Honda says engine failures are “similar” and too early

HPD race team leader Allen Miller told Motorsport.com: “They weren’t brand new engines but it’s early in life for them to be breaking. Aleshin’s has been shipped back [to Torrance, Calif.] for inspection. But looking at the data and the pieces, I’d say the problem looks very similar between the two.”

While every car aside from the one-off entries was due to get a new engine for the race, Andretti Autosport and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports will fit those race engines now. Were they to receive another fresh engine for the race, HPD would have to take a hit in the Manufacturers’ championship.

Despite Hunter-Reay and Aleshin thus starting the 100^th Running of the 500 with more miles on their engines than their rivals, Miller said this would not be an issue in terms of the cars’ performance come race day on Sunday, May 29.

“We lose less than one percent of performance over the course of an engine’s [2500-mile] life,” he said. “They’re very stable through life… though don’t go too far beyond that mileage, because they’re built for the tolerances.

“But I don’t suppose Aleshin or Hunter-Reay are going to have more than a couple-hundred miles more on their engines than the rest. We’re not going to run that much tomorrow or at the weekend.”

Honda ‘cautiously optimistic’ for the race

Miller said that the performance of the Honda cars, which have topped the overall lap times all three days and have also been fast in the no-tow speed list, has left him “cautiously optimistic” for a close race between the two manufacturers.

“I think if you look at the number of laps the Chevrolet cars are turning, it’s not as if they’re laying down,” he commented. “Whether they’re showing full boost, full mixture, I can’t say.

“But I feel like we’re competitive. If you look at each day, look at the speeds now and also look at the no-tow speeds, there’s a really good mix of cars. I think we’re going to see a pretty competitive race.

“We’re not on the back foot like we were this time last year. I think we’ve closed the gap to where we’re competitive, and that was the goal.” 

Uncertainty over raised boost

For Fast Friday (tomorrow) and qualifying weekend, all cars will run their turbos at 140Kpa/1.4-bar rather than the standard 130Kpa/1.3-bar. As yet, Miller is uncertain whether that will alter the gap relative to Chevrolet.

“I can’t really tell at this stage,” said Miller. “Everyone’s been developing through the season so what we saw at Phoenix won’t necessarily apply tomorrow. I know where we are; I’m making no assumptions as to where they’re going to be.

“And again, when Chevrolet put their race engines in and we put all our race engines in, will the balance of power shift? We don’t know. But again, let's say we're not overly optimistic but cautiously optimistic."