Two other board members and myself are leaving PA on Thursday night for Mid-Ohio. We'll be in an RV as well and will of course have I have seen just about every form of motorsports except ALMS, so I am pumped!

 

ALMS is good stuff..


Off curiousity... someone mentioned that the GT2 Vettes aren't made by the same group that made the GT1 Vettes (Pete knows who I'm talking about, but I can't remember Pratt.... )... any more info on why they changed?

 

The new GT2 car switches from bodywork derived from the roadgoing Z06
to something that looks more like a ZR1. GT2 rules prohibit some body
modifications like the reshaped headlights and wider fenders that were
present on the outgoing GT1. Instead. the fenders on the new GT2s are
now dimensionally identical to the production ZR1. Aerodynamically,
GT2 mandates a smaller front splitter and rear wing, changes that
manifest themselves as less downforce.

Under the skin is where the biggest changes have taken place. The GT1
used a steel chassis modeled on the base Corvette, while the GT2
switches over to an aluminum chassis based on the production Z06/ZR1.
That posed some serious technical issues for the design team in
attaching the necessary steel roll cage to the aluminum. According to
Corvette Racing manager Dough Fehan, the team has come up with a novel
approach to the problem that should make the new car even safer in the
event of a crash. Unfortunately, Fehan declined to give details today.

Many of the GT2 rules differences are aimed at lowering cost. Thus,
the carbon brakes of the GT1 have given way to more traditional steel
brake rotors on the GT2 car. One of the advantages of going to a more
production-based platform for the drivers will be the inclusion of a
power tilt and telescoping steering column. That will help drivers of
different sizes get more comfortable in the car.

Propulsion for the remainder of the 2009 ALMS season comes from a
downsized 6.0-liter version of the 7.0-liter V8 that has been running
in the GT1 car. The bore size remains the same, with the primary
change being a shorter stroke crankshaft. For 2010, some new engine
rules in GT2 will mean an all-new engine for the Corvette. Come
Sebring next March, the GT2 Vettes will be running a new 5.5-liter V8
based on the next-generation version of the GM small block. Unlike the
GT1 engines, the engines for the new cars will be assembled on the
line at the GM Performance Powertrain Center alongside the production
LS9 and LSA used in the ZR1 and Cadillac CTS-V.

The Corvettes will continue to run on cellulosic ethanol as they have
since early in the 2008 season. On the subject of hybrid powertrains,
Fehan emphasized that GM has as much knowledge as any manufacturer in
the world on the technology. He acknowledged that the team has
investigated such systems for the race cars, but he wouldn't commit to
any future plans.

The team retains its current partners, with Compuware as the primary
sponsor and Michelin and Mobil 1 supplying tires and lubricants. The
GT2 Vettes will run the remainder of the 2009 ALMS season starting
this weekend at Mid-Ohio and continuing to Road America, Mosport,
Petit Le Mans and Laguna Seca. Just as before, the driver lineup stays
the same with Johnny O'Connell, Jan Magnussen, and Antonio Garcia in
#3 and Oliver Gavin, Olivier Beretta, and Marcel Fassler piloting the
#4 car.

 

The new factory backed GT2 cars are built by Pratt & Miller same as company that built the GT1 C6R, the GT2 Vette that LG motorsports ran was built by Riley Tech.

The original idea was for Pratt and Miller to build GT1 cars and Riley Tech build the GT2 cars. When GM changed their minds about competing in GT1, Riley and LG motorsports got the boot in favor of Pratt and Miller.

 

ah..ok.. so it is Pratt & Miller who is building them again.

thanks for the clarification..i'll hopefully get some photos of the new cars this weekend

 

Live timing and scoring on your cell phone (I have it on mine)

//mobile.imsaracing.net/wap2.cfm

 

i'll have to check that out when we are at the track this weekend

 

How did the race look on tv? In person the Muscle Milk Porsche was a terror with Klaus at the wheel.

I have to mention to complete abomination of the national anthem before the race. Someone tried to be Jimi Hendrix, but it turned out worse then when Bleeding Gums Murphy played the sax for the Springfield Isotopes.

 

^^

 

I wonder how Dyson felt watching their old car cruise to a 2nd place on it's debut with a stop and go, while they had yet another brace of mechanical failures?