Nissan to power DeltaWing

UPDATE This rumor is upgraded to 'fact' today. The innovative DeltaWing racing car that will debut at this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans will be powered by Nissan. The partnership was unveiled today by the manufacturer at a media launch in London.

Nissan will power the DeltaWing

A race-prepared 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine, featuring direct petrol injection and a turbocharger, will power the Nissan DeltaWing, which is half the weight and has half the aerodynamic drag of a conventional racer.

The car was unveiled by DeltaWing designer Ben Bowlby and Nissan Head of Brand Strategy in Europe, Darren Cox at today's function which was also attended by project Managing Partner Don Panoz and Highcroft Racing's Duncan Dayton whose team will run the car.

The DeltaWing project brings together Bowlby, Panoz, Dayton and Dan Gurney's All American Racers organization who built the car.

Nissan will power the DeltaWing

Driver Marino Franchitti was also on-site along with the newly announced second driver – Nissan's reigning FIA GT Champion, German, Michael Krumm.

The DeltaWing will have its first public outing on Thursday, March 15 at Sebring International Raceway at 12:30pm in an event hosted by project tire partner, Michelin. The famed Florida venue hosts the opening round of the 2012 American Le Mans Series and World Endurance Championship this Saturday, March 17.

03/12/12 One of the better-kept secrets in motorsports is, who will supply the engine for the revolutionary new DeltaWing race car? A formal announcement comes on Tuesday in Europe, but it appears the manufacturer itself let the cat out of the bag when Nissan of Europe posted a shadowy but undeniable picture of the DeltaWing on its Facebook page, with a big "Nissan" logo on the nose.

So it appears that the four-cylinder, twin-turbocharged engine that powered the DeltaWing in its initial tests at the Buttonwillow racetrack in California the past two weeks was a Nissan, which presumably will also power the car at exhibition and test runs before and after the 12 Hours of Sebring next weekend, in preparation for an “experimental" entry at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June.

The DeltaWing first broke cover at the Chicago auto show two years ago, as one of the candidates for the new-for-2012 Izod IndyCar Series chassis. IndyCar's selection board went with the safer choice, the Dallara, which makes its race debut later this month at the St. Petersburg, Fla., race. AutoWeek