Team Nasamax
Monday / Tuesday Testing
What a contrast with testing in Europe. Snow at Le Mans in February, following the bitterly cold track temperatures for a shakedown in the UK at the end of January - and now Sebring. With a hot and humid 31 degrees in Florida as race week for the Mobil 1 12 Hours began, and with a forecast of more of the same, it’s a completely different set of circumstances for the team to adjust to, principally for the Cosworth engineers.

So how has the Cosworth XDE engine reacted to running on bio-ethanol in these temperatures? Typically engines run better on the denser charge of colder air. How has the ‘Green Fuel Technology’ coped with 31 degrees Celsius – and high humidity?

“We’re a second and a half quicker today, so we’re pleased with progress so far,” reasoned Technical Consultant John McNeil - standing in front of the car. “But the ambient temperature – and in particular the humidity – is robbing us of engine power. It’s actually hit us harder than we expected. With the new engine technology, we haven’t yet built up the experience to make the adjustments: with the ‘Green Fuel Technology’, it’s not a standard set of changes. In effect, we’re now setting up the routines to deal with changing weather conditions.”

So it’s an interesting technical challenge, for the Cosworth engineers in particular.

The other feature of two days of testing in the sun is that the Cosworth engine has been impeccably reliable. 25 problem free laps were completed in this afternoon’s two sessions, so the three drivers – Robbie Stirling, Romain Dumas and Bryan Herta – are getting plenty of seat time.

For the American (right), that means “getting the rust out of my system: it’s good to be back in competition.”

“The reliability has been excellent,” he continued, “and the Reynard is very comfortable to drive. It’s been a very encouraging two days. This technology is very new, but look at what we’ve achieved already. To be able to race with the bio-ethanol fuel at the top level of sportscar racing, at this speed already, is excellent.”

Bryan Herta concluded with the observation that the team will find more time as this week progresses and “we’ll make more improvements before we go to Le Mans.”

It's Romain Dumas in the car - in all of these images, but that's coincidental. Robbie Stirling is leaning on the Reynard, with John McNeil now prowling round in the background (below).

It's worth noting here that the Reynard Cosworth’s first laps on a proper race track only took place six weeks ago. Team Nasamax have themselves a race car.

The Tuesday evening plan is for a scheduled engine change ready for the start of the official practice sessions on Wednesday morning. The forecast high is for 87 degrees Fahrenheit tomorrow, so the technical challenges won’t get any easier – yet. The raceday forecast is 82 degrees (we’ve slipped into the ‘American’ temperature scale now) – with a 30% chance of rain on Thursday and Friday.

If the precipitation does fall, that will be another challenge to face. Before that, it will be settling in the fresh Cosworth, and then looking for more time improvements.

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