Engine resource? How much teams built/buy for a season?

[Frank84]

Hi!

Searching internet for this question but all that I could find is that "it is no exact number of engines built by Hendrick Motorsports for a season".

Of course after F1 goverment tricking with the rule "1 engine for X events" people want to know how long engine used in Indy & NASCAR.

Thanks a lot!

[Mark in Oshawa]

So you want to know how long an engine is used for and how many engines a team uses is a year?

I am guessing 2 engines a weekend sometimes in the IRL...while NASCAR uses one a weekend for the most part as well. They are not allowed to swap engines unless there is a failure in NASCAR. That said with all the testing they do in that series, most teams are probably using a lot of engines a year with rebuilds....

Someone might have the hard numbers..I am only guessing based on what I have observed...

[colinspooky]

73






/got nothing - does it really matter? It is going to be a lot. And the rich teams will make more than the poor teams. :cool:

[trinksuk]

well as Honda states the engines are good for 1400miles, then I imagine that the engines get changed out when they reach that number. Based on that, one engine would be good for at least 2 if not 3 weekends worth of races. Particularly on the 2 day weekends there is just no time to change an engine so that engine would stay in all weekend.
The pool of engines is a total of 88 (has been quoted several times in the press).
Remember too that there are no engines in spare cars....so if you crash your primary car then you have to either switch the engine to the back up car or replace the engine if it has been damaged.

[Easy Drifter]

I disgree. Most teams, if they have spare cars have engines and are ready to go. An engine can easily be changed overnight and probably between sessions.
It is amazing what a top team can do.
We once changed an engine on a Chevron in 1hr. 10 min. Factory quoted time 4 hrs. plus. It took weeks for the burns on my fingers to heal from removing the headers. The brass nuts were still almost too hot to handle when I was reinstalling the exhaust. I had a specially modified (by me) wrench that made the job easier. Still an 1/8th of a turn at a time. No clearance.
I do think the worst was the F1 V12 Cooper Maserati. Quote time in shop 24 hrs. Done at the track (in a tent, no garages in those days) 23 1/2 hrs. Yes, I was involved.
If you know the car and tools needed and an experienced crew it is amazing what can be done.

[Mark in Oshawa]

Drifter...you ever wonder how guys dont' get burned doing teardowns on a Top Fuel motor? An 8000 hp motor torn down and rebuilt in about an hour and a half 3 or 4 times a DAY.....

[trinksuk]

drifter, actually at an IRL event, no team has a spare engine, Honda carries them all. The spares are not allowed in back up cars; next time you see a team wheel the back up car off the truck you will see that in place of the engine is a frame....
It is true that a top class outfit like AGR or Gannassi can change an engine under an hour but that doesn't start until they lift the lid off the spare engine box. If you look at the schedule for 2 day race weekends, the problem is that if you have to change an engine after qualifying you go into the race untested now that the IRL has done away with the warm up. That is always a risk as even the best teams will struggle to put the car back together in exactly the same manner as it last came a part so it is always a gamble and then no check to see if the installation is done well....the first lap at speed on the new engine is the first lap of the race, no an ideal situation for anyone.
The old days of the IRL used to involve an engine change almost every night with low mileage qualifying specials and less control on the build quality - these days with the spec Honda engine, this appears to be pretty much a thing of the past.

[Frank84]

Thanks for answers!


The pool of engines is a total of 88 (has been quoted several times in the press).
88/24 (cars) = 3.67, ok 4. So it looks like 1 engine on 4 weekends! If I understood you correct...