Welter Racing to contest Sebring

[Zytek_Fan]

Welter Racing, holder of the fastest speed ever recorded on the famous Mulsanne Straight at Le Mans (1988), has entered a four-cylinder Peugeot engine LMP2 for this year's Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on March 18. The French-based team will be making only its second appearance at the storied American endurance classic. In 2002 Welter Racing finished third in LMP675 with a Mazda-powered entry, two spots ahead of a Peugeot-powered Welter Racing entry.

Gerard Welter is no newcomer to endurance racing. Despite just one previous appearance at Sebring, Welter is well versed in endurance circuits, especially the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In 1993, Welter Racing claimed the Le Mans C3 class victory with its L4 T Peugeot 1905 cm3 powerplant entry that was driven by Patrick Gonin, Alain Lamouille and Bernard Santal. Aside from the 1993 class win, Welter Racing's career at La Sarthe also includes four second-place finishes and one third-place run.

[NuclearCrap]

What the.........4 cylinders for LMP2??? Omg..............

BTW Cameron what happened to MSN?

[Zytek_Fan]

What the.........4 cylinders for LMP2??? Omg..............

The old AER was a 4 cylinder. Unlike the AER 4 cylinder, the Peugeot I4 is a proven powerplant

[Wouter Melissen]

What the.........4 cylinders for LMP2??? Omg..............

BTW Cameron what happened to MSN?

Welcome to this world. The Peugeot and AER four cylinder engines have been used for years in the LMP675 and last year in the LMP2 class.

[Zytek_Fan]

Welcome to this world. The Peugeot and AER four cylinder engines have been used for years in the LMP675 and last year in the LMP2 class.

And he calls himself the #1 fan of the 24 Heures du Man and #1 fan of ALMS

[NuclearCrap]

My point is..........a 4-cylinder engine wouldn't do too good in 2006 with the RS Spyder around. I guess it's worth a try. Of course I knew there has been 4-cylinders engine for a long time.

I'm sure the RS Spyder won't get beaten by this.

[Matra et Alpine]

My point is..........a 4-cylinder engine wouldn't do too good in 2006 with the RS Spyder around. I guess it's worth a try. Of course I knew there has been 4-cylinders engine for a long time.

I'm sure the RS Spyder won't get beaten by this.

There are less moving parts in a 4-potter.
THIS can mean MORE reliability !!
This is not a sprint race, so I'm not so sure I would be so negative on a well balanced low friction 4

[Wouter Melissen]

My point is..........a 4-cylinder engine wouldn't do too good in 2006 with the RS Spyder around. I guess it's worth a try. Of course I knew there has been 4-cylinders engine for a long time.

I'm sure the RS Spyder won't get beaten by this.

It's not the number of cylinders that dictates the engine performance. Last year a V8 beat a V10 at Le Mans you know.

[Zytek_Fan]

It's not the number of cylinders that dictates the engine performance. Last year a V8 beat a V10 at Le Mans you know.

Of course the Judd V10s had the better speed and they had the reliability, but it came down to the car

[Zytek_Fan]

from mulsannescorner.com

WR was one of the first chassis constructors to design and build a car to the new LMP1/2 regulations. In 2004 they debuted their new LMP2 Hybrid which was based heavily off the '03 LM2003. For 2005 the car is little changed

2004/2005 WR LMP2 Specifications
Designer: Gerard Welter
Layout: Mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Monocoque: Carbon fiber and Nomex honeycomb monocoque
Engine: Normally aspirated Peugeot 60° V6, 4 valve/cylinder
OR
Single turbo, Peugeot I4
Displacement: V6- 3367 cc
I4- 1999 cc
Gearbox: X-Trac 6-speed
Steering: Rack-and-pinion
Suspension: Independent double-wishbone suspension front and rear. Pull-rod front, push-rod rear
Brakes: Carbone Indusries pads and discs with Brembo calipers
Dampers: Koni
Wheels: O.Z. 18"
Tires: Michelin
Length: 4354 mm
Width: 2000 mm
Wheelbase: 2691 mm
Front Overhang: 913 mm
Rear Overhang: 750 mm
Weight: 762 kgs (2004 Le Mans average)
Tank capacity: 90 liters


The WR's side pods are off set inboard relative to the outside edge of the underfloor leaving a portion of the floor exposed down the side of the car.

Note The horizontal strake above the "Spark" logo. It acts as a valance plate masking the floor when viewed from above.

The side plate performs a rules compliance function by (as the horizontal strake) masking the car's bodywork as seen in elevation (from the side). The regulation states that any bodywork that can be seen from the side cannot be offset inboard more than 150 mm.


Always one of the better looking front ends, the WR's front inlets direct all the radiator cooling air into the chassis.

The WR's rear overhang is to the maximum 750 mm. The rear wing endplate mounts to the mandatory side structure. Note the gurney mounted to the leading edge of the side structure.

Regulations state that the rear wing can consist of two profiles as a maximum and that they simply must fit within 300 mm (horizontal) by 150 mm (vertical) box. The WR's rear wing is the most interesting on the grid in that the secondary flap is being utilized as a wing in its own right. Note the large amounts of nose up angle on the rear wing main plane.

Two strakes lie within the rear diffuser section of the WR's underfloor. Note the lower suspension A-arms residing there as well.


As the WR LMP2 is a hybrid (a modified LMP675), under the regulations it does not have to meet the same roll over protection that a proper LMP1/2 chassis would. Instead, hybrids are only mandated to have the secondary roll over protection for the passenger (the hump) and not the primary roll over protection (the roll over bar proper) in order to give a semblance of the same aerodynamic effect (of running twin roll over hoops). This will change for 2006 when all cars will have to meet the exact same aerodynamic and roll over specification.

The WR LMP2's tub design goes back to at least the LM2001.

The engine exhaust is vented out the top of the side pod and is aimed at the rear wing.

[RacingManiac]

There are less moving parts in a 4-potter.
THIS can mean MORE reliability !!
This is not a sprint race, so I'm not so sure I would be so negative on a well balanced low friction 4

They are usually more highly stressed though, which explains for AER(Lola's choice)'s reliability record....AER even said about their new V8 that by going to the V8 comparing to there 4 pot that they reduced various stress by 20+%....

WR is nice looking but a 1 piec bodywork is hardly the way to go for endurance racing...

[Matra et Alpine]

They are usually more highly stressed though, which explains for AER(Lola's choice)'s reliability record....AER even said about their new V8 that by going to the V8 comparing to there 4 pot that they reduced various stress by 20+%....

True but maybe resolved with materials IN theory you can afford to pay twice as much for specialised pistons, conrods and valves adas you have half as many
As it's not a sprint they may well not be stressign anythign with revs and relying on fuelling strategy.

WR is nice looking but a 1 piec bodywork is hardly the way to go for endurance racing...

Got me thinking ...... the advantage of a one piece body is less joints and possibly less body clips. All that will improve aero. It may take no less time to remove and replace for access and replacement. Will be interesting to see if that works out

[RacingManiac]

As it were it didn't quite work out before.... The car has had that feature since 1995's WR LMP car.....

It'll still be a pretty stressed 4 banger for a single turbo 2 liter with close to 500 bhp....at least the AER were, and they were the only thing in the force induction 675 car can use to compete with the bigger 900 cars (pace wise)before the new rules....

[Zytek_Fan]

As it were it didn't quite work out before.... The car has had that feature since 1995's WR LMP car.....

It'll still be a pretty stressed 4 banger for a single turbo 2 liter with close to 500 bhp....at least the AER were, and they were the only thing in the force induction 675 car can use to compete with the bigger 900 cars (pace wise)before the new rules....

They spent a lot of time in the garage at Le Mans 2005. They finished 5th in LMP2 and 27th overall

[NuclearCrap]

It's not the number of cylinders that dictates the engine performance. Last year a V8 beat a V10 at Le Mans you know.

The V8 didn't beat the V10, it's the entire car itself and the drivers.