Finlay McSporran
Published: 18:12 28 July 2026
The new chassis and power unit package will be introduced for the 2028 season.
The new machine, the IR-28, marks the first change to the IndyCar package since the current model was introduced back in 2012.
IR-28 aims to improve upon the current spec car in almost every way.
According to IndyCar themselves, this new car will:
- Be faster than the current generation and brake track records.
- Enhance overtaking opportunities with purpose built aerodynamic architecture.
- Improve driver safety
The most obvious changes are to the front and rear wing, which, as mentioned, should make overtaking easier by “optimizing the wake from the front to the back”.
This all might sound a bit familiar to any Formula 1 fans reading this, but fear not. There’s no 50/50 split here.
The new car will be powered by 2.4-liter twin-turbocharged V6 internal combustion engines, capable of producing up to 760 horsepower.
However, they are following F1 in introducing a battery-based Energy Storage System (ESS) for the first time in IndyCar’s history.
This should, apparently, “give drivers and teams far greater flexibility in when and how they deploy hybrid power.” It does however, mean that the overall weight of the power unit is reduced by around 20 pounds.
Whether this turns out to be a good move or not remains to be seen, but IndyCar will be acutely aware of the criticisms directed at F1 from both fans and drivers alike, after they introduced a similar system this year.
The IndyCar drivers seem to like it at least.
Four time series champion, Alex Palou, said: “Seeing the car for the first time made me even more excited about where IndyCar is going.
“The most important thing is that we keep the close, fun racing that makes INDYCAR special, and from what I’ve seen, we’re heading in a really good direction.”
Indy 500 winner, Felix Rosenquist, said: “The first thing that struck me is that it has more room in the cockpit and will fit differently-sized drivers, which is really good.
“Secondly, it still has the IndyCar DNA, which was a worry for me that it wouldn’t look like an IndyCar Series car. This definitely does.
“It also has an aggressive look with an integrated aero screen and a car that addresses a lot of little tweaks that drivers have asked for. Dallara has delivered on almost everything.”
The new power units will continue to be provided by Honda and Chevrolet.
IndyCar President, J. Douglas Boles, said: “As you can imagine, a project of this magnitude takes an incredible amount of planning, collaboration and execution.
“I would like to thank all of our partners including Dallara, Chevrolet, Honda, Firestone and Shell, who have worked tirelessly to create a package that will enhance INDYCAR’s already incredible competition and industry-leading growth.
“With initial testing to begin this week, there is still plenty of work to do before 2028, but we are well on our way to showcasing a new era of IndyCar, which will include enhanced wheel-to-wheel competition, track records, standards in raceability and new benchmarks in safety.
“We are confident the IR-28 is the ideal package to move INDYCAR forward for our teams, drivers, partners and fans.”
Tags:
Blog GP 
Leave a comment