RELIABILITY - THE KEY TO WINNING LE MANS
A season of Grand Prix races. Two thirds the distance of the Paris-
Dakar Rally. Four months driving in the average family car. All in the
space of 24 hours and at an average speed of 210 kph.
In a world often reliant on hype, the 24 Hours of Le Mans does not need
hard sell. One day and one night of energy-sapping, car-breaking racing
makes the French classic still the most gruelling road race in the
world.
Winning this classic endurance race is as hard in the 1990s as it
was in the 1920s. Aerospace technology has now made the cars as
technically advanced as the first space ships, but still the rate of
attrition is as decimating as it was in the days of the blower Bentleys.
On average, only a third of all starters reach the finish line.
"What is unique about Le Mans is that the race has always and will
always need the perfect mix of speed and reliability," explains Nissan's
Le Mans project director Kunihiko Kakimoto. "What never changes about
Le Mans is the balance between speed and endurance. Anyone can build a
car which will go round and round for days on end. But building a car
to win, that's the difference and that's why many cars don't finish.
When you have to compromise one for the other, risks creep in."
In 1997, Nissan took Le Mans by storm, setting a lightning quick
pre-qualifying time with the R390 GT1. The headlines heralded Nissan as
Le Mans winners-elect before the 24-hour race clock had even begun.
"I think we were surprised last year when we ended up fastest overall in
pre-qualifying," adds Tom Walkinshaw, whose TWR company partners Nissan
in building the R390 GT1s. "But it flattered to deceive a little.
Anyone who has done Le Mans knows that it takes time to develop the car,
and normally it takes two years to have a reliable, competitive
package."
"The job to improve reliability started the minute we came back from Le
Mans last year," explains Kakimoto. "At least the car was quick, so the
focus was solely on making it last the distance."
As part of the post-mortem that followed Le Mans in 1997, the cars were
completely stripped down, each of their 3000 components reassessed and,
where necessary replaced. New suspension and a new gearbox are two of
the modifications for 1998.
With each team member constantly checking their own and each other's
work, Nissan and TWR strived to build a car free as possible from human
error. Major components have to be x-rayed. Every part gets a visual
crack-check. Only the absolute minimum number of parts are sourced
outside the partnership.
To ensure that the team has a surfeit of spares, for every major
component made for the three cars, there are almost three back ups
available. In addition there are 11 sets of the beautiful bodywork
already made in case of accident. It takes three mammoth trucks to move
the three Nissan R390 GT1s.
Build quality is just part of the reliability equation. In a car
capable of over 300 kph down the famous Mulsanne Straight, then needing
to brake heavily into twisty 50 kph corners with immense G-forces, track
testing is the only way of ensuring the car will last the distance.
"There is no substitute for track testing," says Chief Engineer Steve
Farrell. "Only then will we know if the parts will last the distance."
Unlike many other manufacturers, Nissan has built the R390 GT1 with only
one job in mind. With the exception of a race in Japan, the striking
sleek sportscars make a public appearance only once a year, at Le Mans.
"We have chosen Le Mans to prove that Nissan's technical capability is
at the highest level, and to bolster our reputation for quality and
reliability. To win Le Mans it is necessary to focus one hundred per
cent on this race," explains Kakimoto.
With no other competition in which to get the R390 GT1 race-ready,
Nissan has organised a handful of its own 24-hour 'races' as part of the
painstaking programme to achieve optimum reliability.
"At the tests everything is done as it would be at Le Mans. We even
encourage the cars to race against each other. We even allocate someone
to pretend to be one of the race scrutineers to monitor the pit stops,
making sure there are only four people at any one time working on the
car.
"Even in a 24 hour race you have to assume that every second counts.
But as important as speed is thoroughness. There's no point doing a
fast pit stop if you forget something and they have to come in again."
The tests have already proved invaluable. Small mechanical failures
have given the engineers crucial information of the life expectancy of
the components, which have now been engineered to survive the equivalent
of two consecutive Le Mans races.
In June, when the moment of truth will come, the attention to detail
could make the difference between winning or losing. The history of Le
Mans is full of stories of cars retiring with the most trivial of
technical problems.
"Everyone in the team will have a job and, as with building the car,
everyone will watch out for someone else," explain team managers Kamei
and Benoist who are the strategists in an operation of military
precision.
"The secret is constantly to check everything, to leave nothing to
chance. From the engineers to the caterer, everything is programmed to
the last detail. We bring our own caterers, doctors, and even our own
cleaner. We know then that we can rely on no breakdown in the chain."
With the car built to perfection. With the team running like clockwork
and everyone in the pit assigned a role, the only variable left is the
man behind the wheel.
"The drivers we have are the best for the job, like everyone else," says
Kakimoto. "But whereas everything else on the car is made without
compromise, because there are three drivers in each car they have had to
be professional and agree on one seating position that all three can
cope with.
"It would be detrimental to all the other work if time was lost in a
competitive car because two of the drivers were in the ideal seating
position and one was uncomfortable and losing time. To win, everything
has to be just right."
This year we will try to win, but competing with the front runners is
important," concludes Kakimoto. "What we learn from our ABS, from the
race engine, from the lightweight components, will ultimately take our
road cars to the leading edge of technology."