Honda has been supplying engines for Indy cars since 1994, but Honda and Chevrolet have both been working hard on the new 2.4-liter hybrid V6 powerplant that was initially proposed in 2019. When that announcement was made, the plan was to have the new engine in place for the 2022 season, but Ericsson’s 2022 Indy 500 win was powered by the same twin-turbo 2.2-liter V6 that had been in use since 2012.
In December of that year, IndyCar announced the new engine’s debut would be pushed back to the start of the 2024 season. However, last December 7, IndyCar announced in a press release that the new hybrid engine would make its first appearance “during the second half of the 2024 IndyCar Series season.”
Testing took place last fall at the oval and road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and several other tracks, and continued into this year. COVID-related supply chain issues were initially to blame for the delays, but a report in the Indianapolis Star blamed Mahle, the maker of the new engine’s hybrid power unit, for subsequent issues. Chevrolet and Honda scrambled to pick up the slack, but both manufacturers had their attention diverted to their efforts to produce more electric vehicles for non-racing customers, furthering delays.
