[WEC] Ginetta LMP1

[DinkLv]

Manor schedules to test at Donington Park on Thursday, 9th August. Expect to see what they can do,

[TheMightyM]

Ginetta would be wise to apply the Law of Holes: “If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging” — throwing Mecachrome under the bus doesn’t make Ginetta look particularly good or help attract money to the program. And at this point, I'm not sure who’s suppose to appear and buy their LMP1s.

[S griffin]

Ginetta really have shot themselves in the foot. Shame really, because we need more LMP1s in the field

[Juntos]

Originally Posted by S griffin

Ginetta really have shot themselves in the foot.

Seems they are quite good on this sport of "shooting in the foot". They did a nice one with LMP3 before.

[DistortedSmile]

Originally Posted by Juntos

its LMP1 is going to be the LMP1 disaster of the decade.

I do believe that dubious honor has already been claimed by Nissan.

[TF110]

I think this qualifies as good news! https://twitter.com/GinettaCars/stat...38367553499136

[canaglia]

Originally Posted by DistortedSmile

I do believe that dubious honor has already been claimed by Nissan.

nissan gtr lmp1 vs AMR-one is a really stiff challenge.

Expensive PR work that resulted in a car that struggled to be in lmp2 pace vs A low profile project with a car unable to run more than just a few minutes....

my pick is on AMR-one, but just because I like AM road cars

[joeb]

Originally Posted by TF110

I think this qualifies as good news! https://twitter.com/GinettaCars/stat...38367553499136

I agree, they might not be on track but they are working on the car.

[S griffin]

Glad to see they are not giving up

[Damian Baldi]

a video of the AER first start.

[CTD]

This is actually very good news as it proves the Ginetta chassis is easy to use with different engine instalments.
Hopefully when running they will prove that the chassis is fast and reliable so that Teams will start to install different engines in it.

[Juntos]

If the engine is there why don't they travel to Silverstone next week?

[chernaudi]

ACO regs regarding engine or chassis changes or swaps having to be completed at least 30 days before an event.

[Akrapovic]

Originally Posted by Juntos

If the engine is there why don't they travel to Silverstone next week?

ACO denied them an entry.

[carbsmith]

I don't doubt the rule exists, I have a bit more doubt that the FIA would actually turn them away.

[Mike E]

Originally Posted by carbsmith

I don't doubt the rule exists, I have a bit more doubt that the FIA would actually turn them away.

After the fiasco that their season has turned into I think goodwill and faith in their ability to actually turn up may be in short supply... And rightly so.

The race is a week away and they have just managed to install the engine. No testing. Why embarrass themselves again, and in front of a home crowd as well?

[Akrapovic]

If the aim is to sell Ginetta cars, then maybe turning up with an untested engine and it not going great is a bad idea. It'll just make everything look bad.

Take the time to test it, then make a better job next time. But now that they've got the same engine as the SMP, there really is no excuses. That car has to be good now, otherwise it's in trouble.

[Juntos]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

ACO denied them an entry.

If that information is correct, then ACO is not helping the cause. They don't have a 30-car LMP1 entry list to afford denying cars on the grid.

[Akrapovic]

ACO requires the entries to be filed a month in advance. Drivers can change, but things like engine suppliers cannot.

Not saying it's a good rule, but it's basically an admin rule that stopped them racing. But if I were Ginetta, I'm not sure I'd want a very public test of the car in those circumstances.

[TF110]

On the subject of testing the car until it's ready to race, the mentioned GTR LMP did that as well, and improved on pace, but never reentered a WEC race. I hope the Ginetta doesn't do the same. I don't think it will either because acquiring an AER engine would be meaningless if they didn't intend to race at Fuji.

[chernaudi]

Basically it seems that if an engine or chassis swap is made it has to be made before the entry deadline, which is about a month before the event.

[Juntos]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

Not saying it's a good rule, but it's basically an admin rule that stopped them racing.

In what world do we live in? Dont ACO shall care about the championship interests in first place? Please keep those bureaucracies away from the sport. They don't have enough cars and interest in LMP1 category to copy F1-style rules.

[peebee2]

Do you think Ginetta actually wanted to race??

They could easily have made the switch earlier and I think probably deliberate to do it “late”

[Juntos]

Originally Posted by peebee2

Do you think Ginetta actually wanted to race??

Honestly, no. I do think they don't know what to do with this LMP1 thing now. One of the hardest decisions you'll ever face in life is choosing whether to walk away or try harder.

[PeterY]

Everyone is saying Ginetta should take on the running of the car but it isn't that simple.
Manor were meant to be doing had all the equipment etc to run at race events and supposedly the funding to do so. from what i have heard this was never the case and have put Ginetta in a pretty difficult place.
Without the funding why would LT let Manor continue to run the cars adding mileage and unable to maintain to the standards necessary devaluing the cars in the process.
Ginetta are a manufacturer and not a race team as such and they will openly admit that, they don't have the staff or equipment to be running at that level and whether LT can afford to do it or not that was never the plan.
The are setup to design and build and then needed the customer (manor) input and finances to continue the program. LT is putting in i imagine quite a large mount of his own money to try and get the car to a competitive point as well as funding the Le Mans entry.

I hope Ginetta succeed in the LMP1 project as the work and money that has gone in to it should make for a good car, but they need a good customer team to take on the running and provide the agreed finances for this to happen properly.
If my team was in a position and had the funds I would be going to meet LT and discuss it as i believe that as a company Ginetta will do everything they can to make the car competitive.