Chevy Notes for Homestead IRL

Indy 300
Homestead-Miami Speedway
Round 1 of 16, Indy Racing League IndyCar Series
Sunday, Feb. 29, 2 p.m. EST
TV: ESPN (live), 2 p.m. EST

* Team Chevrolet Features New Faces 2004
    
    Chevrolet is powering five drivers in the season-opening event of the
IRL IndyCar series: Panther Racing's Tomas Scheckter and Mark Taylor, Red
Bull Cheever Racing's Alex Barron and Ed Carpenter, and Dreyer & Reinbold
Racing's Robbie Buhl.

    Taylor, an IndyCar Series rookie, and Scheckter will race for the
first time with Chevrolet power at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Although
Scheckter has competed in the IndyCar Series since 2002, this is his first
race with a Chevy Indy V-8. Rookie of the Year candidate Carpenter competed
in three races last season with Chevrolet power in PDM Racing's Dallara.
Barron scored his first career IRL victory with Blair Racing's Chevy Indy
V-8 in Nashville in 2002, and Buhl used GM engines in both of his IRL
victories (Loudon, N.H., in 1997 and Orlando, Fla., in 2000).

* A New Angle
    
    With 20-degree banking in the corners, the reconfigured
Homestead-Miami Speedway oval is essentially an entirely new track for IRL
teams. The new high-banked turns and changes in the aerodynamic regulations
mean that setups used in previous years are now obsolete.

    GM Racing aerodynamics and chassis specialist Kevin Bayless has
been working overtime in wind tunnels and computer simulations to assist
Chevy teams in coming to terms with the new track. Information from GM
Racing's aero/chassis development program is shared among all Chevrolet
teams.

    "The steeper banking in the corners reduces the downforce
requirements compared to previous IRL races at Homestead-Miami Speedway,"
Bayless explained. "However, rule changes have also affected the amount of
downforce the cars can produce. For example, the height of the rear
diffuser exit is 1/2-inch lower and the downforce-producing tire ramps and
brake backing plates have been removed. The cumulative result of these
changes is that the cars have significantly less downforce than they did a
year ago.

    "The cars have also changed since last month's open test in
Homestead," Bayless noted. "Dallara has recently introduced some underwing
modifications, so the effects of those changes have yet to be seen. There
was very little side-by-side running during the test, so there are still
questions about race setups to be answered.

    "To be successful this weekend, teams are going to have to find the
right balance between minimum drag and adequate downforce for the race."

* Wind and Weather

    Florida's famous sunshine and ocean breezes are variables that also
can affect performance at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

    "The track is close to the ocean and cross winds are a
distinct possibility," Bayless said. "Direct sunlight and warm temperatures
can affect grip. Consequently the teams may decide to increase wing angles
or add wickers to the wings to increase downforce for the race."

* Chevy Shines in Sunshine State

    Chevrolet and Dale Earnhardt Jr. dominated the recently completed
Daytona Speed Weeks. Earnhardt drove his Monte Carlo to victory in the
Daytona 500, the Busch Series race and a 125-mile qualifying race.
 
    Chevy will be racing in Florida throughout March. Pro Stock Cavaliers
and Monte Carlo Funny Cars will compete in the NHRA Gatornationals in
Gainesville, Fla., and the championship-winning Corvette Racing team will
run for a second straight victory in the GTS division at the Sebring
12-hour endurance race.

    Chevrolet races to win across the spectrum of motorsports. Chevy is
the only manufacturer that currently competes in four major American
racing series: NASCAR Nextel Cup, IRL IndyCar Series, NHRA drag racing and
the American Le Mans Series.

* GM's Checkered Past in Florida

    GM engines have won six of the seven IRL races contested in Florida
since the series introduced its naturally aspirated engine formula in 1997.
Eddie Cheever won at Walt Disney World Speedway in Orlando, Fla., in 1997
and 1999. Tony Stewart won in Orlando with GM power in 1998, and Robbie
Buhl won at Walt Disney World in January 2000. Sam Hornish Jr. won
back-to-back IRL races at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2001 and 2002. Three
winning teams in the IRL's Florida events are using Chevrolet power in
2004: Cheever Racing, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing and Panther Racing.

    Chevy has won a total of 103 Indy-style races at the start of the
2004 season. The first-generation 2.65-liter turbocharged Chevy Indy V-8
won 86 times and claimed 80 poles in the PPG Indy Car World Series in
1987-93. Chevy returned to open-wheel racing in 2002 with the 3.5-liter
naturally aspirated Chevy Indy V-8 that has won 17 races and 11 poles in
IRL competition.