ATLANTA — Even as the engines are cooling and the drivers resting after 10 hours of racing in the season finale of the 2001 American Le Mans Series at Road Atlanta, Team Cadillac is already gearing up for the start of the next racing season. An all-new Cadillac Northstar Le Mans Prototype (LMP) will take to the track as Cadillac celebrates its centennial in 2002.
TEAM CADILLAC TO INTRODUCE NEW CHASSIS
In the first two years of the LMP effort, Team Cadillac laid the foundation for its first comprehensive motorsports program in international endurance racing. Now the team is assembling the essential elements for its 2002 campaign: an aerodynamic new chassis, an efficient and reliable powertrain, and a culture that is focused on performance.
"Constructing an entirely new car and creating a totally new team to campaign it is a complex undertaking," said Herb Fishel, GM Racing executive director. "We are competing against teams that have decades of experience and deep financial and technical resources. The performance standard has been raised considerably in the two years since Cadillac launched its endurance racing program, but we are quietly confident that the 2002 Cadillac LMP will be a credible contender."
NEW CADILLAC LMP TO BE ASSEMBLED AND TESTED IN U.S.
Designed and fabricated in England, the new chassis will be assembled at Team Cadillac's U.S. base near Atlanta. Initial testing will take place on American soil.