Falcon Cars left high and dry?

[trubritz]

Another part of the vision?

http://www.falconcars.com/

[pchall]

Cry me a river, Mr. Kranefuss ;)

Too bad you didn't start this project with enough money to actually finish a couple of cars, lease an engine, and go racing with a factory team.

[Jag_Warrior]

Speculation is that Falcon will sell its license to Lola very soon... with Lil Lord Tony's blessing, I'm sure.

[mnkywrch]

Originally posted by pchall
Too bad you didn't start this project with enough money to actually finish a couple of cars, lease an engine, and go racing with a factory team.

When's the last time a chassis entered a series without the chassis manufacturer either giving the thing away or paying someone to run it? Bad move on the IRL's part.

The only thing I like about Falcon is that the shop dog (http://www.falconcars.com/Timeline/061_max.JPG) is cute.

[Wheel-Nut]

That dog is cute but must be very mean judging from that length of cable it is attached to!

I wonder Penske has not come to his old partners rescue? You would think Penske would at least do some of the testing for him just to prove the thing will actually roll. Hey Penske, throw the Falcon a bone!!!

[Railbird]

The reason Penske or anyone else has not tested the Falcon is the fact that there still isn't a completed car. I've talked to a half dozen people that have visited MK's shop and they've all said the chassis is a half baked POS.

As desperate for a freebie as Hemelgarn is they declined the offer after seeing the car first hand.

[rabbit]

Originally posted by Railbird
I've talked to a half dozen people that have visited MK's shop and they've all said the chassis is a half baked POS.
Kind of like the series it was designed to run in. It's sad. It really is.

[Railbird]

The series it was designed to run in is rather well financed, Falcon evidently isn't.

[Wheel-Nut]

Why would TG select Falcon as one of the "lucky" three to compete in the earl? Did MK sell him a can of BS? or Did TG really only want two chassis in his series, Dallara and G-Force?

[rabbit]

Well financed, yes.
Well thought out, no.

[Turn7]

Originally posted by Wheel-Nut
Why would TG select Falcon as one of the "lucky" three to compete in the earl? Did MK sell him a can of BS? or Did TG really only want two chassis in his series, Dallara and G-Force?


Because Tony was swinging his hammer and didn't want any IRL derived money going to Lola. He wanted to force Lola's hand to commit only to the IRL and leave CART without a solvent chassis mfg.

Lola wouldn't commit so the bone got tossed to MK.

[JoeBob]

The chronology is this: The IRL announced that they had 6 applications (Dallara, G-Force, Penske, Lola, MK and Dome (Swift might have been the 6th)), and was going to pick 3. They then issued a press release that Penske Cars would not be approved. I'm guessing that was done to give Lola some assurance that if they promised not to sell the same car to CART teams, they'd get the 3rd spot over Penske.

Lola wanted some changes to the supply rules, which the IRL did not want to make. Thus, Lola withdrew their application. The IRL, having already said that they would approve 3 of their 6 applicants, and having ruled out Penske had to pick between MK and Dome, and picked MK. (I'm guessing because they had some recognizable names attached, and a design somewhat done.)

I saw a rumor that Dome is actually interested in purchasing Falcon's rights to build an IRL chassis that would actually be the Honda "factory chassis."

[Wheel-Nut]

So who is dome? I have never heard of that manufacturer.

[JoeBob]

Dome is a Japanese chassis manufacturer.

http://www.dome.co.jp

Dome was the 6th. Here's their press release that they were stopping development of their 2003 IRL chassis: http://www.dome.co.jp/e/news/news0208e.html

[Wheel-Nut]

Thanks Joebob.

My computer only interpreted 1/2 of the home page to english but these two cars look interesting. The second looks like an F/A car.


Link 1 (http://www.dome.co.jp/museum/car_m/car_m33a.html)

Link 2 (http://www.dome.co.jp/museum/car_m/car_m35a.html)

LINK 2A (http://www.dome.co.jp/museum/car_m/car_m35b.html)

[Turn7]

Poking around on that site I found another example that ChrisB can use for an airboxless n/a car.



http://www.dome.co.jp/museum/car_m/images/f101_a.jpg

http://www.dome.co.jp/museum/car_m/images/f101_a.jpg

[mnkywrch]

Is that the J Lo model?

Reminds me of a 1997 IRL chassis...

[Turn7]

What do you make of this one? Is the nose offset or is it just the angle of the photo along with the graphics?

http://www.dome.co.jp/museum/car_m/images/f103i_a.jpg

http://www.dome.co.jp/museum/car_m/images/f103i_a.jpg

[mapguy]

Originally posted by mnkywrch
Is that the J Lo model?

Reminds me of a 1997 IRL chassis...
Or any other irl slug....:D

[Wheel-Nut]

I think it is the graphics T7. Look kind of funny.

[Ziggy]

I think it was lettered by Foster Brooks

Ziggy