Performance & Racing Tech Talk
Performance & Racing Tech Talk is your direct access and trends in the high tech world of specialized factory and tuned performance vehicles and racing vehicles throughout the world. Offering in-depth reviews of performance components, the latest news from vehicle and components manufacturers, and interviews with builders, engineers, and innovators.
Performance & Racing Tech Talk is also committed to offering information, encouragement, and guidance to students and to the schools they attend, to support and advance interest in and for the benefit of: engineering and technical programs in vehicle performance and technology.
Automotive
Porsche returns to Le Mans in 2014
Stuttgart. Porsche returns to Le Mans with a works-run LMP1 sports prototype. The first outing of the completely new developed race car is planned for the year 2014. With 16 overall victories, Porsche is the most successful manufacturer in Le Mans. The most recent win was in 1998 with the Porsche 911 GT1.
Wheels and Tires
Research Team Helps Ford and Future Customers Get a Better Grip on Tire Technology
• Ford, through its dedicated Research and Innovation team, is taking a leadership role in helping to develop new materials for tires
• Ford teams are working with leading tire suppliers and manufacturers to bring these solutions to consumers faster
DEARBORN, Mich., July 6, 2011 – Ford Motor Company has established a unique cross-functional team whose mission is to develop innovative new tires that improve safety, boost fuel economy and enhance vehicle handling.
Located at Ford’s Research and Innovation Center in Dearborn, the dedicated tire team works closely with Ford’s Chassis Engineering and Vehicle Engineering functions, as well as leading tire companies, to test new compounds, new tread designs and other innovations.
Most automakers don’t influence significantly the development of the tires they use. But tires—the only component that touches the road while you drive—are one of the most important components of any vehicle.
Because tire tread is the main contributor to rolling resistance, which is simply the measure of force needed to roll the wheel forward, the team has focused its immediate attention on this part of the tire.
