Put a Ferrari and a Peugeot side-by-side and you'll struggle to find any similarities, but on the race track, the two share more in common than you might think. Before masterminding Ferrari's rejuvenation, former CEO Jean Todt was head of Peugeot's competition department, and brought with him some of PSA's top racing engineers. Peugeot's renewed Le Mans racing operation employs several F1 drivers, including Ferrari's own test pilot Marc Gene. Now reports are suggesting that the two outfits, both seeking top honors in their respective motorsport disciplines, may be cooperating on the joint development of their Kinetic Energy Recovery System.
KERS is nearing implementation in Formula One, and several teams are pursuing external expertise to get their systems ready. But joining with Peugeot would allow Ferrari, whose system is being developed with its technical partner and sister company Magneti-Marelli, to circumvent the tight restrictions on development and testing, restrictions which are only getting tighter each year. Peugeot, meanwhile, is preparing to implement a similar system on the Le Mans circuit in its new 908 HY prototype, which it hopes will edge out Audi at both the finish line and the green front.
[Sources: F1-Live and GrandPrix.com]
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