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If a series hybrid were optimal in a sports car or performance car, then I would expect to see them used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 24 Hours of Rolex, where
by cout 3y ago
If a series hybrid were optimal in a sports car or performance car, then I would expect to see them used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 24 Hours of Rolex, where maximizing fuel economy without sacrificing speed is essential to winning the race. Instead, they mostly use the hybrid system for energy recovery, and it sounds to me like the new RX-9 might be more similar to those systems than what we are used to seeing on the street.
FWIW, I have endurance raced a hybrid vehicle -- a stock Toyota Prius with a roll cage. Under racing conditions, it mostly keeps the engine at a constant 4000 rpm as it struggles to keep the battery charged. Racing a Prius is a little odd, because you end up doing a few laps to charge the battery, then strategically executing a pass once the battery is charged enough to give you power. In a series hybrid, you would only get power from the electric motor(s) rather than getting the combined power of the MG and ICE.
- brucethemoose2 3y ago> then I would expect to see them used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 24 Hours of Rolex Powertrains in these leagues are heavily, heavily regulated. Outside of baja, there haven't been "unlimited" high budget racing leagues since like the 70s or 80s. Hence crazy 80s Group C Le Mans cars (before they got banned) got similar lap times similar to modern Le Mans prototypes with much worse tyres, and the 70s Porsche 917 still holds the lap record at Talladega, by a wide margin, because such a nutty unregulated engine never lapped it again. Also, the performance targets for a pure racecar are totally different than a sports car or even a luxury supercar. They are either at high RPM full throttle, full brake, or in a turn 24/7, with no concern for any other kind of load (like puttering down a highway at low RPM) or any kind of sane maintenance schedule. And weight is absolutely critical.