The IndyCar hybrid powertrain continues to be a talking point around the series, eight months after its initial introduction halfway through the 2024 season.
Drivers have largely adjusted to the new driving controls, and teams are still adjusting to the added costs the high-tech system has brought to each entry.
As he approaches 150 race starts and is in the middle of his 10th season in IndyCar, Alexander Rossi talked about what he feels are the pros and cons of the hybrid system in its current form.
“I have a list of cons,” said Rossi with a smile, implying that he was only half joking. “The pros are [the car now] starts itself. You can start yourself.
“The biggest thing is, I truly believe this, this isn’t a marketing PR line, it lays the foundation for future manufacturers to come into the sport.
“It’s no secret that the car market, the automotive market, the world market, in terms of automobiles has changed over the past decade.
“With the current format of engine that we have, it also makes perfect sense that a manufacturer wouldn’t want to necessarily come in and try and catch up to 10-plus years of development of an existing power train, right?”
Not attractive, but impressive
Largely, the hybrid system has not brought about much in the way of visible differences to an outside observer.
Lap times are very similar, the added weight nearly canceling the added power, and there is no discernable sound difference either.
But there are many new components under the side pods and inside the bellhousing that work together and allowed the hybrid system to function with minimal flaws during its first few events.
The technical achievement of the electrified power system is the main area where many see the series has moved forward.
It is this area that Rossi believes will benefit the series in the long run, with reliability from the outset combined with the promise of more visible power delivery in the future standing out.
“The hybrid, while it might not be that attractive in its current guise, I think in terms of what we’ve done from a reliability standpoint is pretty impressive. What we did last year in terms of implementing a hybrid mid-season and the honestly lack of failures – .
“You’re going to have failures in race cars in every capacity. There wasn’t mass hybrid failures in the championship season. That was a huge win.
“You bring that forward to this year, and because the reliability has been so robust, we can start to incrementally increase the performance, increase the load and duty cycle on it throughout a lap and get more power, which we already saw at St. Pete. At St. Pete, it was already a much more effective tool than it had been at any point in 2024.
“While I think the list of pros now from a performance standpoint is short, I think it’s going to grow. I think for the long-term future health of the series, it doesn’t matter what the cons are at this point because it’s pretty clear that manufacturers want hybrids to be involved.”
Rossi has logged five top 10 finishes since the hybrid was introduced, including a 10th place run with his new team Ed Carpenter Racing in the opening round of the 2025 season.
This May, he will look to use the hybrid system to continue his top 5 streak at the Indianapolis 500 that stretches back to 2022.
