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Le Mans / ALMS
LE MANS: Q&A With HPD’s Steve Eriksen
Vice President of Honda Performance Development talks to SPEED.com about new engine support program with OAK Racing...
HPD VP Steve Eriksen, left, with OAK Racing President Jacques Nicolet, right. (Photo: DPPI)
From winning the Twelve Hours of Sebring and 24 Hours of Le Mans in LMP2 to five consecutive overall victories in the American Le Mans Series, Honda Performance Development has made quite an impression in Le Mans racing worldwide this year.
The Santa Clarita, Calif.-based manufacturer was in the news again on Friday, as OAK Racing announced that it will utilize the HPD-AR6 LMV8 powerplant for its Oak-Pescarolo LMP1 car for the final two FIA World Endurance Championship races of the season.
READ: HPD To Power OAK LMP1 Car
It marks the third different chassis the normally aspirated 3.4-liter V8 has been fitted into so far, joining Lola and its bespoke ARX package.
SPEED.com caught up with Steve Eriksen, Vice President of Honda Performance Development, to get further insight into Friday's announcement.
DAGYS: When did negotiations first begin with OAK Racing?
ERIKSEN: We actually spoke for some time. I think Le Mans was when we really had a chance to sit down and talk more seriously about it. We've got teams based in the U.K. and the U.S. It's nice to add France to the list of countries that we're powering.
DAGYS: Was there any concern over adding another team mid-season, from a support standpoint?
ERIKSEN: The timing wasn't so bad because the IndyCar season ends before Fuji and Shanghai. From a support standpoint, it made some good sense. Because a lot of the engineering for the integration has been done by the OAK engineers, it hasn't been such a load for us.
DAGYS: Has there been any challenges in the fitting of the HPD-AR6 LMV8 engine into the Oak-Pescarolo chassis?
ERIKSEN: Not really. I think our V8 is similar in size to a lot of the other ones. If you look at the architectures, you'll see a lot of similarities, particularly the engines that were derived from the format originally used in IRL.
DAGYS: Do you envision seeing more HPD engines and/or chassis-engine packages on the grid next year?
ERIKSEN: I think there's some great economies of scale that happen when you supply more cars. You can better advertise and [handle] development costs. If there's opportunities for others to be powered by HPD, we'd be happy to do that. We have had some inquiries, mostly for P1 right now.
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
The Santa Clarita, Calif.-based manufacturer was in the news again on Friday, as OAK Racing announced that it will utilize the HPD-AR6 LMV8 powerplant for its Oak-Pescarolo LMP1 car for the final two FIA World Endurance Championship races of the season.
READ: HPD To Power OAK LMP1 Car
It marks the third different chassis the normally aspirated 3.4-liter V8 has been fitted into so far, joining Lola and its bespoke ARX package.
SPEED.com caught up with Steve Eriksen, Vice President of Honda Performance Development, to get further insight into Friday's announcement.
DAGYS: When did negotiations first begin with OAK Racing?
ERIKSEN: We actually spoke for some time. I think Le Mans was when we really had a chance to sit down and talk more seriously about it. We've got teams based in the U.K. and the U.S. It's nice to add France to the list of countries that we're powering.
DAGYS: Was there any concern over adding another team mid-season, from a support standpoint?
ERIKSEN: The timing wasn't so bad because the IndyCar season ends before Fuji and Shanghai. From a support standpoint, it made some good sense. Because a lot of the engineering for the integration has been done by the OAK engineers, it hasn't been such a load for us.
DAGYS: Has there been any challenges in the fitting of the HPD-AR6 LMV8 engine into the Oak-Pescarolo chassis?
ERIKSEN: Not really. I think our V8 is similar in size to a lot of the other ones. If you look at the architectures, you'll see a lot of similarities, particularly the engines that were derived from the format originally used in IRL.
DAGYS: Do you envision seeing more HPD engines and/or chassis-engine packages on the grid next year?
ERIKSEN: I think there's some great economies of scale that happen when you supply more cars. You can better advertise and [handle] development costs. If there's opportunities for others to be powered by HPD, we'd be happy to do that. We have had some inquiries, mostly for P1 right now.
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
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