Raceability (part one)

Raceability is not a real word, but what I mean by the term is the ability of cars to race each other. When all cars are the same, or at least within the same class, I am referring to following each other on track, and being able to set up and execute passes. The idea is similar to when cars from different classes are on track together, although in that case passing, or being passed, are givens, so raceability in that sense refers more to the cars’ ability to deal with traffic between disparate classes.

With respect to Balance of Performance, it is one thing to balance lap time performance, but ensuring balanced cars can properly race against each other is a much more difficult thing to achieve correctly.

Let’s go back in time over a decade to examine a first-hand experience I had with a situation where the raceability between cars was not well balanced. Okay, I’m being kind, it was horribly imbalanced!

In 2009, I worked as a performance engineer with de Ferran Motorsports, and we ran an Acura ARX-02a LMP1 car against the likes of Audi R15 TDI and Peugeot 908 at a few races in what was then called the American Le Mans Series. The Audi and Peugeot were both diesel-powered with lots of torque and,