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Indianapolis Star
30-06-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
5 thoughts on IndyCar's new car, what it could mean for the sport's future, paddock insight
The new specifics are few, but the news was no less exciting as it rang across the IndyCar paddock: After 16 years of use, IndyCar's combination of its DW12 chassis and 2.2-liter twin-turbo engine will be retired after nearly 270 races of use come the 2027 season finale. For reference, the careers of Bobby Rahal (264 starts) and Dario Franchitti (265) rank within the top-15 lengthiest in American open-wheel racing history dating back to 1946. The car was born out of the testing acumen of the late Dan Wheldon, saw the entry (and soon to follow exit) of a third engine manufacturer in Lotus, welcomed first a manufacturer aero-kit and then a universal one and was the proving ground for IndyCar's aeroscreen and bespoke hybrid system. Among its full-time driver contingent, only Scott Dixon, Will Power and Graham Rahal have raced anything else in their top-level American open-wheel racing careers. 'The DW12 served the series so well, as it provided a combination of phenomenal, wheel-to-wheel racing and critical enhancements to safety,' IndyCar president Doug Boles said. 'But recent significant updates to the car … have helped advance the need for a completely new car. 'We are pleased by what our engineers and Dallara have collaboratively designed and believe it will appear to the fans and paddock, while also upholding our standards of safety and enhancing IndyCar's on-track competition well into the future.' Penske Entertainment's rollout plan announced June 22 included a private audience of owners or executives from all its full-time teams minutes after the end of Practice No. 2 on Saturday, during which sources with direct knowledge of aspects of the meeting said meeting attendees were not shown a mock-up of the new car design, which is said to have undergone a notable redesign since owners were gathered for an offseason meeting in October when talk around the new car around the paddock picked up significantly. Multiple sources with knowledge of meeting said Penske Entertainment leaders didn't dive too deep into the cars' specifics beyond what was laid out in the Saturday afternoon release shortly after their meeting together completed. Here are five thoughts I have in the wake of IndyCar's most substantive statement around its future technical regulations since Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles sat down with IndyStar at St. Pete in March and elaborated on the process and did his best to dispel rumors and clarify the work that had taken place in the offseason. Miles said one could come 'as early as 2027,' but after a year, though an initial prototype had been developed and seen wind tunnel time, Miles was still not able to offer a hard-and-fast timeline. In fact, he promised that the series would see some level of change to the cars being raced in 2027, planting the idea that some updates could rollout that year with the rest coming by 2028. IndyCar and Penske Entertainment have given no indication why that phased rollout with new technology on track more quickly has been scrapped, but there was no mention of 2027 in Saturday's release. Another delay as it may, the firm road map — as long as it doesn't see delays the likes of the elongated hybrid system rollout — now begins to give teams the makings of a runway on which they can prepare not only for the cost impacts of a new car but the way in which they wind down use of their parts related to the DW12. 'I'm pretty happy with where the whole thing is right now,' Meyer Shank Racing co-owner Mike Shank told IndyStar. 'I think the move to 2028 was really crucial for all of our sakes, and now we can plan around it the best we can. 'And because they moved to 2028, we have a proper, doable plan that allows us to fully depreciated (our DW12s) and run all the parts out as much as we can and end up with worn-out racecars by the end of 2027.' It was already well-understood across the paddock that the car would be made by Dallara and would include low-voltage hybrid technology and a 2.4-liter twin-turbo V6 engine. Maybe the most impactful piece of information IndyCar unveiled was the early makings of a timeline for which the new car would begin on-track testing. That process, according to IndyCar's release, will begin in 'early 2026.' It will allow for a nearly two-year runway of testing and production ahead of the car's on-track debut. By comparison, the DW12 began on-track testing in August 2011, just seven months before it was first used in a race. A test and production window nearly three times the length of that of IndyCar's most recent new chassis should assuage any concerns that Penske Entertainment will be unable to meet its benchmarks along the way, despite the festering wounds of how the hybrid testing and development process went from 2022-24. 'This gives us a lot of time to really develop this, so it's not a cluster-you-know-what, and we'll actually be able to run the car,' Shank said. 'I think Doug Boles has done an awesome job. I was impressed with how he led (the team owners' meeting),' added Prema Racing IndyCar CEO Piers Phillips. 'This is a team sport, and once you get over the pit wall, you want to beat everybody, but I always say, you've got to get to the pit wall together as an organization, and I think the group discussion has been very productive.' It remains a paddock mystery as to who and how many engine manufacturers the sport will have once Honda and Chevy's deal with the sport that runs through 2026 expires. Of the two, Honda Racing Corp. USA is the party those around the paddock are uncertain whether it will re-sign or not in the wake of the company airing its concerns in late 2023 with the state of the sport and the return on investment it offers. 'It's great to see IndyCar moving forward and announcing plans around the new car. That's something fans have been waiting for and teams, drivers and OEMs have been waiting for, so I think that's a really good step forward,' Chuck Schifsky, the national manager of HRC USA's racing endeavors, told IndyStar at Road America, who noted that HRC USA continues to meet 'regularly' with Penske Entertainment executives regarding the future of the sport and the prospect of their involvement in it past 2026 and that those meetings 'have been doing well.' Schifsky offered no specifics as to HRC USA's decision-making timeline, though one has been given to Penske Entertainment. Though it wasn't explicitly stated in the release, one would imagine that new car testing in early 2026 for IndyCar's next technical regulations would involve manufacturer-specific testing — i.e. a 2028 safety cell with updated parts and body kit and manufacturer-specific engines inside. Such a theory would require HRC USA to decide whether or not they plan to stick around long enough ahead to have a 2.4-liter test engine and testing plan prepared, making it reasonable to expect the longtime IndyCar manufacturer's future in the sport (or lack of it) to be solidified in the coming months. Changes coming in IndyCar's new car: Weight reduction, engine formula, more Though specifications around the engine formula are minimal, beyond it being a 2.4-liter twin-turbo V6 internal combustion engine with a low-voltage hybrid component, if that sounds familiar, you're not going crazy. It's the bones of what the series announced in 2019 would be coming in 2022 — after the internal combustion engine side was announced in 2018 for 2021. To me, that signals two things: One, for Chevy and (potentially) Honda, it's like slipping on an old forgotten pair of pants in the back of your closet. For both of them, the 2.4-liter engine formula is a piece of technology both were a good ways down the road with three years ago. In March 2022, just weeks after the 2.4-liter engine and hybrid combo were punted to 2024, the IMS road course hosted both Honda and Chevy for a multi-day test of both camps' 2.4-liter engine. Results of both sides' testing was kept largely private, but we know that Chevy turned 600 miles, and Honda went so far as to embark on an additional test day a couple months later with both the 2.4-liter and a version of the hybrid system. Though both sides ultimately decided to scrap continued development of their respective 2.4-liter engines to pour time, money and energy into helping IndyCar get the hybrid to the finish line, it's not as if those development plans just disappeared into thin air. There's reason to think both could get those engines back up and running with relative ease and that producing a dependable, competitive, track-tested engine with which to compete in IndyCar a couple years down the road isn't a project that requires starting from scratch. In fact, though it's slightly different, the bones of Honda's 2.4-liter engine is currently racing in its Acura GTP cars in IMSA, giving the manufacturer most known to be on the fence something concrete to work off of. The downside to this: Rebooting an engine formula that was in the works for four years previously and one that isn't all too different than what IndyCar is running now doesn't give me great hope that a new manufacturer outside the two competing is coming into the fold any time soon. Though the sport has made some notable gains in its popularity and what it can offer for those who play a major role in the sport, but there's neither been enough of a technological leap nor has the sport gained enough traction for me to think a major racing manufacturer that once turned the sport down is going to circle back around and have a change of heart. The manufacturer arms race in the major racing series around the world is becoming an increasingly crowded and competitive space, with sports like NASCAR offering a massive platform, ones like IMSA and WEC offering a lot of technological freedom and the ability to compete against a bunch of other high-level manufacturers from around the world and ones like Formula 1 that offer maybe the best of both worlds. It's a tough landscape for IndyCar to compete in at the moment, and racing an engine package that has been on the table for years in some form with no new takers doesn't have me thinking one is going to magically pop up any time soon. Setting the record straight: IndyCar CEO Mark Miles details new car development process The word 'horsepower' appeared just once in IndyCar's release about its new car, in noting that the hybrid would offer a gain in that department. In short, the amount of power Indy cars could sport come 2028 is yet to be confirmed, though it's notable that all the descriptions of the 2.4-liter engine and hybrid package that was pursued years ago was said to allow for as much as 900 horsepower when including the internal combustion engine, the hybrid and the push-to-pass boost system. Presently, the cars run around 800 hp at their maximum capacity, according to numbers provided around the time of the hybrid's debut a year ago, meaning a 100 hp gain from various components of the new engine package would mark a notable boost to the power drivers currently have at their fingertips. The downside of that additional power at the time of the addition of the hybrid last summer was that it took the addition of just over 100 pounds of new technology added to the back of the car to produce it, therefore negating that added horsepower boost. The next generation car will come with a drop in weight compared to the car in use between 85 and 100 pounds, making said new car's weight right around the pre-hybrid weight, but one that could be equipped with a significant boost in horsepower. The specifics of all of those will matter a great deal — the weight distribution, after all, matters as much if not more than the car's overall weight — but if a well-balanced car can be had, then a lighter, more powerful one certainly should be something drivers will enjoy competing with far more than the overweight, under-powered one they have now.
Newsweek
22-06-2025
- Automotive
- Newsweek
IndyCar Unveils the 2028 Race Car
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. IndyCar announced the new car for the 2028 season, which will be ready for testing in 2026. The American racing series revealed the new race car while at the Road America track ahead of the XPEL Grand Prix. Dallara is producing the new chassis for the car, continuing as the exclusive chassis for IndyCar as it has since 2008. The series officials plan on the new design improving the racing throughout all four track types and pushing the car's development further. "The time has come for a new NTT INDYCAR SERIES chassis," INDYCAR President Douglas Boles said in a statement. "The DW12 served the series so well, as it provided a combination of phenomenal, wheel-to-wheel racing and critical enhancements to safety. "But recent significant updates to the car - from the aeroscreen to the hybrid power unit - have helped advance the need for a completely new car. "We are pleased by what our engineers and Dallara have collaboratively designed and believe it will appeal to the fans and paddock while also upholding our standards of safety and enhancing INDYCAR's on-track competition well into the future." The 2028 car features a projected weight of 85-100 pounds compared to the current model. The engine is going to become a 2.4-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 internal combustion engine, which should be more powerful. Scott McLaughlin, driver of the #3 Dex imaging Team Penske Chevrolet drives during the NTT INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 02, 2025 in St Petersburg, Florida. Scott McLaughlin, driver of the #3 Dex imaging Team Penske Chevrolet drives during the NTT INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 02, 2025 in St Petersburg, Florida. Photo by Miguel will create the power supply as it has since 2000. They designed the engine to be 25 pounds lighter and to use more electrical power. The new model is still not set, as the designers and engineers are still rounding out the rough edges of the design. IndyCar stated that further details and renderings of the design are yet to come. It is unclear when the timeline for its unveiling will. While the features and promise of the new car sound nice, there is still much to be learned from testing to see if it can deliver better racing than the current generation of cars. IndyCar's European competitor, Formula 1, introduced a new set of regulations in 2022, which promised better racing, but the cars are creating more dirty air than ever, making it harder for cars to follow others. If they manage to develop a meaningful improvement over the current car that races better across the different tracks, the series' unique tracks could shine more, setting it apart from any other motorsport in the world and continuing to compete with F1.
Fox Sports
21-06-2025
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
NTT INDYCAR SERIES Prepares To Introduce Innovative New Car for 2028
INDYCAR INDYCAR is providing a status update on the new race car the series will introduce and implement for the 2028 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season, which was also shared with team owners today at Road America. Extensive planning and collaborative design work continues for the new chassis, with thorough on-track testing scheduled for early 2026. Dallara will produce the chassis, which will feature a look designed to appeal to a new generation of fans while keeping styling cues recognized by all as an INDYCAR SERIES car. Dallara has produced chassis for the series since 1997 and has been the series' exclusive chassis supplier since 2008. 'The time has come for a new NTT INDYCAR SERIES chassis," INDYCAR President J. Douglas Boles said. 'The DW12 served the series so well, as it provided a combination of phenomenal, wheel-to-wheel racing and critical enhancements to safety. But recent significant updates to the car – from the aeroscreen to the hybrid power unit – have helped advance the need for a completely new car. We are pleased by what our engineers and Dallara have collaboratively designed and believe it will appeal to the fans and paddock while also upholding our standards of safety and enhancing INDYCAR's on-track competition well into the future.' Three areas – competition, powertrain development and safety – are pillars of the engineering, design and development of the new car. The new car will enhance the ultra-competitive nature of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES by being even better suited for racing on all four types of circuits the series visits – superspeedways, short ovals, street circuits and permanent road courses. Evolution of the new chassis has included work by Dallara and recently developed simulation technology, aimed at enhancing overall raceability. Working in tandem with Dallara and other component suppliers, the overall car design includes a projected weight reduction of 85-100 pounds compared to the current INDYCAR SERIES chassis. Plans also include a move to a 2.4-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 internal combustion engine, which is expected to provide more torque and power over the current engine formula. Xtrac, an exclusive supplier for INDYCAR since 2000, will continue to provide transmissions for the new chassis. Development for 2028 includes a gearbox that will shed 25 pounds from the currently used unit and one that will share components with a future INDY NXT by Firestone gearbox – streamlining components for teams also involved in INDYCAR's development series. Low-voltage hybrid engine technology, introduced to series competition with a successful launch in July 2024, will continue to evolve in the new car with longer deployment, more horsepower gain and overall improved performance. Performance Friction Corporation (PFC) once again will be the exclusive supplier of brake system components for the series, as it has since 2017. Safety also will continue to be a focus of Dallara's design, in close collaboration with INDYCAR technical and medical response officials. The new car will bolster safety to new benchmarks with an ergonomic driver cockpit to improve seating position, an integrated aeroscreen and a new roll hoop. The existing chassis was retrofitted with the aeroscreen upon that revolutionary safety device's introduction in 2020. Renderings and more information about the new car, along with additional partners, will be announced at a later date. This new car update and plan continues the upward trajectory of North America's premier open-wheel series. Recent milestones include FOX viewership results of a 27% year-over-year gain while averaging 2 million viewers for the 2025 season, a partnership renewal with longtime tire supplier Firestone, the announcement of the INDYCAR Grand Prix of Arlington in partnership with the Dallas Cowboys, Texas Rangers and city of Arlington, Texas, starting in 2026 and the acquisition of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach by Penske Entertainment. The next NTT INDYCAR SERIES race is the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America Presented by AMR. Coverage of Round 9 of the 17-race 2025 championship begins at 1:30 p.m. ET Sunday, June 22 on FOX, FOX Deportes and the FOX Sports app. Coverage also available via the award winning INDYCAR Radio Network on SiriusXM channel 218 and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. recommended in this topic
Indianapolis Star
21-06-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
What changes will IndyCar make to new car? Weight reduction, engine formula, more
ELKHART LAKE, Wis. – Penske Entertainment executives rolled out its plan for IndyCar's next-generation chassis and engine formula in a private meeting of its team owners midway Saturday at Road America, the series announced in a release. The car, which earlier this month the series confirmed to be on track for the start of the 2028 season, will include between 85 to 100 pounds of weight reduction, house a 2.4-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 internal combustion engine — the engine originally planned to be rolled out in tandem with the debut of IndyCar's bespoke hybrid unit — and a low-voltage hybrid unit that will continue to evolve off of the current model in use to eventually include 'longer deployment, more horsepower gain and overall improved performance.' On-track testing for the car will begin in 2026, with Dallara producing the chassis that, according to the series, will 'feature a look designed to appeal to a new generation of fans while keeping styling cues recognized by all as an IndyCar series car." 'The time has come for a new IndyCar series chassis,' IndyCar president Doug Boles said. 'The DW12 served the series so well, as it provided a combination of phenomenal, wheel-to-wheel racing and critical enhancements to safety. But recent significant updates to the car — from the aero screen to the hybrid power unit — have helped advanced the need for a completely new car. 'We are pleased by what our engineers and Dallara have collaboratively designed and believe it will appeal to the fans and paddock, while also upholding our standards of safety and enhancing IndyCar's on-track competition well into the future." Also noted in the release, Xtrac, an exclusive supplier for IndyCar since 2000, will continue to provide transmissions for the new chassis. The new car will feature a new gearbox that will shed 25 pounds and that will share components with the future Indy NXT gearbox. Performance Friction Corporation will again be the exclusive supplier of brake system components for the series, as it has since 2017. The new car will also include an ergonomic driver cockpit to improve seating position, as well as an integrated aero screen and a new roll hoop. Renderings of the new car as well as information on its test schedule and additional partners will be announced at a later date. This story will be updated.
Indianapolis Star
12-06-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
IndyCar shifts timeline for new car further back, creating complicated future. Here's why
IndyCar's new car to replace the DW12 that has been in use for 14 seasons won't debut until 2028 at the earliest, a Penske Entertainment spokesperson confirmed to IndyStar on Thursday, the latest pivotal project to be delayed for a paddock that has frequently seen deadlines and expectations on various major developments shift in recent years. It was as recent as two months ago that series owner Roger Penske told reporters that Penske Entertainment had a designed car running in the wind tunnel, 'and our plan is to bring in that car in 2027.' When asked by IndyStar at the IMS Museum's ribbon-cutting ceremony that he meant a fully revamped new car, rather than a piecemeal update, Penske said, 'That's the plan, yeah.' Just a couple weeks prior, Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles told IndyStar during a lengthy exclusive sit-down at St. Pete in March regarding the process and timeline of IndyCar's pursuit of a new car that at a minimum, teams and drivers would without a doubt see some form of an update by 2027, even if it wasn't the entire completed project that Penske would later say was 'the plan' to roll out in two years' time. The day prior during a news conference with Fox Sports CEO Eric Shanks and new IndyCar president Doug Boles, Miles had referred to the series rolling out a new car 'in the 2027-28 time frame.' "But that doesn't mean we'll have nothing in 2027 and everything in 2028, and it also doesn't mean everything in 2027, and then we're off and rolling,' Miles told IndyStar the next day of the fluid new car timeline. 'It could be staged, but you'll see a difference in 2027. 'Whether it's everything we intend to do over the next few years is what's still on the table.' Exactly what changed over the last three months since those comments is unclear. In an email exchange with IndyStar on Thursday, a Penske Entertainment spokesperson merely noted that, 'IndyCar has confirmed a timeline shift to 2028' for its new car rollout. Requests to speak with Boles and Miles regarding recent shifts in those plans were turned down, stating that, 'We anticipate supplying media a broader and official update in the near future.' Hopes for a new Indy car as early as 2027 sprouted out of comments from Miles days ahead of the 2024 IndyCar season where he told reporters that such an endeavor could be ready as early as 2027, but that key decisions would need to be made in a matter of months for a new car to debut in three years' time. 'We're not to the point of fully establishing (2027) as a deadline or goal, but I think that is the focus, and we're hopeful we'll be able to roll out the next powertrain, along with major developments (to it), and a new chassis by 2027,' Miles said in March 2024. 'We want to improve our ability to attract additional OEMs by lowering the cost barriers to entry, but we also want to make sure we do it in a way that's even more relevant to the auto industry.' With little updates on that project throughout the 2024 season that finally saw the debut of the several-times delayed hybrid system in July, Penske Entertainment leadership held a frequently referenced October meeting with team owners that many in the paddock have said they believed would be a collaborative brainstorming session about the direction of the new car. Instead, to many team owners' and managers' surprise, they were shown a prototype that was already far down the line in the idea phase and which would spend time in the wind tunnel just weeks later, giving those team reps the sense that the process had started without them. Miles, on the other hand, characterized this spring that paddock stakeholders were shown an image meant to mark Penske Entertainment's progress in its own brainstorming, rather than something meant to exude a finished product. Roger Penske: IndyCar planning to introduce new car in 2027 'I would just say, the conversation (on the new car with teams) is only about to start,' Miles told IndyStar in March of this year, five months after that controversial meeting with team representatives. 'A ton of work has been done, and we're not going to start the conversation with a conclusion, but a lot of work was needed to be done before we could have an intelligent dialogue with the paddock and other stakeholders. 'Whatever we showed in October was (meant to be seen as) options and current status. We've never ever put something out there and said, 'What do you think of this? Because this is what we want to do?'' From March: IndyCar CEO Mark Miles details new car development process Miles would go on to say that that mock-up had 'evolved' since October and at that point involved 'cool thinking that will make it a better result.' According to the series CEO, a group of no fewer than two dozen people from at least six countries met for weekly conference calls to discuss findings and chart out research and design assignments for various directions of the new car to ultimately be able to come back to the table with teams this year and lay out the project's potential directions. In that St. Pete sit-down, Miles told IndyStar he was aiming to be able to discuss more openly IndyCar's new car plans by the Indy 500, but said that wasn't meant to be a firm expectation. Thursday morning, multiple team owners told IndyStar they'd received virtually no update on the new car project's direction or timeline since the start of the season. By the afternoon, some told IndyStar they'd begun to receive phone calls from series leadership regarding the firmly stated intentions for a 2028 rollout. The development poses a serious conundrum for a series that signed its current pair of engine manufacturers to an extension in October 2020 through the completion of the 2026 IndyCar season but have yet to ink a new deal with either side that would kick off in 2027. It's long been assumed that Chevrolet, whose engines are manufactured by Ilmor Engineering — which Penske long ago co-founded and still co-owns — will return to IndyCar as an OEM for the foreseeable future. What remains to be seen is whether Honda, which 18 months ago stated very plainly its concerns over the ability to achieve viable return on investment while continuing to compete in the sport beyond its current deal, will re-up. A Honda Racing Corp. USA spokesperson has repeated multiple times this spring to IndyStar that the manufacturer remains in positive, productive talks over its future in IndyCar with Penske Entertainment officials, but that a decision had yet to be reached. Should both sign for new deals, it seems reasonable to assume that the life of IndyCar's current 2.2-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engines and their paired hybrid systems would remain in use for an additional gap season in 2027 before a new car and engine formula would be launched the following season. Tasking the manufacturers to manufacture, track test and mass produce a new engine when future regulations have not been ironed out and the OEMs' commitment to the future of the sport hasn't yet been secured, would be a stretch. 'Why do we need one?' IndyCar team owners divided on direction in pursuit of new car This added season allows for ample buffer room for delays or testing setbacks and also aligns the new engine formula with the rollout of the new car, rather than attempting to retrofit yet another major key component to a decade-plus-old car. But the prospect of Honda's potential exit from the sport after more than 30 consecutive years of competition could leave the entire sport in a bind for 2027. Such a development would force Ilmor (presuming it sticks around) to manufacture and ready double the number of 2.2-liter twin-turbo V6s they've long been used to in order to outfit the entire grid — with a powertrain that would be in its final year of use, no less. Even if new manufacturers sign on for IndyCar's future technical regulations, none would consider joining for 2027 under one set of regulations, only to have to produce a wholly new engine for the following season as the formula evolved. Though Penske Entertainment has long professed to be actively searching for manufacturers to add to the sport in its more than five years of series ownership, Miles said this spring that the pool series reps have spoken to aren't uniformly aligned in the direction they'd like to see the regulations travel down. Though Miles promised this spring that the use of hybrid technology would continue in IndyCar's next set of regulations, given the series' run of consistent backtracking on promises and altering timelines of late, it seems reasonable to question whether that promise, too, will be kept. Back in 2018, IndyCar and its manufacturer partners initially promised the rollout of a new 2.4-liter engine formula for the 2021 season, though that project's debut would shift to 2022 with the announcement in 2019 that IndyCar would be going hybrid a couple years down the road. At that point, just a couple months before Tony George announced the sale of Hulman & Co.'s racing assets to Penske Corp., both a new hybrid engine formula and a next-generation chassis was set to debut in 2022. By the completion of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic-altered IndyCar season, series leadership announced in concert with Honda and Chevy's most recent extension that the debut of a new engine would be pushed back to 2023. In March of 2022, IndyCar announced another new engine formula delay, pushing the project to 2024, citing significant global supply chain issues. In December of that year, series officials announced that Honda and Chevy had been forced to take a more hands-on role in developing the hybrid system, requiring a change to the plans for the internal combustion engine that would remain the long-used 2.2-liter instead of an upgrade to the 2.4 — so as to allow IndyCar's engine manufacturers to spearhead the hybrid project and not simultaneously have to worry about the development of an entirely new engine, too. In December 2023, IndyStar broke the news that the debut of the hybrid had once again been shifted backwards, this time into the middle of the 2024 season — the paddock's most recent delay-related saga in a span of a couple years that has seen the series abandon plans to close the season on a much-ballyhooed Nashville street race, pause its pursuit of a new video game for the first time in decades and temporarily leave the iRacing platform.
