Chassis Overview: Acura ARX-01A/B

Hey guys, here we go with the very first chassis registry of my new blog. First up will be Acura's LMP2 challenger, the ARX-01A/B. Acura announced their intentions to join the American Le Mans Series with an LMP2 car at the end of 2006. From there, it was an intense development program to enable them to make their race debut at the 2007 12 Hours of Sebring.


The ARX-01A started life as a French Courage LC70, but was extensively re-engineered by Honda Performance Division (HPD), and as such now shares very little with its French doner car. The engine is a 3.4 liter, normally aspirated V8 producing something in the neighborhood of 500hp and it's connected to a 6 speed sequential gearbox.


In 2007, Acura ran with 3 teams, each focusing on a different element of the ARX-01A. Lowe's Fernandez Racing was in charge of engine development (using a Lola chassis), Highcroft Racing handled the chassis development, and Andretti-Green Racing took everything and put it all together.


The 2007 season started out on a high note with Andretti-Green Racing taking Acura's maiden win in their very first race, winning the LMP2 class at the 12 Hours of Sebring! They failed to reach the top step of the podium again in 2007 though dealing with many teething issues with the cars throughout the season.


In the off season, HPD did a great deal more development on the car, and the car was now to be designated ARX-01B. It was also announced that all Acura teams would be running the Acura chassis this year, and a 4th car would be joining the fray near mid season run by ex-CART star Gil De Ferran.


2008 has so far shown a noticeable improvement in performance by the Acura teams, and they've already taken 2 wins (out of 5 races), with 1 of them being an overall win!