Toyota's engine

[KineticEnergyX2]

http://www.racingone.com/article.asp?artnum=14686
“It’s been a very rapid evolutionary process because of time constraints. We’ve been focusing heavily on performance development because those parts, by the (IRL) rules, have to be submitted by Sept. 1. We’re just starting to shift from 80 or 90 percent performance development to something more normal, which is primarily durability development.”


So are chevy and Honda/Ilmore testing too or are they just going with their origionally submitted design. Sept 1 is closing in. What does Sept 1 deadline mean for TWR's new unbadged motor?

“We are here primarily focusing on the things we understand the least about, which is the rev limiter, the pit lane crew system. We’ll be working some on ‘shift without lift,’ which is something new for the IRL next year.”

Shift without lift? I can just hear the IRL-bashers crying that this makes the driving even easier.

[Doc Austin]

ooooh! shift without lift would make the engine even better for road racing. Do they know something we don't?

with shift w/o lift, we could see more downshifting for passing like Sam used at Texas last year.

[Mackie]

no right turns

[step33T]

The shift w/o lift would also be good for Gateway and Nazareth.

Now, if the gearbox will take that strain is a whole new question.

[Mackie]

you got that right step, the darn thing is barely usful for getting cars in an out of the pits. Those who want IRL to run road races, the gearbox for that would cost more then the engine

[ramdacf]

Can someone explain a simple (and I admit,probably stupid) auto-engineering question for me.

If the IRL engines all have revlimiters that kick in at the same speed it seems like the wheels will all spin at the same speed, and the speed on the ground is the same. So what difference does one engine or the other make, why don't the cars all go the same speed (driver, chassis setup equal for sake of the argument)? So why would Toyota be better or worse than anything else. (I know there is something I'm mssing here, I just don't know what it is).

Randy

[jmart]

ramdacf,

HP differs, gearing differs and setups differ. They all play into it. What remains to be seen is if Toyota can produce an engine that's better than what's currently out there. Chevy has several years experience, but remember, next year it's a whole new ballgame for everyone involved. The engine designs are all new. I wouldn't be surprised if the HP spread is within 20-25HP max between all entrants next year. Then let the builders have a go at them and they might eek out a few more ponies, but not much.

Good setups and good pit stops will overcome a small HP disadvantage.

jmart

[step33T]

More HP will pull a taller gear, thus making the car go faster.

Think back to your ten speed. You can go REALLY fast in 10th gear, but 8th is easier to peddle.

Same works for an engine. You have to match the power to the gears. The more power, the more gear, and thus the more revolutions the wheels turn. The IRL caps the RPM's of the engine, but if you can make more power from your 10,700 engine RPM's, then you can run that taller gear and turn the WHEELS more RPM's than the next guy.

[ August 21, 2002: Message edited by: step33T ]

[Novi-]

Originally posted by step33T:
<STRONG>More HP will pull a taller gear, thus making the car go faster.

Think back to your ten speed. You can go REALLY fast in 10th gear, but 8th is easier to peddle.

Same works for an engine. You have to match the power to the gears. The more power, the more gear, and thus the more revolutions the wheels turn. The IRL caps the RPM's of the engine, but if you can make more power from your 10,700 engine RPM's, then you can run that taller gear and turn the WHEELS more RPM's than the next guy.

[ August 21, 2002: Message edited by: step33T ]</STRONG>

Wouldn't it be the more gear the sooner you hit the limiter.

IINM A key is where you can make peak HP/torque and how broad that peak is and gear the car to run there without hitting the limiter. Intake runners, exhaust header and port design can all influence how a given engine will run. How the IRL controls these if at all I don't know, but it can make a huge difference in performance. Then you have the cams which can ultimately determine how good of a pump you have, which I believe are not controlled by the IRL. There are a lot of areas to beat the competition with.