If Lola enter F1, will it affect their sportscar projects?

[deggis]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/76292

Now there is going to be lots of empty spots on the entry list

edit: and Bear is saying Lola wants to be on the entry list... but on the other entry list:

http://murphythebear.com/blog/index....-bets-on-fota/

[HORNDAWG]

At USA Today also. Here




L.P.

[CTD]

and at Eurosport!
http://eurosport.yahoo.com/19062009/...ams-break.html
So this isn't just another silly Autosport Rumor!, it's going to happened!, FIA is so SCREWED

[deggis]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/76339

also: http://twitter.com/LeeMcK

Just asked Martin Whitmarsh about 'new' championship. Lola and Prodrive also likely to join.

[deggis]

Didn't enter, but it did affect:

"In June we had already undertaken an initial windtunnel programme and the infrastructure for the programme was in place. We had started to upgrade our assembly facilities - these were completed in September - and the framework of the Lola Formula 1 team was in place. We would most certainly have had a car testing in December 2009.

"At present our LMP programme is benefiting from these upgrades in all departments and the 2010 spec LMP1 and LMP2s are going to be very special as a result of this."

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/80206

But also Birrane says F1 aspiration is not dead.

[CTD]

"and the 2010 spec LMP1 and LMP2s are going to be very special as a result of this.

This sounds really interesting!

[Tim the Grey]

Sounds like a born salesman talking up the product!

[CTD]

Originally Posted by Tim the Grey

Sounds like a born salesman talking up the product!

Of Course, but you can't sell something if it's not there (ei. they can't state it, if there isn't any truth in it)

[Tim the Grey]

He's not pushing anything physical. He's saying next year's chassis' are 'better'. No detail, no other info.
Martin will be bigging things up to get his money back that he's spent on the aborted F1 project.

[Graham Goodwin]

There ARE substantial changes to the 2010 Lolas

[CTD]

Originally Posted by Tim the Grey

He's not pushing anything physical. He's saying next year's chassis' are 'better'. No detail, no other info.
Martin will be bigging things up to get his money back that he's spent on the aborted F1 project.

I see your point, and you are right.
But i do believe that there is something special about next years package!.
Let me give an example:
Lola says that their car package next year is going to be "special".
Customers thinks (like we did): Wow, i'll better have a look at this!
When the customers then see the car, and their really ain't no special things about it, then they aren't going to buy it.

If a salesman says something to sell cars, then it has to be true, otherwise it will backfire and the salesman will lose customers.

[Bentley03]

Originally Posted by Graham Goodwin

There ARE substantial changes to the 2010 Lolas

Am I right to assume the 2010 revisions are available for owners to buy as an upgrade kit for their existing cars, or would someone need to buy a brand new Lola in order to benefit from these 'substantial' changes?

[Tim the Grey]

In my book 'substantial' sounds like new chassis and/or aero.
I'd be looking at suspension design too.

The chassis and sprung parts may be influenced by the F1 project, I doubt the aero would be to any great extent?

[Félix]

The way I understand it, they were already testing the LMPs in the tunnel regularly (but not a lot because of $$$) since the B05/40, so It would only have to change this year because of changed aero rules or to mimic what Aston did to their cars.

F1 improvements would certainly mean upgraded composite capabilities, which might not LOOK so substantial in the end. And besides, buying new kits of bodywork is very expensive as I understand it; they would really have to be worth it.

[ger80]

Not a lot of wind tunnel testing because of $$$? They have there own tunnel...
So its just some energy and crew ....

[JAG]

Someone from Lola said last year they could make many more changes, far more often, than they do, but have to take into account teams budgets, obviously.

He said one area for improvement was the current LMP's nose.

What I want to see, purely from a cosmetic point of view, is wheel covers as in the Group C years. Surely if they are beneficial to open wheel F1 cars, they must benefit a low drag Le Mans spec LMP?

[deggis]

Are wheel covers allowed?

ps. Next season banned in F1. Which is nice because they're ugly.

[Félix]

Originally Posted by ger80

Not a lot of wind tunnel testing because of $$$? They have there own tunnel...
So its just some energy and crew ....

And parts for the wind tunnel model (these models are crazy expensive, although they've already got an LMP model built).

And designers working on coming up with the parts and analysing the data.

I might be wrong, but I'm under the impression that although a structure like Lola has access to their own wind tunnel, they don't test nearly as much as the worst F1 team that has the same access and don't do any better compared to factory efforts in sportscar racing whose cars end up having spent more time in the tunnel during conception.

The Lola has been around for 4 years and hasn't changed much. The aero progress must be good but it just served to keep up with the others. Interesting question: how much of AMR's Lola coupé performance was down to car refinements from Prodrive this year?

[HORNDAWG]

Originally Posted by Félix

And parts for the wind tunnel model (these models are crazy expensive, although they've already got an LMP model built).

And designers working on coming up with the parts and analysing the data.

I might be wrong, but I'm under the impression that although a structure like Lola has access to their own wind tunnel, they don't test nearly as much as the worst F1 team that has the same access and don't do any better compared to factory efforts in sportscar racing whose cars end up having spent more time in the tunnel during conception.

The Lola has been around for 4 years and hasn't changed much. The aero progress must be good but it just served to keep up with the others. Interesting question: how much of AMR's Lola coupé performance was down to car refinements from Prodrive this year?

CFD is all the rage!
And frankly, I did not see huge leaps in performance from the Speedy Lola/AM to the AMR Lola/AM.




L.P.

[tkelland]

If the statements that the nose is the likely place for upgrades this year, and Lola have stated that the F1 project's new equipment and parts could be a great aid/benefit to the sports cars they make, could this culminate in a raised nose similar to Formula car? Many cars already utilize this, including closed top Peugeot's and if I recall correctly, the Epsilon-Euskadi's, too.

Just my $.02.

[diabloA1]

According to Lola, the upgrades to their facility as a result of their F1 programme will be used to benefit their LMP programme.

Martin Birrane also mentioned in the media that the F1 programme is separate from Lola Cars and had it's own independent funding

[Félix]

Originally Posted by tkelland

If the statements that the nose is the likely place for upgrades this year, and Lola have stated that the F1 project's new equipment and parts could be a great aid/benefit to the sports cars they make, could this culminate in a raised nose similar to Formula car? Many cars already utilize this, including closed top Peugeot's and if I recall correctly, the Epsilon-Euskadi's, too.

Just my $.02.

New crash structure for 1 year (unless they can fit it on the 2011 car)? This part costs close to 100k$ I think.

[deggis]

Autosport: Lola remains interested in F1 entry

[deggis]

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20111104/F1/111109906

[CTD]

Originally Posted by deggis

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20111104/F1/111109906

Well, Lola/Cosworth would be an interesting team . But im still skeptic, the current new teams are far behind, and this might have frighten FIA.