s2i Motorsport is finalizing its plans for the next season, and it seems very likely our team will be racing with a Van Diemen car.
We have looked at multiple options during the winter, including Duratec variants from all major manufacturers: Van Diemen, Spectrum, Mygale, Mtec (ex-Comtec) and even Aquila. Certainly there are many very interesting cars here, and especially we noted Aquila and Comtec which both seem to be bringing something new into Formula Ford design. Spectrum also has an interesting concept, while Mygale of course has been the most successful. Fluid Motorsport has, however, also achieved good results with Van Diemen - and latest news indicate that the marquee will continue supplying cars to the series also in 2009.Overall it is fair to say that the new Duratec engine will make the whole Formula Ford class more interesting again, and certainly affects the car and its driveability in many positive ways. Power is up slightly (see article in Race Tech magazine October 2008), but a key feature is the engine's compactness and lower weight, which brings several advantages. Packaging is nicer, and thus the cars also look better with the Duratec!
However, our team was looking for a good buy, and cost/availability of spare parts throughout the season at the Rata-SM events was also a key decision factor. This in practice means that a Van Diemen Formula Ford Zetec is the way to go - there are several cars available, some in very good condition, and spare parts are readily available. In addition, if alternative fuels will be tried next season the Zetec is a good testing bench for that. The Van Diemen chassis is apparently quite similar between the Zetec and the Duratec, so a conversion from Zetec to Duratec might also be feasible later. Alternatively, buying an older variant (up to 2000) makes the car easy to convert into Kent, and such cars have a market in the UK, at least according to some sources.
Too early to spill all the details at this stage, but it seems we will be making a conservative choice entering the 2009 season... There should be more news in a week or so about our final decision.
