IndyCar Drivers Sound Off About the Hybrid

/ davidland
I spoke to various IndyCar drivers today about the new hybrid at Mid Ohio, there were some super interesting answers.
#IndyCar #Rossi #McLaren
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[@Mark-je8bc]

Does this mean that Dixon will now be the master of fuel mileage AND battery mileage?! lol

[@klintonkacatin]

GOAT of SOC

[@DrTortoiselle]

Every time you interview Marcus Armstrong my dogs go crazy.😂

[@sophiaemily1819]

i really like that it's been implemented like the old KERS system in f1, its not gonna save a driver's weekend but it will definitely change a quali/race result if used well and thats pretty cool, its just another toy that the drivers have at their disposal during the weekend

[@AlistairMaxwell77]

hey , remember those LED number displays that were coming back better than ever in 2019 and then were never seen again . they would show battery stuff. maybe one for the 2027 chassis .....

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

@@AlistairMaxwell77 Ohhh, kinda like those LED ‘signs’ that IMSA & WEC uses. That would be cool to implement!

[@TheMotorGuyDirect]

For TV it doesn’t matter. However they were amazing for watching in person. I miss them as well, but I think they started a fire at least once.

[@redjohndeble9862]

So...Dixon eventually pulling a full race without any refueling😂

[@photudiodan4648]

One thing the hybrid era has changed radically, is Scott Dixon's amazing run of good luck.

[@Angelbonilla1982]

Siegel doesn't know where he stands!!😂😂😂

[@scotturbanski740]

Question David…why is it that when you interview drivers Alex Palou is almost always there when other guys like Power aren’t? Is that more of your choice or Alex’s?

[@DavidLand91]

Some drivers always show up, some drivers don't for one reason or the other. Alex has always been a great friend of the channel and is always willing to talk.

[@amjan]

It's impressive how half of the IndyCar drivers have driven WEC, IMSA or F1 cars.

[@MaunoKoivistoOfficial]

Very good questions, David! Exactly what I wanted to know, and no-one else is asking 🙏

[@CD-rt8wj]

Awesome coverage, I love these interviews. Thanks dawg

[@DougieFresh765]

The driver doing the.. "club dancing" 🕺 spinning their hand in the air to get restarted will be missed

[@MaunoKoivistoOfficial]

I agree. It's iconic Indycar

[@ariansmovies]

Are you a fan of FP1Will? 😂

[@billmartin1010]

Don't be so sure. Self-starting appears to be more miss than hit.

[@franksavard8459]

Rossi said it best doesn't make a difference

[@CathNcamo2]

So they added 105 lbs to the rear of the car for a couple tens for a push lap… ??? Sounds like the weight penalty is more than the speed gain. Another great idea from INDYCAR

[@CathNcamo2]

The total deployment is 4 seconds per total charge. What a joke

[@metzgerov]

Great interviews and Question David! We won’t see this in-depth from the broadcasts

[@Casey_J96]

I think it’ll be interesting. If they can continue to develop it to make even more power for longer it could be cool. I’d like to see them turn the engines up to P2P power levels all the time and use the hybrid as OT.

[@Rearmostbean]

Don't expect much though It's a super capacitors into a DC motor I don't know there is a lot of room for development here

[@janremongalura5713]

Wait till they move to battery cells. First they really have to replace the outdated car.

[@Mortimuss]

Great interviews. It really is interesting hearing them all trying to figure it out.

[@youafruitcup]

Palou and Rossi seem to have completely different answers lol

[@JonDoe-ln6nl]

The same as their attitudes. One person is positive , one person is not.

[@mikewestfall1380]

Sounds like a lot of money for struggling teams with little reward

[@mosesroman6219]

This was good coverage on this system. Good job dude thx for the info

[@racer11483]

I'm concerned that there have been a couple of stalls on track where they haven't been able to re-fire the engine. Thought new system was to eliminate this situation...

[@janremongalura5713]

Me too. I thought just put an anti-stall button.

[@polycube868]

Enjoy the race weekend @David Land.

[@sweetybnz7482]

I think it is interesting seeing the CGR drivers excited about the possibilities and Rossi saying it won't make much difference. CGR and their drivers have a reputation of creative thinking in the pursuit of performance and success. Rossi on the other hand.

[@marklittle8805]

Rossi is likely down playing anything he has found. He has tested it a lot. He likely has more time testing the hybrids than most ....

[@noetrejolopez]

Cool vid. Great questions

[@NR_88]

I just want a new car man

[@Wily_Ambition6819]

In due time, they will have a new car. They gotta get the hybrid to be as reliable as possible first. When the new car comes, they will upgrade the hybrid system

[@Bojangles5-2]

Or different offerings for each team.

[@AlistairMaxwell77]

2027 . ironically to support a whole new hybrid system

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

@@NR_88 Thankfully the IR-27 is in the works as we speak!! Im really hoping that chassis brings in more manufacturers/constructors and helps boost these cars power and aero capabilities.

[@tomsumner7746]

I'd rather keep the current car if bringing a new one meant increased costs and a smaller grid

[@chipstetson974]

I have one question. How exactly, does hybrid make the racing better for the fans?

[@Montgomery_N_Pottichen04]

Most of the current fans are just gullible. These hybrid engines believe it or not are extremely radioactive, It’s another form of globalization of having control over the series.

[@Chimp_6]

Thanks for this David. I'm looking forward to post qualifying interviews!

[@SpringboroMilitia]

I had a purple Mercedes hat in my bag all day hoping I’d run into you and get an autograph! Hope you have a great weekend at the track!

[@franksavard8459]

I thought we were going to tackle the price of racing.call it what it is a alternator with capasater

[@matthewkylelewis]

I just want close racing and a car that looks good and sounds good. The only appeal of the hybrid for me is maybe it'll bring interest in new manufacturers

[@gwalsh1972]

Good video.

[@timothyhephner8176]

Except the restart does not work

[@MikeJohnson-oz7uk]

Very intrigued about how the hybrid will effect the racing.

[@outfield1988]

Loved Indy car in 80s 90s hate it now.

[@franksavard8459]

Does anyone remember Marvin the maroon ureleum space modulator

[@Kliphie]

Adding to drivers workload seems positive.

[@Kliphie]

The battery on TV looks good, better than push to pass

[@scotturbanski740]

Wonder if Felix will be in the mix coming from Formula E?

[@corystansbury]

"Too soon, junior"

[@RyTrapp0]

Damn it. I didn't want to like these hybrids. But I didn't want to like spec racing either, yet IndyCar has had the best racing of the last decade, so... lol. With as much bitching & moaning as there is constantly from Indy 'fans', IndyCar sure does have a knack for not hurting the thing that matters most(or should anyway) - the racing. Can't say that for most other series. (IMSA has been killing it too, even when the FIA has tried to commit to the most ridiculous and unsustainable Prototype rules, IMSA maintained a sane Prototype class that fans and manufacturers have both been supportive of) Also, I really appreciate having Rossi in there to temper expectations LOL. I like what I'm hearing about this, but, I'll admit, I was thinking that most of these drivers sounded more 'hopeful' about it than 'confident' in it. I think everyone is still at least somewhat reserved until race day arrives and we really see it in action.

[@kben24]

Push-to-pass is an overtaking aid… Hybrid power is a tool for improving your overall lap-time.

[@RyTrapp0]

You're really just splitting hairs here - you can use P2P to maximize your lap times(pit in laps and out laps for example), and you can [presumably] use the hybrid burst for setting up passes. They're all just tools to be used to win the race.

[@kben24]

@@RyTrapp0 DRS in F1 is also used for gaining lap-time… BUT it’s defined in the rules as overtaking aid. No matter how drivers utilize P2P, its purpose is for overtaking… it’s right there in the name. “Push-to-pass”

[@f1jones544]

​​​@@kben24 or as often as not, "push to not be passed." Honestly, I think it's a gimmick. The guys on TV love to talk about it, but it makes no difference to the spectators and I can remember exactly zero races where it really had any impact on the results (unless Penske used it to cheat again).

[@RyTrapp0]

@@kben24 "BUT it’s defined in the rules as overtaking aid" I don't really care how the rules define it. Especially when it's the FIA defining something. Drivers are going to use it however drivers choose to use it - completely regardless of what it's name is or how it's defined.

[@kben24]

@@RyTrapp0 I agree

[@billmartin1010]

We now know the answer to the question . . . "How could you remove all on-track overtaking from the hyper-competitive IndyCar series?" Mid Ohio was eerily F1-like. No passing allowed.

[@maxmillion4216]

It ruined Dixon’s weekend.

[@nyrmetros]

More importantly, which drivers have had bison burgers?

[@codileger4876]

I like the idea the drivers can control deployment, my concern is how much this thing is interconnected with the ECU/overall running of the car. If there is a hybrid issue it’s not like they can disconnect and just run on motor. It’s game over Also drivers have not figured out how to self start today so we may still see a stall caution

[@fallenshallrise]

In F1 it rarely fails but occasionally there is a failure or shutdown of the system and the motor just freewheels. Sometimes the driver can restart the system or sometimes they just live with a little less power. Watch the Monaco GP that Daniel Ricciardo won with his system shut down for most of the race.

[@Boswd]

will this help with the boring "fuel saving" strategy that can turn a potential exciting race into a snooze fest?

[@wilsonbradford5343]

As long as cars run on fuel and refuel, there will be "boring" fuel saving. Get over it.

[@RyTrapp0]

I don't know how you can be an Indy fan and think fuel mileage races are boring - there's been some incredible finishes that came down to fuel saving, battles for 1st place while both cars are on the verge of running out. If you want constant parade lap racing, F1 exists

[@rushilgandevia6204]

Well yall are a bunch of happy campers

[@kcbroncohater]

If it is fully charged, how many seconds of boost it there going to be?

[@1fastjetta]

5 seconds at full deploy

[@xpavar]

It adds 100+ pounds of weight. For what?

[@Rearmostbean]

50 hp​ Edit 60 HP, with room for more in the future This video from HRC has lots of answerskzbin.info/www/bejne/oZe3np-qq6iEeMUsi=AHInWK3KOm6DnjqG @@xpavar

[@rexthewolf3149]

@@Rearmostbean that’s kinda pathetic when f1 batteries weigh 30kg/66pounds total and can output around 200hp.

[@Rearmostbean]

@@rexthewolf3149 kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZe3np-qq6iEeMUsi=AHInWK3KOm6DnjqG This video from Honda says the max output per lap is 320k joules, F1 limits output to 4 m joules. So basically indy is 8% of the electric energy F1 has

[@mikemooney3822]

Could this replace PtP in the future?

[@kylegoodman5196]

Unlikely. They still want to use P2P in some way.

[@Andre_The_Millennial]

Nah.

[@wilsonbradford5343]

That's the plan. Right now the focus is reliability. Starting next season the plan is to start upping the power available.

[@wilsonbradford5343]

​@@kylegoodman5196That's not what Marshall Pruett and others are reporting.

[@franksavard8459]

Mr Rossi I have a suggestion regarding future employment after the race call the force family see about driving a funny car and have some real fun

[@bruces3613]

More expense and weight for nothing.

[@Untoastedbagel1271]

Well quali was one of the best of the year. All these crazy people saying it’s dumb and for show seem pretty wrong now

[@bobykim5311]

Nah...I'm not fond of any hybrid crap. In racing I just want to see the full petrol engines.

[@katamb55]

What was the deal with the AML guy hovering around when Nolan and Alex were talking?

[@I_Evo]

Two things, possibly recording the interviews to guard against the drivers being misquoted, particularly an issue with written media. Secondly making sure all the media get a fair chance for a word or two with one of their drivers and they aren't hogged by one outlet for too long.

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

Who’s sick of seeing these bots in the comments? Edit: Y’all call me whiny when you have the audacity to whine under my own comment 🤣🤣🤣🤡 Bots are ruining the comments sections on YT and something needs to be done about it…

[@polycube868]

The sex bots? At least they aren't bitching and crying and at least they are creating engagement with the video.

[@tylerensminger]

At least I've not seen a bot posing as David comment.

[@polycube868]

@tylerensminger yet...and people actually fall for those bots and send them money! 🤦

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

@@polycube868 Lol. Ok buddy. Ever heard of unwanted spam? It’s shyte that’s supposed to be REPORTED!!! Screw your head on straight for once.

[@AlistairMaxwell77]

half of the internet is bot traffic now . peak internet is over . welcome to the decline .,

[@James-vj5hz]

IndyCar needs new cars.

[@timothyhephner8176]

And don’t even talk about the balance issue and different drag effect when going into a turn

[@John-kx3ng]

Is Honda all in considering they are a question mark for 2026?

[@polycube868]

I think Honda is only using NASCAR as a bargaining tool...and NASCAR doesn't even have a charter agreement with the teams.

[@captainjosue]

I hope Honda threatening to leave indycar will force those morons running indycar to open up and change their engine regulations. Honda mentioned that they are interested in Ilmor building the engines while the engine OEM's write the tunning software that powers the engines. Personally, I find this interesting and hopefully this gets another OEM

[@polycube868]

@captainjosue we need another engine supplier to actually get some bumping on bump day, I don't expect 50+ but 39 entries, 13 engines from 3 suppliers, would be just right

[@BillyBob-sx6hr]

Honda is not going anywhere If they were they would have dropped before this year

[@silentowlscribe]

Thinking that Honda is pleased that Indycar is embracing hybrid technology. Could lead to a third engine supplier within 3 years.

[@franksavard8459]

It is not a battery.its a waste of time and money.

[@outfield1988]

Will never watch electric cars. I would watch old 80s racing first.

[@blankpage555]

Have engines been altered?

[@danielhenderson8316]

Nope.

[@blankpage555]

@@danielhenderson8316 so whats the change

[@formerfloridaman6968]

Im tired of the hybrid talk already lol. I know manufacturers want this and the technology is useful, but it's definitely not cool from a kickass racing perspective. As long as the racing itself is good, I'm happy though.

[@shredofmalarchi]

Rossi is always such a drag in interviews.

[@RyTrapp0]

Yea, how dare he have a differing opinion...

[@shredofmalarchi]

@@RyTrapp0 wha

[@outfield1988]

Rossi I am disappointed

[@outfield1988]

No wonder Indy races for the most part are lame.

[@lazier96]

It appears they spent a great deal of money and time trying to turn an old sours ear into a silk purse. They would have been better served starting with a clean sheet developing a new car with a more powerful longer running hybrid system utilizing batteries instead of short burst capacitors.

[@RyTrapp0]

Yes, make the cars heavier, totally a great idea...

[@rexthewolf3149]

@@RyTrapp0if it get new manufacturers involved and you create a package with the power to compensate, the weight gain will be negligible.

[@RyTrapp0]

@@rexthewolf3149 And you're just assuming that Indy introducing a new-everything is gonna miraculously make other manufacturers interested...

[@rexthewolf3149]

@@RyTrapp0 Have you paid attention to endurance racing. Because that’s literally what they did with the prototypes.

[@RyTrapp0]

@@rexthewolf3149 You understand endurance racing is a completely different product, right? You can't seriously think that "oh, new chassis & hybrid..." is the only thing manufacturers are thinking about when they're getting ready to drop loads of money into a racing series...

[@marklangren3142]

As usual another bad decision and waste of money, new chassis and more powerful engines and more engine mfg

[@wilsonbradford5343]

Honda has been asking for hybrid engines.....

[@marklangren3142]

@wilsonbradford5343 hybrid is a joke, chassis is 13 yrs old, honda is leaving in 26 another engine mfg is needed or indycar will die

[@amjan]

​@@wilsonbradford5343Which has nothing to do with him stating what IndyCar really needs.

[@louiscypher4186]

​@@marklangren3142 No one will join without Hybrid tech. Read the room, there's a reason so many series have gone hybrid it's what the manufacturers want. Even NASCAR with it's prehistoric engines is now looking at going hybrid.

[@I_Evo]

​@@louiscypher4186Yes, NASCAR might even move away from cast iron blocks in a decade or so's time.😁

[@outfield1988]

Don’t need anymore engineers

[@rogerpenske2411]

Get rid of the chassis, engine, and tire restrictions, and let the technology roll.

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

@@rogerpenske2411 Sell the sport to the Andrettis and Forsythe while you’re at it Mr. Penske.

[@amjan]

Dumb. You want to ruin the sport? Most of the teams cant afford it anyway.

[@calypso2niner]

I just don't think we need this extra battery crap.

[@Bojangles5-2]

With e surging F1 fanbase on this side of the pond, it was only a matter of time that Indycar incorporate technology that F1 has run with for years.

[@Andre_The_Millennial]

Luckily for you, they aren't batteries :)

[@kylegoodman5196]

You want Honda to stay?

[@wilsonbradford5343]

Honda sells a lot of this extra battery crap dipshit

[@danielhenderson8316]

I don't care if it's just a glorified starter motor, but if it cuts down on full course yellows to restart a car, it's worth it.

[@carlogervasi5393]

Who cares what a waste what a joke. Whats the big deal the cars not quicker!! What a waste on money! Build a new chassis !

[@RyTrapp0]

If you don't care about IndyCar, you don't have to watch IndyCar content

[@amjan]

​@@RyTrapp0Are you retarded or cant read? He expressed how much he does care about IndyCar.

[@louiscypher4186]

You won't get a new chassis without first appeasing manufacturers. Indy is already down to just 2 engine suppliers and without introducing tech that manufacturers want they won't have anything. Stop being a Luddite.

[@Rearmostbean]

​@@louiscypher4186is there a big demand for super capacitors as the energy storage though? I mean, making a change for no purpose doesn't make it a positive.

[@f1jones544]

​​@@RyTrapp0 asking for a new chassis is the epitome of caring about the series. You need new fans and in just a few years kids who were born when this lousy car was new will be graduating from high school. I sure remember what I thought of race cars that were over ten years old when I was young. If you think Indycar can afford to lose even more fans than it already has my telling them to go away, and that it's a good thing if they do, it's not the OP who doesn't care about Indycar, it's you.

[@TalladegaTom]

No one is going to bad mouth this silly thing. They lose their job if they do. I feel SO much better and sleep SO much better at night knowing that Indy Car is 'going green' with a hybrid system just like the Prius grandma drives and IndyCar has some 'green' tires too. I mean, what a difference it's made n my life..... 🙃

[@PikaRyan]

Wut, this isn't a "going green" thing lmao

[@JamesJozef]

Big Green is gonna take your ICE away 🙄

[@TalladegaTom]

@@PikaRyan LOL.... of course it is. What else would you call it? Why even go hybrid at all unless it is to pacify the green revolution? More complexity and hardware for the sake of more complexity and hardware? Oh please....

[@PikaRyan]

@@TalladegaTom They've not once said, "Wow look we're going to save fuel since we're using a hybrid." It's not been a selling point at all, ever. They're already using ethanol fuel anyway. The only reason they're doing this is because it adds an additional way to increase power without using more fuel or a bigger engine. You sound like a nutcase.

[@izzdin6228]

​@@PikaRyan I'm not surprised if he is. Without the hybrid aspect, Honda leaves, and we're back to mid 2000s era Indycar with just one engine supplier. Yeah I'd rather hybrid than just Chevy Ilmor for the whole grid.

[@xpavar]

Something no fan wanted or asked for. Indycar needs another engine manufacturer, esp if Honda departs, not hybrid bs.

[@noah.s95]

This comment is hillarious

[@iSport2ka8]

Honda demanded the hybrid dummy

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

Hybrid is adding horsepower to these cars. If you ask me this is actually a good thing.

[@I_Evo]

​@@President_Grover_ClevelandBut at the cost of extra weight.

[@danielhenderson8316]

@@I_EvoBut at the bonus of also acting as a starter motor if someone stalls the car. It's worth it just for that.

[@TNitroH]

Hybrid in indycar is rediculous. Its just indycar going woke. Not needed or asked for

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

@@TNitroH Don’t know how adding boost means going woke but ok there buddy 👍

[@rexthewolf3149]

@@markhunt7434shit F1 has more manufacturers involved than both NASCAR and Indy put together. Leave it to Americans to reject technology for the sake of politics.

[@Montgomery_N_Pottichen04]

@@President_Grover_Cleveland The cars were much more powerful and efficient before politics came and suggested “sustainability” and started producing slow ass cars and now the hybrid tech is here with the option to restart the engine after stalling(technology that already existed for a decade) and y’all are drooling over how “innovative” this played out series has become just because they introduced radioactive electric motors while manufacturing the narrative of “sustainability” because of the already existing marketing fad known as “climate change”. Modern Indycar is dead, been dead since CART was gone it’s become victim of politics and it’s new politically motivated fans.

[@President_Grover_Cleveland]

@@Montgomery_N_Pottichen04 I’m not saying the cars weren’t more powerful. And I’m definitely not saying that there aren’t better ways. But any form of boost is win in my book considering how fvck3d the automobile industry has become overall. Also Hybrid literally had advantages. It creates more fuel efficiency. That’s something a normal ICE and even a full blown EV can’t do.

[@Montgomery_N_Pottichen04]

⁠@@President_Grover_Cleveland First it was about “saving gas, money and going green” and other hybrid folks are saying “It was never about saving gas or being green..” this is a game of psychological warfare it seems, unsurprisingly.

[@kcbroncohater]

It's a waste of time. Recharging a battery and then using it, then recharging it. Oh yeah ... I can't wait to hear them talk about it.

[@walkerhound3934]

It's good to hear a drivers opinion to see if they are good or bad, because it will determine the quality of racing per track

[@kcbroncohater]

@@walkerhound3934 They don't care.

[@stevenhill4122]

I'd say it will be used off the turns followed by PTP