Acura/HPD's future plans

[TWK]

Originally Posted by the real Stig

Mulsanne Mike got me to thinking...

Pictures available of Acura, sound description... Did Audi manage to time the car? Are they having a panic right now? Could it really end the era of the TDI's?

Audi could be thinking that Sebring and Le Sarthe TDI territory and that the majority of the ALMS circuits are more suited for Acura type car (?)

Audi felt the sharp edge of Acura last year and think they may get a massive thumping next year with no room for excuses (we are really hurting for weight on these tight circuits...etc)

Audi have really enjoyed thumping privateers for the last decade. Looks like this time American Honda have scared the competition away before they even arrive. RE: IRL with Chevy and Toyota.

I really hope Acura Embarrass Audi at Sebring enough to provoke them in to staying in, if they don’t stay, Acura should chase them to Le Sarthe and take it to them there as well.

It appears Audi may only wish to race if they can guarantee domination.

In your universe is the car business in good shape?

[the real Stig]

No m8, but the car business is my universe.

I'm just thinking along the line that MM stated..."But if we believe that Audi has indeed built a new LMP challenger (and I'm not suggesting that we shouldn't), then we believe that the large costs have already been spent and the operating costs to race for a season are a mere drop in the bucket in comparison. So it seems a little odd to spend 85% and suddenly not be able to swallow spending the last 15%. "

What do you think? in your own universe?

[HORNDAWG]

Originally Posted by fjn356

I must say, the specific verbiage of the Honda announcement bears some thought: Motogp-we will, Indycar-we plan, and Other-we start thinking. This leaves a large loophole for Indycar and very little promise for ALMS. Auto sales numbers will provide the answer soon enough.

Hmm, if we are gonna cherry pick quotes and superimpose them on the projected future health of ALMS/Sports Car racing, I prefer these from that article;

He added: "Honda 's idea of sport has not changed. The pull out is not only for economic reasons but because we believe we are about to embark on a new era , which we think as a big change. The energy we poured into F1 we can now pour into this new phase of the auto industry.

"It is all because of expensive fuel. We need different (road) car design - we need to strengthen the eco hybrid technology. We need to have more energy for the development of eco cars, and for that we can use the personnel who had had the experience of F1."

Seems to me that a series that is racing hybrids is right up Honda's proverbial alley. But I do not expect Honda (corporate Japan) to expand into the ALMS at this time, but I also do not see them stopping Honda of N. America's Acura LMP program. The program is a winner that comes in at a fraction of the cost of the F-1 program they are closing and explores the avenue of their stated future plans, i.e., "eco hybrid technology".



L.P.

[TWK]

Originally Posted by the real Stig

No m8, but the car business is my universe.

I'm just thinking along the line that MM stated..."But if we believe that Audi has indeed built a new LMP challenger (and I'm not suggesting that we shouldn't), then we believe that the large costs have already been spent and the operating costs to race for a season are a mere drop in the bucket in comparison. So it seems a little odd to spend 85% and suddenly not be able to swallow spending the last 15%. "

What do you think? in your own universe?

In my universe Audi looked at November car sales, trends, theirs and others, and (like they said) had to make tough budget decisions. Period, simple. No fear, no conspiracy, just good sense. So, what's your theory about Honda? About Porsche? About mergers of NASCAR teams? About the loss of no less than a dozen cars from the ALMS grid? The fact is that racing in my universe just isn't important enough to anyone to spawn such convolluted stuff. Audi's got far more important things to worry about...so does everyone else that builds and sells automobiles.

That's my universe; the real one.

[the real Stig]

oh, i thought veteran meant experience...

Nascar isnt racing, it's a "show" like WWE etc...
Domestic manufacturing isn't like Eastern or European manufacturing, and if you know anything about Honda, Honda builds engines (yes and cars too) to go racing.
Audi like to encourage competition till it arrives, then dissapear...Hmmm. tisk tisk.

Race cars arn't cheap if you build one you better race one. otherwise something fishy's in the air. I wager my hat, that in the spirit of competition Honda will (have?) build the Racecar and will race the Racecar.

Can't wait till Sebring.

[Hugewally]

I can't see anyone thinking that Audi is scared of anyone or the cars they build.

[the real Stig]

Originally Posted by Hugewally

I can't see anyone thinking that Audi is scared of anyone or the cars they build.

you could be right, but the cash required to race competitivly might be the problem, not the turning up and running.

[MulsanneMike]

Well in my mind it isn't a cash flow issue (I mean really, what's Audi's racing budget vs. company total revenue vs. development budget spent, drop in the o'le bucket I'm sure). If it were they'd stop the program period. And on paper I'm sure the money is spent. But Audi isn't dumb. They took one look at this and said to themselves, we can't afford to compete with both Acura and Peugeot. "What's more important to us?" Le Mans. So they're going to park themselves at HTTT for the next how ever many months, spend a really good portion of what they would have spent on ALMS '09 in the mean time (but not more, the accountants will feel vindicated), and ensure themselves a Le Mans '09 win vs. having to duke it out with Acura in the ALMS and attempt to fight off Peugeot at Le Man. The money isn't the issue. The ability to compete without being able to double the budget (or merely increase it as needed) is the issue.

[MulsanneMike]

Originally Posted by Hugewally

I can't see anyone thinking that Audi is scared of anyone or the cars they build.

I dunno, they sure whined and whined and whined when Acura and Porsche were whipping their behinds with P2 cars...

[juicy sushi]

but wouldn't the money spent to beat honda in the ALMS have developed the r15 so that it could have then done a much better job beating peugeot at le mans?

i realize the aerodynamics package is a bit different, but the core development of the car would be the same, wouldn't it?...

[deggis]

Originally Posted by fjn356

I must say, the specific verbiage of the Honda announcement bears some thought: Motogp-we will, Indycar-we plan, and Other-we start thinking. This leaves a large loophole for Indycar and very little promise for ALMS. Auto sales numbers will provide the answer soon enough.

But whole another question is ALMS even included in "other categories"? At least both, MotoGP bikes and IRL engines are actually badged as Hondas. What I mean is that with ALMS/LMP, are the orders actually coming from Honda? Is HPD directly under Honda?

[broadrun96]

Gotta agree with MM there, Audi will spend no more, and prob slightly less, money to test the car at the higher speeds at HTTT relative to the costs to race at 2 street courses and be able to justify to those with the checkbooks the use of the money. Now what happens to that car after LM09 though? Do they keep them in the corner at Joest's shop until Sebring 2010 and then try for the new bodywork as a test for 2011 or just bin the whole thing?

[TWK]

Originally Posted by MulsanneMike

I dunno, they sure whined and whined and whined when Acura and Porsche were whipping their behinds with P2 cars...

Mike, they whined because those were LMP2 cars, not because they were competition. Had they been built to the LMP1 rule and campaigned as such, I doubt we'd have heard anything from Audi. There is nothing on the record to indicate we would; they never peeped at all about BMW, Panoz, Lola, or Peugeot, even when being beaten - and each of those beat them multiple times.

[CTD]

Hmm this is going way off topic according to it's a "Acura" thread!.
please take it over to the Audi or ALMS thread!.

But something i thought on is that if Honda don't get the Team sold with no lay offs, then Honda will stand with a professional racing team, 1-2 talented drivers. Could Honda use it's team to run the Acura car, with Jenson Button and 2 other drivers? (perhaps Barrichello, eventhough he has said he will not race anywhere else than F1)

[MulsanneMike]

Originally Posted by CTD

Hmm this is going way off topic according to it's a "Acura" thread!.
please take it over to the Audi or ALMS thread!.

But something i thought on is that if Honda don't get the Team sold with no lay offs, then Honda will stand with a professional racing team, 1-2 talented drivers. Could Honda use it's team to run the Acura car, with Jenson Button and 2 other drivers? (perhaps Barrichello, eventhough he has said he will not race anywhere else than F1)

But why? Acura has teams already (that effectively costs them very little--remember the teams have sponsors and the program is psuedo-privateer-manufacturer), they don't need any more teams, that's for sure.