassis can change modify which aero kit)," he said. "They have to discuss it now in detail, regarding what they can do or not."
Later this year, the upgrades will be tested in the Windshear wind tunnel in North Carolina. There, the rule makers will verify them ahead of the 2018 season.
"I don't know the exact schedule (for the wind tunnel test) but I think it's by the end of November – this is still in discussion." Neveu said. "They only just met with the teams yesterday and the day before. They are starting to discuss their conclusions with the data, and now they will make a decision very soon."
The key to the upgrades is that the chassis in question should not able to exceed the ORECA's capabilities. Instead, the objective is to ensure that the four chassis are on a similar level going forward.
"The idea with this is not to go up and up and up and spend more money," Neveu said when asked what would happen if any of the upgrades exceeded the performance of the ORECA considerably. "The only point everyone agrees with is that the ORECA is the best performing car, so the other cars should have the chance to perform at that the level.
"They are working to make sure that (allowing the upgrades to exceed the performance level of the ORECA) will not happen. It's not possible to say that it will be exactly the same level – you will see a difference – but the idea is to make sure that with the data and analysis that they are on a similar level, so they can fight for wins.
"If this happened (an upgrade proving superior in performance terms to the ORECA) it wouldn't work: the technical guys will only authorize an upgrade that's limited enough, ensuring that they haven't taken another step more than the ORECA."
There are no clear details as it stands on what process may be followed if a car that's presented to the wind tunnel test exceeds the ORECA's capabilities. There is however, a clear intention for there to be no further changes made to the chassis beyond these amendments in the remaining period of their homologation, if they prove successful.