Panther Racing’s JR Hildebrand had a vastly improved outcome after losing most of Wednesday to brake problems. The Chevy-powered driver finished 10th at 53.04 after spending Thursday evaluating some fairly major setup changes.

In addition to Vautier, Conor Daly also got his first taste of Indy car power on Thursday, setting the fifth-fastest lap before lunch.

Justin Wilson drove the only car at the test that followed the old school form of using unpainted and/or mismatched bodywork. (Photo: IndyCar Series)

“I really have to thank the Foyts, Honda and Firestone,” he said. “It was an amazing opportunity for me, and I really liked the car ad how the entire team worked. It was impressive to see how much talent they have. It was incredible to be out there running in an Indy car; it’s something I’ve always dreamt of doing and it felt very comfortable. I was reeling in (James) Hinchcliffe at one point and just thought how surreal the whole thing was.”

Daly hoped to maintain his morning pace in the afternoon, but with the team electing to stay on used tires, his time fell to P12 as numerous teams went faster on fresh rubber.

“I’m sure we could have been right up there if we’d done the same,” he said. “A driver always wants to see that big number on top of the time sheet, but I think we can walk away knowing the car was easily capable of getting into the 52s.”

Ganassi’s Charlie Kimball (P13) and Andretti Autosport’s Hinchcliffe (P14) weren’t as fast as expected, but their test was a far cry better than what Graham Rahal experienced.

Making his first appearance after signing to drive for his father’s Rahal Letterman Lanigan team, Rahal battled serious braking issues that made it impossible to set a representative lap.

After a mandatory testing blackout period, teams will continue preparing for the 2013 season once the ban lifts in mid-January.

Unofficial Lap Times
1: Will Power, 52.84
2: Tristan Vautier, 52.85
3: Alex Tagliani, 52.91
4: Josef Newgarden, 52.93
5: Justin Wilson, 52.94
6: Scott Dixon, 52.94
7: Helio Castroneves, 53.00
8: Simona de Silvestro, 53.01
9: Oriol Servia, 53.02
10: JR Hildebrand, 53.04
11: Tony Kanaan, 53.13
12: Conor Daly, 53.29
13: Charlie Kimball, 53.31
14: James Hinchcliffe, 53.34
15: Graham Rahal, 53.48

Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, and covers the IndyCar Series. Before joining SPEED, Pruett worked in open-wheel racing for 20 years as a mechanic and engineer. He also contributes to RACER, Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him @MarshallPruett.