INDYCAR: ORECA Considering 2012 Aero Kit

IndyCar

INDYCAR: ORECA Considering 2012 Aero Kit

French sports car constructor ORECA is currently evaluating the production of an aero kit for the the new 2012 Indy car.

Marshall Pruett | Posted March 18, 2011 Sebring, FL

ORECA's continual evolution of the Courage LC70 chassis, shown here in ORECA 01 form, has led to the company to build a number of different 'aero kits' as they develop the car year after year. (ORECA)

Add one more interested party to the 2012 IndyCar Aero Kit party.

French sports car constructor ORECA, known in recent years for its line of aerodynamically impressive Le Mans prototypes, has been evaluating what it would take to the ranks of aero kit constructors for IndyCar’s new 2012 chassis.

ORECA's David Floury. (Julie Sueur)

Speaking to SPEED.com from the paddock in Sebring, Florida, ORECA technical director David Floury says he’s had the aero kit regulations on his desk for some time, and believes the Hugues de Chaunac-led company is ready to deliver a competitive aero kit directly to a team or an auto manufacturer.

“We do a lot of body kit design and production for sports cars, and now with what the [IndyCar Series] is doing for next year, this is exactly the kind of thing we would like to do,” he said. “I used to work for Dallara and am very familiar with Indy cars. Plus, I love very much racing in the USA; our entire team loves the way racing is done in the US. This is very appealing for us, and with what [the IndyCar Series] will do with the new Dallara chassis and engines, investigating the aero kits are something we are interested in.”

Floury and de Chaunac met with IZOD IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard on Friday, with the open-wheel boss providing additional technical and commercial information to aid ORECA with their fact finding mission.

Based in the south of France in the town of Signes, ORECA came to prominence in the 1970s and 1980s, leading future three-time F1 World Champion Alain Prost to the 1979 French and European F3 titles. ORECA also had long involvements in F2 and F3000 before turning its attention to sports car and GT racing.

The company’s most famous exploits came from its long partnership with Dodge, as the ORECA-built Viper GTS’ claimed an overall victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona, earned two championships apiece in the ALMS and FIA GT2 series, and also won the GTS category at the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the American auto manufacturer.

ORECA’s involvement in the WTCC led to two manufacturer titles for the Spanish SEAT marque and one driver’s championship for Yvan Muller.

ORECA boss Hugues de Chaunac would like to expand his company into the American market. (LAT)

With its GT programs winding down, ORECA turned its focus towards prototypes, producing a variety of fast and sleek LMP1 and LMP2 machines in addition to the spec LMPC car used in the ALMS.

More than 60 cars have been manufactured from ORECA’s facility since 2009, where 200 employees provide the engineering, design and in-house fabrication and manufacturing required to build the cutting edge Le Mans Prototypes and assorted GT racing cars for the auto industry. ORECA’s racing has also fielded a Peugeot 908 LMP1 car in partnership with the French manufacturer since 2009.

“We have been developing and building racing cars for a while now, doing sports car and touring cars,” Floury continued. “Through the years we’ve really developed our skills and our facilities to be a full racing car constructor, and do all of our own design, simulation, CFD (computational fluid dynamics) and much of our own manufacturing. For the high-volume pieces, we sub-contract to reduce costs, but we are able to do it all when required. I think with what is required for the aero kit, this is something we already do now but with sports cars.”

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