It’s always been part of the DSC tenet that we allow those looking to move forward in the sport some room for freedom of expression, an opportunity to tell their story in a cynicism-free environment because our aim is now, and always has been to do what we can to help the sport to flourish and to encourage the audience to grow.
I very much had all of that in mind when chatting to Nicolas Perrin last year as he unveiled his plans for a new LMP1 coupe, the ex Williams engineer and designer of the Pescarolo 03 launching his own concept into a marketplace that already looked unlikely to be one that supported large numbers of customers.
Fast forward several months and Perrinn (the additional ‘n’ denoting the difference between the designer and his company hasn’t found a buyer for their new car and he’s far from alone in that regard!) – But the fire still burns and Nicolas has been looking for the golden key that might unlock the required investment.
And now he believes he has found it – with MyTeam – an open source LMP1 project.
It’s not a unique concept, the potential to find backing through expanding the potential audience base for a project, but it is the first time it has been done in this particular market. One of the closest that I can recall is the current Bloodhound SSC project to develop a 1000mph Land Speed Record car which has been open source from the very beginning, engaging with academia, industry and, well frankly anyone that might add backing, knowledge and awareness to a truly cutting edge programme.
“It is almost exactly the same intellectual concept,” Nicolas told me, “but with two major differences. Firstly, of course, the Bloodhound project is in a different market, and secondly, the objective here is two-fold, to offer real, two way intellectual challenge, and to use that model to attract the real commercial partners that this programme will require to move to the next level.”
So, to the uninitiated what exactly does open source mean in this regard?
“It means that all of our designs and data will be published online, and that they will be freely available to anybody that wishes to do pretty much anything with them. We are, of course sure that our conclusions are the correct ones to ensure that the real car would be competitive. But the intellectual and scientific challenge is to perhaps question that conclusion, to look at our conclusions and find a way to do better, to improve on any parameter that might have an effect on efficiency or performance.
“That’s the kind of challenge and opportunity that I would have thrived on in the past and there was simply nothing out there that stretched me in those directions.
“Of course too we’ll encourage those using the data to share their thoughts, conclusions, improvements and concerns with us, but there is actually no compulsion for them to do so, or, for that matter, for us to agree with them!”
“We have a design already complete and that is the chosen direction, the car “myLMP1” is very unlikely to change fundamentally but you never know!”
“We have a strength, that our complete design is here and ready for production, but we are fully aware that our brand is not a strong one outside of the very small racing community. That’s what this concept is designed to address, to attract sponsorship from a brand that will either take it forward as a whole, or will enable us, and them, to leverage further support.”
Being truly ‘open source’ though leads to some risks of throwing away a competitive advantage though doesn’t it?
“There are risks but we think they are manageable – The key to this being a unique programme is delivering on the promise you make for it to be REALLY open source. Absolutely competitors could choose to copy what we present in whole or in part, in some ways that would be a massive endorsement of our design I suppose!
And would the open source aspect of the programme continue beyond launch?
“That’s the plan – It means that anyone can watch the car in build, examine test data and watch our telemetry live from trackside or their living room!”
So what kind of backer are you looking for to take this forward? Or can you launch this without a backer?
“The key is to progress the project and our efforts now will be directed at communicating the potential in commercial terms of that level of public engagement.
“There will be no shortage of individuals and organisations wishing to engage with this project so it is now a matter of matching potential backers to that potential audience. We would only launch the full project if a backer was in place.
“It is important to differentiate this from crowd-funding, we are not asking those who engage with us for money, that’s a proposition that is relevant only to those we seek to help us progress the programme with, not those who access the data.”
And you are entirely open as to who that backer, or who those backers, might be?
“Absolutely. Of course there’s an aspiration to have a manufacturer involved but the reality is that this model might be just as attractive to something entirely different, perhaps a big name from a different sector looking to make a mark.”
So in competitive terms, and assuming that you can attract a backer with enough potential to see this through, when would you expect the car to become real rather than virtual?
“We would hope to see a car become a reality to test later this year and then to race in 2015. The proposition remains the same as it always has, we want to produce a car capable of being competitive, ultimately we want to win Le Mans in the next five years.
“As with any project we have aims in mind, and timescales too, but the key is to get the right backers, and the right level of backing. If we have to move to accommodate the right people then of course we’d do it.”
It’s certainly a very different approach but who would do anything other than to wish this concept well – If it succeeds then the LMP1 field expands, potentially beyond the traditional OEM ranks – It’s a big ask, but what this sport needs is ambition, new blood and new ideas – myTeam is a mould breaker in a fine tradition that should be familiar to the traditionalists and purists, it’s just that this time it’s about how you raise the money to race – 21st century innovation by necessity – Good luck Nicolas and all at Perrinn.
