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GM And Andretti Were Already Building An F1 Car

Andretti Global and General Motors are aiming to enter the FIA Formula one (F1) World Championship as the eleventh team on the grid, but before that happens, the new team bid will need approval from the higher-ups that run F1. Nevertheless, Andretti isn’t waiting around to begin development, and already has a scale model in the wind tunnel.

Per a report from The Athletic, Andretti is now laying the groundwork for a competitive F1 program, even without final approval from Formula One Management (FOM). That includes a satellite location at the Silverstone circuit in the U.K., which works alongside the primary team headquarters in Indianapolis. There are also plans to open a new location in Indiana next year that will serve as the race team’s global base of operations.

A McLaren Formula One car from 2015. Andretti hopes to launch a new F1 program, and is attracting talent from other teams.

McLaren Formula One car from 2015

The team is assembling a roster of engineering and development talent as well, including Nick Chester as F1 technical director, Jon Tomlinson as head of aerodynamics, and John McQuilliam as chief designer. In total, the new Andretti F1 effort now includes more than 120 staff members, with a technical group that’s roughly equivalent to that of smaller teams already competing in the F1 championship.

“We’ve had people joining from Red Bull, Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren,” Nick Chester told The Athletic. “They all wanted a new challenge. It’s that real potential to shape departments, which is very attractive.”

The team has already designed a 60-percent model car based on the current technical regulations, running tests at Toyota’s wind tunnel in Germany. Looking ahead, Andretti hopes to build a full-size chassis by mid-year for early homologation testing, suspension design, and more.

Cadillac LMC55.R racing engine from the Cadillac V-Series.R

Regardless, the new bid will still require authorization from FOM to enter the championship. As covered previously, FOM rejected Andretti’s bid, but stated that it would reconsider the bid for 2028 if it brought an in-house GM power unit to bear. One possible candidate is a Cadillac Racing engine.

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Jonathan is an automotive journalist based out of Southern California. He loves anything and everything on four wheels.

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Comments

  1. I won’t watch a formula 1 race just a bunch of little silver spoon boys that are entitled to everything in their mind

    Reply
  2. Who signed off on this BS? GM outsources much engineering of its present day vehicles to clowns like Steyr Group that built the bending frames of the Colorado and 1/2T pick-up trucks. Maybe take that money and put it back into quality control and longevity Engineering. I think GM…..SUCKS!

    Reply
  3. F1 is boring and the drivers are mostly a bunch of whiny primadonna *itches.. Want to see some good road course racing? Check out the WEC or Weathertech series. Go WEC and go IMSA!!

    Reply
    1. The Trans Am series is also excellent – and affordable. Extremely fan friendly.

      Reply
      1. Yes it is! ….caught Trans Am with the SVRA for the last few years at COTA. Really good racing and the pit access is awesome..

        Reply
        1. I wish IndyCar would do a few races overseas and take along TA2 as the undercard, Asia-Pac in April, Europe in July after the 4th.

          Reply
  4. Good to know this is still happening.

    Reply

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