IndyCar to remain 100% ICE

Honda IndyCar engine. AR1.com agrees, electric motors are for the street, not the race track. The more the engines scream, the more fans will be watching

Honda Performance Development told Autosport it does not want Formula 1-style hybrid elements to become part of IndyCar's engines in the future.

IndyCar has run 2.2-liter twin-turbo V6 engines since the double turbo layout became mandatory in 2013.

Current engine suppliers Honda and Chevrolet signed multi-year contract extensions this year with a view to defining IndyCar's future long-term, and there have been discussions over engine specifications.

When asked by Autosport if that future could include hybridization, HPD's race team principal Alan Miller says: "That's not what we're in favor of.

"The architecture of the engine as it is now, a V6 twin turbo with small displacement, we like that, and want to keep a similar layout.

"We don't have a desire or even a marketing reason to want to put a hybrid unit on it. It comes up in discussions but I don't believe it will go that way."

IndyCar has embarked on cost saving moves in recent years, with the move to a universal aerokit for 2018 a key factor in that aim.

Miller said keeping the engines in a similar configuration is important for the series' goal.

"At the end of the day, I think the purpose of the series has to be to create great racing with super-fast cars but in a way whereby costs are kept under control," he said.