Élan Motorsport Technologies

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Élan Motorsport Technologies is an umbrella company containing the race car manufacturing companies owned by the Panoz Motor Sports Group. Élan designs and builds Panoz-branded race cars, and have also acquired other manufacturers, including famous Formula Ford builders Van Diemen and IndyCar Series constructor G-Force. Élan-built cars now race in the American Le Mans Series, Le Mans Series, IMSA Prototype Lites (formerly IMSA Lites) and other championships throughout the world.

Sports cars

Panoz' first foray into racing cars came with the Panoz Esperante GTR-1 in 1997. The car was built for the GT1 category of highly modified supercars, bearing little resemblance to normal production cars. The GTR-1 was unique for its front-engine design, whereas all of its competitors were rear-engined designs.

In 1999, changes in regulations led to the development of an open-top spyder for the LMP900 class, the Panoz LMP-1 Roadster-S. Like the GTR-1, the LMP-1 was a front-engine car. Its unique design, along with its 6.0L Ford-derived V8, made it a fan favorite. In 2001, Panoz designed a successor to the LMP-1, the LMP07. Although the Andy Thorby-designed car had high expectations, it turned out to be a failure. The car used a Zytek V8, tuned by Élan Power Products (the first use of the Élan name in Panoz' motorsports ventures). The car was replaced mid-season by the LMP-1, which carried on until the end of the 2003 season.

In 2003, Élan debuted the a new race car based on the production Panoz Esperante, called the Esperante GTLM. The GTLM was designed for the "LM"GT2 class for slightly modified production sports cars. The 2003 car was raced by Hyper Sport Competition, and was used mainly as a development year. A revised version first raced in 2004. The car is powered by an EPP 5.0L V8. In 2006, the GTLM won both the GT2 class at the 12 Hours of Sebring (in the hands of Multimatic Motorsports) and the 24 Hours of Le Mans (run by Team LNT).

In addition to the Esperante GTLM, Élan builds the Esperante GTS, a simplified version of the car with a pushrod V8, tube frame and fiberglass construction, and eligibility for one-make and SCCA racing. This car is used in the Panoz Racing Series, and a less powerful version is utilized by the Panoz Racing School.

Élan also builds the Panoz DP02 and Panoz DP04 for the IMSA Prototype Lites (formerly IMSA Lites) series. The cars are small, center-seat prototypes. A version of the DP04 is also eligible for SCCA Sports Racer categories.

Open wheel

Panoz

IndyCar Panoz G-Force GF09

See also: G-Force Technologies

A GF09 driven at Indianapolis by Jaques Lazier in 2007

Following the 2002 purchase of G-Force, Élan Motorsport Technologies took over production of the third generation IRL chassis. The chassis, now branded as a "Panoz G-Force," was designed by former Lola designer Simon Marshall and began use during the 2003 season The car was built in Braselton at the Élan facilities, with design/engineering done at G-Force's remaining operations in England.

The car saw early success winning the 2003 Indy 500 with Team Penske's Gil de Ferran and the 2004 Indy 500 with Rahal Letterman Racing's Buddy Rice. Beginning in 2005, the "G-Force" name was dropped in order to focus on the Panoz brand. All design and engineering operations were moves to Elan's facility in Braselton.

During the 2005 season, teams started to abandon the chassis (in favor of the Dallara) as it became increasingly unstable in traffic at Indy. By 2006, the Rahal was the only team fielding the chassis full-time. The lack of use in turn caused Élan/Panoz to cease development and support. Focus shifted to their DP-01 program, further rendering the GF09 uncompetitive. A Panoz G-Force last competed in an IndyCar race in 2007 with Playa Del Racing's two entries and Chastain Motorsports' single car. American Dream Motorsports entered a Panoz in the 2008 Indy 500 for Phil Giebler, but he crashed in practice. In December 2008, Panoz announced their withdraw from the IndyCar Series due to the economic reasons.

Specifications

Chassis: Carbon-fiber monocoque
Airbox shape: Triangle
Length: 193 in (4,902 mm)
Height: 37.5 in (952 mm) (excluding roll hoop or camera mount).
Width: 77.5 to 78.5 in (1,968 to 1,994 mm) (measured outside rim to rim).
Gearbox: XTRAC #295 gearbox (gears forward of rear axle) Six forward gears, Mega-Line Assisted Gear Shift (paddle-shift).
Suspension: Pushrod with multilink.
Engine: Honda Indy V8, 3498 cc, Normally aspirated.
Fuel: Ethanol.
Tires: Firestone Firehawk.

Champcar DP01

The Panoz DP01 is Élan's most recent foray into major open wheel racing and the first designed and built by Élan The DP01 was the sole chassis used for the Champ Car World Series in the 2007 season and the 2008 Long Beach Grand Prix.

Superleague DP09

The Panoz DP09 was constructed for the inaugural season of the Superleague Formula. Panoz, under the Élan Motorsports banner, will produce all the cars for this racing series. The car will weigh 675 kg and use a 750 bhp (560 kW) engine built by Menard Competition Technologies.

Van Diemen

Main article: Van Diemen

Élan acquired the Van Diemen company in 1999. Van Diemen produces cars for Formula Ford championships around the globe. They still operate out of their base at the Snetterton Circuit in Norfolk, United Kingdom.

References

External links

Official site

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