IMSA TUSC 2015 Entries, Schedule, and Rumors

[Coach Ep]

Originally Posted by Mechanic Z

This is SO much better. #16 and #20 number plates are on the Dyson cars!

Originally Posted by BullMan

I hope this is a sneak peek of 2016. That car at that track some time in mid-March.

+1

If IMSA was bold enough they would let the GT3s run as guest entries in GTLM (since they're faster than GTDs) and we would see these cars in endurance* races in 2015 already!

(*longer than 50 minutes sprint races)

[schmidder]

Originally Posted by Coach Ep

+1

If IMSA was bold enough they would let the GT3s run as guest entries in GTLM (since they're faster than GTDs) and we would see these cars in endurance* races in 2015 already!

(*longer than 50 minutes sprint races)

Maybe. Dyson has historically run the top class in whatever series he runs..I guess the p2 porsches were a stray from that. If you mean we would see cars like this had is a opened up the regs..I agree.

[joeb]

Marshall Pruett has some interesting info in his recent Daytona Notebook Columns about a new manufacturer joining the ranks:

We could have a new GT marque coming to race in the TUDOR Championship later this season. I’ll have the full details early next week, and based on initial discussions, racing in IMSA and a European WEC campaign is under consideration.

Ford? McLaren? somebody else?

[Coach Ep]

Originally Posted by joeb

Marshall Pruett has some interesting info in his recent Daytona Notebook Columns about a new manufacturer joining the ranks:



Ford? McLaren? somebody else?

I'm gonna go with Lambo.

[MoMedic9019]

Originally Posted by Coach Ep

I'm gonna go with Lambo.

Seconded....Reiter released their 'FL2' GT3 in early December.

[Ginaro Zukovsky]

We knew that already about Lamborghini, as told by Sportscar 365 http://sportscar365.com/gt/lamborghi...r-gtd-in-2015/

But you can't do a European WEC campaign in a GT3 car, so surely it's has to be a GTE manufacturer?

[Coach Ep]

We're all just guessing, if it had to make sense we wouldn't have 1% of all posts here!

[joeb]

Originally Posted by Ginaro Zukovsky

We knew that already about Lamborghini, as told by Sportscar 365 http://sportscar365.com/gt/lamborghi...r-gtd-in-2015/

But you can't do a European WEC campaign in a GT3 car, so surely it's has to be a GTE manufacturer?

You are correct, if a WEC campaign is being pursued, it has to be GTE. But you hit on an important wording from the Racer article. "European WEC" Did they really mean ELMS? or just Silv/Spa/Le Mans/Nurb?

[Coach Ep]

There you go Joeb, maybe a bad translation, who knows?

[TF110]

Wec or elms makes a big difference. One means GTE, the other means that OR GT3. The latter option is nearly endless.

[MoMedic9019]

Originally Posted by joeb

You are correct, if a WEC campaign is being pursued, it has to be GTE. But you hit on an important wording from the Racer article. "European WEC" Did they really mean ELMS? or just Silv/Spa/Le Mans/Nurb?

This.

[Gulf]

I wonder why We didn't get a new livery from Corvette this year? Kind of disappointing.

[Koenigsegg]

Or a return of the infamous Lotus Evora GTE!

[Disraeli Eers]

So how come there isn't a race thread yet? And why have so few been talking about this series since the Roar when people were so vocal in previous months?

Is there some kind of silent protest or do people actually just not care enough to watch it now?

I'm beyond pumped and hope that if this goes well this weekend people will come back. I mean a Ligier is on pole and no one is celebrating.

[J Jay]

Originally Posted by Disraeli Eers

So how come there isn't a race thread yet? And why have so few been talking about this series since the Roar when people were so vocal in previous months?

Is there some kind of silent protest or do people actually just not care enough to watch it now?

I'm beyond pumped and hope that if this goes well this weekend people will come back. I mean a Ligier is on pole and no one is celebrating.

Errrrr...

[Disraeli Eers]

Oh my... What a fool lol

Damn this Tapatalk app!

[joeb]

Originally Posted by Disraeli Eers

Oh my... What a fool lol

Damn this Tapatalk app!

I know, tapatalk makes finding a stickied thread nearly impossible.

[TRspitfirefan]

http://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/2...for-next-week/
Not much new information.

With a target operating cost reduction of 30 percent, a number of cost-cutting initiatives were discussed in the first meeting in Paris last September, including the possibility of having a certain amount of common parts among manufacturers.
Another key talking point was the concept of manufacturer-specific bodywork, similar to what’s currently seen with Daytona Prototypes in the TUDOR Championship. However, it’s understood the ACO’s initial proposal was to limit manufacturer involvement in the class.

With all the new LMP2 designs coming out this year, I don't understand why the ACO/IMSA is talking about making drastic changes. The current P2 machines still retain some of the LMP1 cool factor, while offering a lower cost for privateer teams. Why change what works?
Some spec part -more tightly controlled 2017 P2esque design, will only serve to further alienate U.S. sports car fans.
It seems with our sport, the light at the end of the tunnel is far too often a train.

[MagVanisher]

It's weird (and stupid) for IMSA to add more spec to P2. The cars are made for privateers after all so it's built within spec according to the rulebook.

[Coach Ep]

No, it's not. It's called cost saving and is desperately needed.

[Pontlieue]

Originally Posted by Coach Ep

No, it's not. It's called cost saving and is desperately needed.

Buying a new LMP2 car isn't that expensive. The current cost cap is around 500 000 €, but the costs of running a full season of TUSC or WEC are multiple times that (was it something around 2 million €?). So most of the budget is consumed by the running costs. So it's that part of the budget they need to focus on.

[Speed-King]

Originally Posted by Pontlieue

Buying a new LMP2 car isn't that expensive. The current cost cap is around 500 000 €, but the costs of running a full season of TUSC or WEC are multiple times that (was it something around 2 million €?). So most of the budget is consumed by the running costs. So it's that part of the budget they need to focus on.

Which is something spec parts - if done right and not as a bonanza for the supplier in question - can do. Having consumables produced in larger quantities by spec suppliers or bought through the series should reduce costs - that's simply a question of economies of scale.

[Maelochs]

This is from the "cut off your hands" school of business management, which holds that the less you offer, the lower your costs, which is surely the road to increased profit, right? Of course, your competitors will offer slightly more costly products which people actually want, and despite the higher production costs will realize a much higher profit.

Taken to its illogical extreme, IMSA could lose the cars and have the drivers run foot races—each team will save millions in parts, car costs, fuel, tires, engineers, transporters ... just a sports coach and a nutritionist and maybe a masseur, all of which are likely already on staff.

Or ... the series can realize that people Don't want to see more spec racing ... the main attraction ALMS had was cars people wanted to watch racing, wanted to read about between races, cars which might even (*gasp*) Change between races ...

Restatement for people who thought it was not a valid point the first time I said it:

FI-ACO can afford a more spec P2 class because they have P1. Tudor has DP and P2 and if those two chassis types don't excite the crowd ... TUSC is in a position now (IMO) to either continue slowly failing or to start succeeding; the chassis balance between DP and P2 is Very encouraging, whichever type wins the race, and the people I have talked with at Daytona are really excited to see a P2 actually competing.

If 2017 brings a return to a bland, generic DP-like car, expect the next few years to be increasingly lean.

[Dodge_Swinger]

I think the problem is too many races, or more accurately, too many miles.

Having Daytona, Sebring and Petit all in one season makes for a lot of miles. Most fans would like to see all three of those races on the calendar, but it's a chunk of miles.

After attending two Baltimore GPs and watching street races on TV, I don't think Proto sports cars really belong on a street course. I know there are marketing considerations, etc., but I have yet to see any sort of compelling proto sports car race. (GT-only might be a different story.) It wouldn't hurt my feelings to see the street races dropped.

On one of the threads, I think I remember reading that running a full WEC season in a GTLM was less expensive than a full GTLM season in TUSC, even accounting for travel. Does anyone know for sure?

I would rather see fewer races with cool cars. I'm with Maleochs on this one. If you want to save a ton of money, just make TUSC a go-kart series.

I also think that this fixation on "brand specific" bodywork is going to make P2 MORE expensive.

[joeb]

Originally Posted by Dodge_Swinger

I also think that this fixation on "brand specific" bodywork is going to make P2 MORE expensive.

I think it has been implied that IMSA itself isn't a proponent of the bodywork idea, but one of their main supporters (GM) is pushing for this. Nobody else ever developed specific bodywork other than GM (yes ford breathed on the riley to make it work with the ecoboost, but not hugely different). Goes back to the question of why the rules need to be changed if all these companies are making new P2 cars to the current regs.