IndyCar’s push-to-pass boost “may not be needed” in future, says Frye

For 2017, IndyCar drivers were given a total time allowance of turbo overboost per race, instead of a total number of uses per race.

On road and street courses, the Chevrolet and Honda 2.2-liter V6 engines run 1.5-bar turbo boost as standard, but have an extra “push-to-pass” (P2P) boost of 1.65-bar, increasing output by around 60hp. At St Petersburg, Detroit and Sonoma, drivers had a P2P boost allotment of 150 seconds, while other road and street races offered 200 seconds.

“That seemed to be well received by the drivers and so for 2018 we’re going to follow up with them, and see if they still perceive it as being the best approach,” Frye told Motorsport.com. “Certainly we didn’t hear a lot of negativity about it so my assumption was that it worked like they wanted it to.

“But from what I’ve read of the new kit in our tests and in manufacturer tests, the drivers say the car feels like it has more horsepower because of the drag reduction. It feels different already. So do we need push-to-pass going forward?

“Certainly we have it in 2018 – which configuration is still to be determined, but I don’t anticipate a change. But in 2019 and ’20, it may not be needed.

“Up to now it has enhanced the show and the entertainment, it’s been something for the broadcasters to talk about, and some fans are interested in it. But if we get to the point where we have more horsepower overall and we have these cars that are much quicker in a straight line because of reduced drag, is push-to-pass still necessary? Or is it something we should still use because of the nuances it creates over the course of an event?

“I don’t know. But it’s nice to have options.”

Although push-to-pass on ovals was under consideration, Frye said that idea was now shelved, nor did he anticipate oval boost reaching road/streetcourse levels. Currently the Borg-Warner turbos run at 1.3-bar for Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Texas and Pocono, and 1.4-bar for Phoenix, Iowa and Gateway.

“We don’t anticipate any changes to horsepower on short ovals,” he said. “Being restricted on the engine rules – engines have to do 2500 miles, remember – you need to be cautious on things like that.

“So increasing the oval boost has never been brought up because it seems to be working fine right now. The races are good – and should be better with the new car – and the engines are reliable.”