Oreca Hybrid to be absent from Spa

For technical reasons, Hope PoleVision have decided to withdraw from the 1000 km of Spa-Francorchamps. The LM P1 Oreca Hybrid prototype will now make its racing debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

"We have problems with KERS," acknowledged team boss Benoît Morand this morning. "The vibrations of the engine at low speed are harmful to the flywheel of our hybrid system. This was not the case at bench, but the body acts as a sounding board. Engineers from our supplier Flybrid have redesigned their product, and we receive it in a little over a week. "

Beyond the expected problems of a new car, the team is satisfied with the first tests. Since the test day when the KERS had been little used, new tests have been conducted successfully. "Before failing, the system worked wonderfully," says Benoît Morand. "Yesterday at Le Castellet, Neil Jani used it and everything worked fine. We have not yet turned the rotor to its maximum speed (60,000 rpm), but almost. "

The day before the test day, the Oreca "01" had failed the test required for the designation of "hybrid car". Because, as designated by the ACO, an LM P1 must be able to travel the entire length of the pit lane at 60 km/h using only its system for recovering kinetic energy. "We have extended the test at Paul Ricard, and we are now able to pass the famous test," says Benoît Morand. "For the KERS to be sufficiently charged, the car must do at least two laps which was not possible before the Le Mans Test Day. "

Team Hope PoleVision's has upcoming new testing with driver Steve Zacchia and Jan Lammers.

Julien Hergault

Photo: Le Mans (Sarthe), TEST DAY OF LE MANS 24 HOURS, 24th April 2011. The hybrid Oreca made the 21st fastest time on Test Day.