By Sam Tickell
In a press conference at Le Mans, the planned rules for the next four year were outlined by Daniel Poissenot the Automobile Club de l'Ouest's (ACO) Clerk of Course. This press conference has become an annual tradition and the 2008 edition was eagerly awaited.
There was much speculation before the conference on performance curbing due to the Peugeot lapping Le Mans in 3:22. The ACO does not like cars going under the 3:30 barrier - this represented a huge gap. Additionally, pressure was on the ACO after a recent spate of cars getting airborne - this worrying trend had injured drivers and broken cars and the results could only get worse. The previously slated 'Evo' rules were anticipated to be dicussed, along with diesel/petrol parity.
And the conference did not disappoint. While many questions are still to be answered, the short term future for Le Mans style racing, is a little clearer.
The main outcomes from the press conference are as follows (most of these rule changes were agreed to at an April 15 meeting between the ACO, teams, manufacturers and other stakeholders):
- The current cars will be able to compete for at least another four years with wider, different shaped cars being eligible for next year, although the final rules on this are still to be determined
"It's going to be a little bit wider, enabling us to have different cars with different cockpits. It will be for the closed ones, and different shapes for the open ones too" said Poissenot. Gordon Murray will be assisting the ACO in the design of the new cars.
- Aero, particularly on the rear wing will be reduced and the wing strengthened to curb speeds in 2010
- Engine performance will be reduced in 2009
- Air conditioning will be mandatory in closed cars with the highest cockpit temperature being 32C
- GT1 engines will be allowed to be used in P1 (like the Aston Martin in the back of the Charouz Lola) and other forms of power (like hybrid) will be allowed to be used
- Tyre warmers will be allowed in the Le Mans 24 but disallowed in other Le Mans Series. Measures will also be taken to try and limit the amount of tyres used - most likely through changes to the pit stop routine
- Factors like the GT rules and petrol/diesel parity are still to be decided, like the fate of the 'Evo' cars, although it could be said that these mooted wider cars could be the precursor to 'Evo' cars.
So that is what we know now. There are still many questions to be answered about the future of Le Mans competition and in no doubt, these announcements (particularly the one about GT engines in P cars) will have far reaching effects on this type of racing.
Certainly however, it seems that the ACO are looking for consistancy in their rules and are trying to increase safety while keeping costs under control (unlike some other forms of international motorsport...). More steps will need to be taken to ensure that all types of engines (traditional petrol, diesel and hybrid/other) have a chance at the top step of the podium but for now this is a good start - the teams have a base to work with for the next 2-4 years and know things should not change too much.
Which should bode will for the future.