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IndyCar: Team VS Engine - So far

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Khatir Soltani
After having had a lot of announcements made in the last weeks regarding the pairing of IndyCar teams with a specific engine manufacturers, Auto123.com wants to pause and look at the situation right now.

Let us start with Honda; the Japanese manufacturer having been the sole supplier of engines in recent years thus, allowing the series to be able to rely on a good as well as a truly reliant engine.

Honda Dallara IndyCar DW12
Honda engine within the new Dallara DW12 chassis. (Photo: IndyCar)


Honda has officially confirmed so far that it will supply engines to the following squads:
• Chip Ganassi Racing will be of course the central team for Honda and it will be back with four cars in 2012
• Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing will be back as a full-fledge team for 2012 as it recently announced that it would have two cars on the starting grid.
• A.J. Foyt Racing is another example, as is Dale Coyne Racing, that commitment is still a valuable commodity as it will be back for another year with long-time sponsor ABC Supply.
• Sam Schmidt Motorsports, which had some strong showings last year, thanks in good part to Alex Tagliani, should have probably one, or even a two-car effort next season.

We know for sure that Honda has already signed another team and that negotiation with another one is on the verge of becoming a reality. In any case should any future announcements will be made in December.


Chevrolet’s comeback has been quite a boost for the North American open-wheel scene and its close-knit association with Roger Penske his giving the engine manufacturer quite a solid basis for its future endeavours as well as for the others confirmed Chevy teams:
• Team Penske will try and regain the upper hand over Chip Ganassi with the help of GM and its three-car effort.
• KV Racing Technogy has relinquished its sponsorship with Lotus to go along with General Motors. The Kalkhoven-Vasser team will be back with three cars.
• Andretti Autosport, which has had its ups and downs in recent years, is sure to put two cars on the grid but its target remains four.
• Panther Racing was a Chevy team back in the good ol’ days with Sam Hornish Jr as it will try to rekindle with success with one or even two full-time cars.

According to some sources, another Chevrolet-motorised team could be revealed before the end of the year.


Lotus IndyCar
Lotus engine for IndyCar. (Photo: Lotus)


Lotus was the last of the engine manufacturers to confirm any association with IndyCar teams but when it did, it welcomed three teams at the same press conference:
• Bryan Herta Autosport will try to get the most out of the time spent on the track developing and testing the new Dallara DW12 with the late Dan Wheldon.
• Dreyer & Reinbold Racing is planning on having two cars and will be another full-backed Lotus team
• Lotus /HVM Racing will have a major role in preparing the Lotus-Judd engine for 2012 and owner Keith Wiggins is working hard to have a second car at the season’s opener.
• Michael Shank Racing was actually the first team to commit to Lotus and it will have the difficult task of starting its new Indycar program with a brand new chassis and a brand new engine.


Khatir Soltani
Khatir Soltani
Automotive expert
As a car enthusiast, he tests and compares vehicles from different categories through the eyes of the consumer, ensuring relevant and objective reviews.
  • Over 6 years experience as a car reviewer
  • Over 50 test drives in the last year
  • Involved in discussions with virtually every auto manufacturer in Canada