2009 Aston Martin LMP1
2009 Aston Martin LMP1
2009 Aston Martin LMP1
2009 Aston Martin LMP1
Aston's current Le Mans cars use a Lola-derived chassis powered by a 6.0-litre V12 originally developed for the DBR9 GT1 racer. The twelve-cylinder mill won't be eligible under 2011 Le Mans rules, however, so Aston Martin Racing needs a new powerplant.
Rather than using bought-in engine tech, however, Richards has revealed to US car mag Auto Week that Aston Martin Racing is hard at work developing an all-new bespoke racing engine - and that the chassis around it will also be a fully in-house Aston Martin design.
Aston could take the new car and engine racing next year, but the team feels that the 2010 Le Mans rules - set in stone late last month - still favour diesels over petrols, and Aston won't be producing a diesel-powered racer (thank goodness).
"We are far enough down the road with the design that we could have done it for next year if the petrol-diesel equivalence had been sensible" Team principal George Howard-Chappell told Auto Week. "That is clearly not the case."
Richards also said that he was keen for Aston Martin Racing to stop working on a year-to-year basis and concentrate instead on three-year campaigns. That could mean that there will be no works Astons at Le Mans next year, while the team concentrates on its 2011 car, although this year's Lola-Aston coupes could end up racing in private hands.
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