IndyCar is providing a status update on the new race car the series will introduce and implement for the 2028 NTT IndyCar Series season, which was also shared with team owners today at Road America.
Dallara will produce the chassis, which will feature a design intended to appeal to a new generation of fans while retaining styling cues recognised by all as an IndyCar Series car. Dallara has produced chassis for the series since 1997 and has been the series’ exclusive chassis supplier since 2008.
“The time has come for a new NTT IndyCar Series chassis,” IndyCar President J. Douglas Boles said.
“The DW12 served the series so well, as it provided a combination of phenomenal, wheel-to-wheel racing and critical enhancements to safety. But recent significant updates to the car – from the aeroscreen to the hybrid power unit – have helped advance the need for a completely new car.
“We are pleased by what our engineers and Dallara have collaboratively designed and believe it will appeal to the fans and paddock while also upholding our standards of safety and enhancing IndyCar’s on-track competition well into the future.”
Three areas, competition, powertrain development and safety – are pillars of the engineering, design and development of the new car.
The new car will enhance the ultra-competitive nature of the NTT IndyCar Series by being even better suited for racing on all four types of circuits the series visits – superspeedways, short ovals, street circuits and permanent road courses.
The evolution of the new chassis has included work by Dallara and the recent development of simulation technology aimed at enhancing overall raceability.
Working in tandem with Dallara and other component suppliers, the overall car design includes a projected weight reduction of 85-100 pounds compared to the current IndyCar Series chassis.
Plans also include a move to a 2.4-litre twin-turbocharged V-6 internal combustion engine, which is expected to provide more torque and power over the current engine formula.
Xtrac, an exclusive supplier for IndyCar since 2000, will continue to provide transmissions for the new chassis. Development for 2028 includes a gearbox that will shed 25 pounds from the currently used unit and one that will share components with a future Indy NXT by Firestone gearbox – streamlining components for teams also involved in IndyCar’s development series.
Low-voltage hybrid engine technology, introduced to series competition with a successful launch in July 2024, will continue to evolve in the new car with longer deployment, more horsepower gain and overall improved performance.
Performance Friction Corporation (PFC) once again will be the exclusive supplier of brake system components for the series, as it has since 2017.
Safety also will continue to be a focus of Dallara’s design, in close collaboration with INDYCAR technical and medical response officials.
The new car will bolster safety to new benchmarks with an ergonomic driver cockpit to improve seating position, an integrated aeroscreen and a new roll hoop. The existing chassis was retrofitted with the aeroscreen upon the introduction of that revolutionary safety device in 2020.
Renderings and additional information about the new car, along with details about our partners, will be announced at a later date.
This new car update and plan continues the upward trajectory of North America’s premier open-wheel series.
Header Image: Penske Entertainment – James Black
