Indy Car and formula one

[grant1972]

What is the difference between formula one racing and indy car racing? I need the best answer for a friend who wants to know.

[saubryn]

Indy Car racing is more afforable for teams due to price controls - they don't have to build an entire car from scratch and end up investing a fortune, there's also some rule differences - Indy starts from a rolling start, F1 cars do a standing start, for example.

There are less Indy constructors than there are F1 teams, and the drivers are more 'accessible' to the fans, instead of being superstars - which is part of the reason many peope prefer Indy.

[diggyj]

There have traditionally been several key differences between the two. Champ Car's race schedule included high speed oval tracks. The increased stress and speed of these tracks mean that the cars tended to be heavier and have longer wheelbases than F1 cars (increasing stability but decreasing agility). When the weight of the driver is factored in, a Champ Car weighs over 30% more than a Formula One Car. The minimum weight for a Champ Car is adjusted from 1,575 lb based on the weight of the driver compared to the field average; with the driver included, all cars have a minimum weight of 1741 lb (790 kg). A Champ Car piloted by 195 lb Paul Tracy (the heaviest driver in the series and 29 lb heavier than the field average) must weigh at least 1,546 lb (701 kg) when empty. The minimum weight of a Formula One Car, including the driver, is 605 kg (1,334 lb). This difference of 407 lb (185 kg) is just over 30% of the F1 car's weight. Champ Cars use turbocharged engines. Turbos were banned in Formula One on safety grounds in 1989. Champ Cars have up to 300 horsepower more than F1 cars, in the 70s cars had in excess of 1,000 hp. Recently in 1999/2000 the Champ Cars approached 1,000 horsepower before regulations on turbo boost were tightened. The current generation of cars have roughly the same power as F1 cars, Champ Cars having 800 hp on demand and F1 cars having about 775 hp (since F1 switched to V8 engines for the 2006 season), with the turbo used mainly to improve the spectacle rather than lap-times with the so-called 'power-to-pass' or 'push-to-pass' system giving drivers an increased amount of power for a limited duration during the race. Another reason for retaining the turbocharger is the muffling effect it has on the exhaust note helps keep the cars inside noise-limits, particularly at the many city street races on the schedule.

Champ Cars use methanol for fuel rather than gasoline as used by F1 cars, and refuelling has always been permitted during the race. This is a legacy of a fiery crash at the 1964 Indianapolis 500 involving cars filled with more than 75 US gallons (285 L) of gasoline killed Dave MacDonald and Eddie Sachs. Until 1994, when refueling was re-introduced to F1, the coupling for the hose was a notable difference between Champ Cars and Formula cars.
Champ Cars continue to have sculpted undersides to create ground effect. This innovation was originally created in Formula One by Lotus in 1978, and was immediately used on the Chaparral Champ Car in 1979. F1 banned sculpted undersides in a bid to lower cornering speeds for 1983. In an effort to create better passing opportunities, the new spec Champ Car chassis being introduced in 2007 will generate nearly 50% of the total downforce of the car with sculpted underside tunnels versus the front and rear wings. This will reduce turbulent air behind the cars, enabling easier overtaking.

F1 used to have grooved tires to limit performance, Champ Cars continue to use tread-less "slick" racing tires. To make races more unpredictable, drivers are permitted to use one set of higher performance softer compound "alternate" tires. These are informally called "reds", as they are made visible to the spectators by their red sidewalls. The same feature has been adopted in F1 from 2007 season where each car must run on both the hard and the soft compound tires, although they can use more than one set of the softer tires. F1 also visibly distinguishes between the two types of tire - the softer set have a white stripe painted into one of their grooves.

Unlike in F1, Champ Car teams are not obliged to construct their own chassis, and in recent times have tended to buy chassis constructed by independent suppliers such as Lola, Swift, Reynard, March and Dan Gurney's Eagle. The most notable exception was Penske Racing, although they also bought other cars when their own chassis was uncompetitive. By 2000, most teams used either Reynard or Lola, with Lola gradually taking over to have a monopoly by 2004. Starting in 2007, Champ Car features a single, "spec" chassis, the Panoz DP01, created by Elan Technologies, a racing equipment manufacturer owned by Don Panoz. The spec chassis was introduced to reduce costs for teams.