Most liked posts in thread: DeltaWing in 2012 LeMans

Minidave · Mar 13, 2012

Interesting how the Nissan guy talks like they did all the development work, like it's been their car all along......

Redbeard · Mar 13, 2012

goaljnky said: ↑

That was filmed at Buttonwillow!
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I thought that looked aweful familiar. They weren't running #13CW though. That would REALLY show how it turns. Though that is a poor testing location to compare to Circuit de Sarthe....

Lets see how it does at Seabring. Should be cool to see.

Minidave · Mar 13, 2012

So, is this a second car, or did the original just have a red vinyl wrap?

The front wheel size looks smaller on this one....

goaljnky · Mar 13, 2012

Redbeard said: ↑

I thought that looked aweful familiar. They weren't running #13CW though. That would REALLY show how it turns. Though that is a poor testing location to compare to Circuit de Sarthe....

Lets see how it does at Seabring. Should be cool to see.
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The esses and left onto the front straight gave it away.

Steve · Mar 13, 2012

Minidave said: ↑

Interesting how the Nissan guy talks like they did all the development work, like it's been their car all along......
Click to expand...

That's going too far of course but it's also typical. On the other hand, they may have been involved for quite some time. The other DeltaWing folks have been talking about a partner they couldn't name but would be revealed eventually, most recently they changed the language to say it was an engine partner. They couldn't reveal the source of the power plant until the mystery company or organization was ready to go public. No way of knowing at this point just how heavily involved Nissan has been or for how long.

I think it's interesting though that they didn't make their involvement with the project public until after it had been on the track a couple times and proved that it could at least turn a few corners. :wink:

Steve · Mar 13, 2012

Minidave said: ↑

So, is this a second car, or did the original just have a red vinyl wrap?

The front wheel size looks smaller on this one....
Click to expand...

Don't know but it's definitely evolving. The body seems to be changing shape here and there plus there's a hole where the very pointy nose used to be.

Steve · Mar 13, 2012

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeYTh-3xzBM]Nissan unveils DeltaWing racecar - YouTube[/ame]

Johngo · Mar 13, 2012

I want to see it hit a real turn... No sharp turns yet.

Steve · Mar 13, 2012

Yep, I'm hoping they push it a bit when they take it out on Sebring this Thursday.

ScottinBend · Mar 13, 2012

Which Franchitti was driving?

Steve · Mar 13, 2012

ScottinBend said: ↑

Which Franchitti was driving?
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Marino

Steve · Mar 14, 2012

NISSAN DELTAWING: THE FULL STORY (PistonHeads.com)

Wednesday 14th March

The inside line on Nissan's DeltaWing, from designer Ben Bowlby and driver Marino Franchitti

You may not have heard of it (yet), but it could be the future of world motorsport

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Well, sort of on that last one actually, or at least that's where the DeltaWing Le Mans prototype gets its name from. Think of Concorde (you probably already were) and you're somewhere near.

The DeltaWing project has been knocking around for a while, and though having secured a place at this year's Le Mans 24 Hours under the Automobile Club de L'Ouest's 'Project 56' experimental technology entry, it hasn't had an engine to power it. Until now.

Nissan has now revealed it will be backing the DeltaWing project as an official partner with the tripod-like racer getting a 300hp, 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder motor loosely related to that of the top-spec Juke 1.6 DIG-T. Not the sonorous V12 or intricate experimental petrol-electric hybrid powertrain you might have been hoping for given the car's Batman's-trackday-toy looks. But the stealthy racer is really quite an innovative, well thought out and truly relevant project, based on existing technology in order to keep costs (relatively) low and maximise efficiency.

Effici-what?
And there's that word most of us wouldn't associate with the glamour and excitement of motor racing - efficiency. But while most driving enthusiasts see it as a byword for dull and drab motoring, with power reined in to improve fuel economy efficiency in racing actually means more speed.

The whole concept has been based on a strategy of half the weight and half the drag of a conventional LMP car, and in doing so has allowed the DeltaWing's engineers to halve the tyres' effective contact patch at the front, therefore halving the friction and drag thanks to that cigar-like front profile. Importantly, that means fuel consumption is also cut by 50 per cent.

According to DeltaWing's Chief Designer Ben Bowlby, "to halve the drag the DeltaWing doesn't employ any wings, relying solely on downforce created by ground effect and the car's body." That means it'll be extremely slippery down the 3.7-mile long Mulsanne Straight and the reason why it can achieve speeds of a modern prototype with under half the power. But more importantly, it'll be affected less by turbulent air in traffic - a massive factor with 56 cars on track, even if the Le Mans lap is eight and a half miles round.

On the pace
Bowlby is bullish about the programme's prospects, citing, "the ACO has given us a target lap time of 3:40 around Le Mans [that's in between LMP1 and LMP2 pace] with an intended top speed of 300km/h." The latter of which DeltaWing has already exceeded in testing.

For those of you thinking pie-in-the-sky stuff and recalling examples such as Aston Martin's ambitious but ultimately doomed attempt at Le Mans last year (the DW is actually loosely based on last year's Aston LMP1 chassis), you might be surprised.

With backing from Dan Gurney's All American Racing outfit, American Le Mans Series founder and owner Don Panoz, two-time ALMS champions Highcroft Racing and now the might of Nissan in the engine department, DeltaWing carries some serious clout.

So how does it drive?
According to Marino Franchitti, now confirmed to drive the car at Le Mans, "it's like a normal racing car - it has its own idiosyncrasies but it's easy to drive. You have to apex a corner with the rear wheels as opposed to the fronts in a normal car, due to the rear being the widest point, but it handles really well and is easy to position. Everything is very progressive and the aerodynamic balance is very consistent and controllable - it's just like a normal car when it breaks away."

Under that slim nose are two specially developed tyres from Michelin just four inches in width. And that's all the rubber DeltaWing has to play with up front. Yet despite the comparative lack of rubber the team is boasting of corner speeds similar to more conventional prototypes.

That's because the car's weight distribution is biased rearwards to the tune of 73:27, putting all the mass behind the centre of gravity and offering excellent stability, especially in a straight line and under braking. The car's brake balance is weighted towards the rear too, making use of the significantly larger 12.5-inch wide rear tyres. That rearward weight distribution should mean less weight transfer under braking (well over 50 per cent of the braking force is behind the centre of gravity), as well as more traction under power, equating to a less wayward tail than you might otherwise imagine.

Going the distance
"With only 40 litres of fuel to carry and much less mass we're hoping to go further on a stint than the regular prototypes," reckons Franchitti. And we can well believe him. From the time the Scot has already spent behind the wheel of the DeltaWing, he outlined that triple-stinting tyres at Le Mans won't be an issue, and that the car's inherent, almost benign balance - despite its outlandish looks - means degradation in the rubber won't upset the chassis or bite the driver.

It's a futuristic looking piece of kit, and there are some proper innovations in the design - not least the clever "half everything" principle and its manifestation in the metal (or should that be carbon fibre). The developments in efficiency through reduced drag, lower mass and a small turbocharged engine are relevant to the future of road cars as well.

According to Nissan Europe General Manager, Darren Cox, "DeltaWing is about innovation and relevance to road cars. The developments in efficiency will challenge the way people think about motorsport and benefit road car progress in a sustainable way through real-world technology - downsizing and improving aerodynamic efficiency as two examples."

That's all well and good for the future, but in the here and now the DeltaWing has a job to do.

"The car is the first real wholesale change since putting engines in the back of Formula 1 cars or the development of wings - fans are drawn to it and it's so important in engaging the next generation of sportscar followers. It's great to be involved in something so exciting," believes Franchitti.

It won't be competing for the podium proper, unfortunately, as it's in an experimental class of one. The team has been warned by the ACO to not get in the way of anybody's race, and it's well aware of that. Given the claims it's making though, Franchitti and Co. might not have to be checking their mirrors all that frequently.
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rkw · Mar 14, 2012

Steve said: ↑

Yep, I'm hoping they push it a bit when they take it out on Sebring this Thursday.
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Unfortunately, I think you'll be disappointed. When anybody shows off their new race car to the public for the first time, they do safe demo laps for photographers and publicity. A mishap would be beyond embarrassing.

An interesting tidbit I saw, but I couldn't find the reference right now. The designers wanted to use only one front wheel, but 4 wheels are required to enter in LeMans.

Alan · Mar 14, 2012

Steve said: ↑

NISSAN DELTAWING: THE FULL STORY (That's because the car's weight distribution is biased rearwards to the tune of 73:27, putting all the mass behind the centre of gravity and offering excellent stability, especially in a straight line and under braking.)
Click to expand...

"in a straight line and under braking" That will be where this car shines.

Redbeard · Mar 14, 2012

As far as the question of endurance race it will be interesting to see a 1.6l Turbo make 300hp for 24 hours. That is a pretty robust engine that can survive those stresses.

Minidave · Mar 14, 2012

Toyota's GTP cars made over 750 hp out of 1.6L, and that was with early 90's technology. While they didn't run a 24 hour race with that engine, I think detuning down to only 300 it should have done so, easily.

Steve · Mar 14, 2012

Lifted from LeMans.org, an excellent quote from Darren Cox, Director of Nissan Europe:

Q: But if it doesn't work it will be a very public failure.

A: "You've got to gamble, to take a risk or we won't be able to innovate and learn. Innovation hurts sometimes. To use a motorsport analogy; "If you are not going off once in a while, you are not trying hard enough". Look at Audi's Le Mans 24 Hours last year - a multi-million Euro programme, a decade of knowledge, the best drivers. Two cars out by midnight. They had three bullets in the gun. Nissan DeltaWing has one. All it takes is a German dentist in a Porsche turning in on us at the wrong time to end our race. That's the beauty of Le Mans. But, whatever happens, we will learn from it."
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minimark · Mar 14, 2012

Babble.

Alan · Mar 15, 2012

Yeah, after reading that my first thought was we will hear that they hired Nelson Piquet Jr. to drive for them.

Steve · Mar 19, 2012

A little video from Sebring. Apparently they stayed on after the race and have been testing (they're pushing it at least a bit, I read they broke a drive shaft today) but unfortunately these are just from the demo.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QBh6rLjhSQ]DeltaWing Unveil Laps - YouTube[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeEcmzW-iUA]Delta Wing at Sebring - YouTube[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_cf5bZwws0]Delta Wing Demo Laps at Sebring 12 Hr, 2012 - YouTube[/ame]

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