Below is the article that appeared on SPEED.com.
Chevrolet Pleased With Initial Engine Test
by Marshall Pruett
September 29, 2011
As IndyCar, Honda, Bryan Herta Autosport and driver Dan Wheldon concluded its official testing program for the 2012 Indy car at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this week, another engine manufacturer was beginning its testing program 40 miles away at the Putnam Park road course.
Chevrolet, with support from its anchor team, Team Penske, its engine builder, Ilmor Engineering, its competition partners at Pratt & Miller and championship leader Will Power behind the wheel, used the 1.78 mile, 10-turn road course to do a shakedown of its Chevy-powered Dallara chassis.
"I was not there, but the feedback I got was that it was a good test," GM Racing Director Mark Kent told SPEED.com on Thursday. "It was really just a test to make sure the car was ready to go to do its first proper test at Mid-Ohio. The intent was not to run a lot of laps, which we didn’t, but we learned a few things and now we’ll get ready for the next test. It was a positive outing for our first time on track."
With the trip to Putnam Park serving as a pre-test–done to ensure the car and engine would be ready for a more rigorous test on the rolling 2.2-mile Mid-Ohio circuit, Kent says GM’s IndyCar test team has plans for a more aggressive approach starting at its second test.
"We have to be somewhat cautious at this point because we only have one car, so we’re going to be cautious but somewhat aggressive. We need to learn as much as possible between now and December 15th (when the window for open testing for engine manufacturers comes to a close) and we’re continuing to develop a test plan that allows us to ramp up our performance in the amount of time we have to work with."
Running approximately 10 laps was all Power got the chance to do at Putnam, but he left the track impressed with the overall organization and resources that have been dedicated to the program.
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