Nissan LMP1 Discussion

[gregc]

Originally Posted by Coach Ep

Heard non-stop these days at Nismo's HQs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY0WxgSXdEE

P.S. what are their driver classifications?

You can get the whole list here - Schulzhitskiy is Gold, Max is a Platinum (yes, really....)

[Coach Ep]

Thanks.

The full list (in bold drivers who were released or left on their own):

Platinum
Chilton
Krumm
Matsuda (will be driving for KCMG at LM)
Pla
Tincknell (will be driving for G-Drive/Jota in ELMS + LM)
Mardenborough

Gold
Buncombe
Ordóñez
Shulzhitskiy
Reip
Chiyo

Silver
Paletou

5 of the 11 mentioned above are now gone from the Nissan factory roster. More to follow?

[Hawkwood]

Originally Posted by gregc

You can get the whole list here - Schulzhitskiy is Gold, Max is a Platinum (yes, really....)

That's just because he's a recent F1 driver.
For platinum you don't have to be a great F1 driver

[skycafe]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

Just before Le Mans, Nissan released a video that had an interview with Chilton. He said it was so good and easy to drive that you forgot it was front wheel drive. And now it's failed and been put in a skip, it's not a real racing car and a terrible car to drive.

Amazing how much smoke and mirrors there was. The drivers opinions were the opposite of what they actually said.

He knew how the bread was buttered, or, where his paycheck came from. I doubt comments were the same in private as they were in public.

[flyingshoppingcart]

Funny how karma works, it truly is.

I knew Nissan's arrogant marketing statements and LMP1 team statements would come back to bite them, but this is even more than I imagined.

To pull out of LMP1 entirely months after a disastrous Le Mans...well Nissan, serves you right.

[MoMedic9019]

Originally Posted by flyingshoppingcart

Funny how karma works, it truly is.

I knew Nissan's arrogant marketing statements and LMP1 team statements would come back to bite them, but this is even more than I imagined.

To pull out of LMP1 entirely months after a disastrous Le Mans...well Nissan, serves you right.

Has nothing to do with karma. The reasons for their departure have been discussed ad nauseum.

[flyingshoppingcart]

Originally Posted by MoMedic9019

Has nothing to do with karma. The reasons for their departure have been discussed ad nauseum.

I don't care about Nissan's given reasons.

You can agree to disagree, but this is karma plain and simple. The car was a disaster performance and reliability-wise at Le Mans, the reality being the polar opposite of Nissan's marketing and team statements. After that, things just continued downhill from there.

[Spyderman]

Originally Posted by flyingshoppingcart

I don't care about Nissan's given reasons.

You can agree to disagree, but this is karma plain and simple. The car was a disaster performance and reliability-wise at Le Mans, the reality being the polar opposite of Nissan's marketing and team statements. After that, things just continued downhill from there.

I have to agree. The arrogance shown initially was astounding!

[YorkshireLad]

The images of the Porsche engine just shows were the lmp1 level is or even was a few years ago. Nissan's engine was no-where near, advanced nor as compact.

[turboguy]

This Nissan LPM1 situation is not at all a surprise. Does anyone know the latest developments in the Don Panoz vs Nissan court case?

I am sure you guys know the details involving the technical director/chief engineer at Nissan, who they basically poached to develop their deltawing copy - of the deltawing.

I would not at all be surprised if the entire LMP1 project was run to show publically their new engineer was not recruited solely for the deltawing project. So the emphasis would be on making a high profile car that cannot be construed as a copy of any existing racecar. I give you the FWD GTR LMP1 - problem solved.

In real terms who cares if it is a bit crap - it gives nissan the smokescreen they need to save their a$$ from a huge payout...........

I think Alex Hitzinger had some comment:

Porsche LMP1 technical director Alex Hitzinger described the Nissan as "brave and risky".
"The concept has very big disadvantages and it is not possible from sitting at a desk looking at pictures to judge if the potential advantages will over compensate for those disadvantages," he stated.

One of those, he explained, was the decision to run narrow nine-inch tyres at the rear rather than the maximum 14in of its rivals.

"If you run a much narrower tyre at the rear than at the front, you are sacrificing tyre potential," he said.

I read that as a thinly veiled way of saying "its a bit crap really"

For those who do not know who Don Panoz is, he started his own car company and used to run LMP1 (or P900) cars in the early 2000s against the Audi R8s. He owned the ALMS, and owns Road Atlanta circuit. He smokes like a chimney (they say he bought his private jet so he could still chain smoke on the plane) - and he made all his money from developing the nicotine patch to help smokers quit. A living legend, and hard to miss in the pitlane.

[Akrapovic]

The Panoz law suit was flimsy at best. They basically said it's almost mm identical and released photos which showed it to be quite different when analysed. They even went as far as saying that the ZEOD copied the rear light design...even though it's completely different.

The entire argument is based on the idea of "We're the only ones allowed to make cars with a thin nose". Which is so broad that it really cannot be enforced. Otherwise Ford (for example) could say "We're the only ones who can put the engine in the back of a vehicle with 4 wheels". Panoz aren't attempting to trademark/copyright any sort of technology - just a very broad idea. Whilst I am no fan of Nissans way of doing things, the Panoz law suit is basically patent trolling.

Panoz also get given a bunch of free passes to events that others are not allowed to enter. The Abruzzi did not meet the production numbers required (I don't think they sold any actually), yet was allowed into Sebring purely because Don owned it. Meanwhile, the SCG 003 has been denied entry into events for not having enough production units.

The DeltaWing was run at Le Mans in Garage 56 because it didn't conform to the technical regulations. Therefore it was the only place it could legally run. And then magically, Panoz buys it and lets it run in a class it doesn't meet the rules of. If somebody else turned up with a car that didn't meet the rules, they would either be denied entry, or DQ'd afterwards.

[Coach Ep]

Move on folks!

Looking forward to Nismo NA's (possible) DPi effort in 2017!

[CTD]

Originally Posted by Coach Ep

Move on folks!

Looking forward to Nismo NA's (possible) DPi effort in 2017!

Agree.
There is no news related to Nissan that deserves this thread to be reawakened.

Let's not open a wound here, and just post if there is something which ads value to the thread. (More Nissan bashing/defending does not!)

[Deleted]

Can't wait for the bashing/defending of this hypothetical external P2 bodywork!

It's like poetry, it rhymes.

[CTD]

Thankfully it will then be in a new thread

[TF110]

Nissan already get bashed because they're 'too proud' of their p2 success.

[MoMedic9019]

Originally Posted by flyingshoppingcart

I don't care about Nissan's given reasons.

You can agree to disagree, but this is karma plain and simple. The car was a disaster performance and reliability-wise at Le Mans, the reality being the polar opposite of Nissan's marketing and team statements. After that, things just continued downhill from there.

Not really. It was a poor choice made by the technical staff to believe the lies pumped out from Torotrak.

Given the fact that the dunce who made the original marketing push left the company in short order after making such bold statements, fails to bring karma against them.

Had he stayed, I'd agree. But he was gone. It was a fresh start if you believe karma works in the way that the Buddhist teachings would have you believe.

[CTD]

Just stop, or the thread is getting closed again.

There is nothing new at ALL in this discussion so let it rest until there is something new to discuss.
(and a comment, containing nothing but a bashing isn't something new!)

[joeb]

Oops, too late