Indycar is set to introduce a new version of its aeroscreen this weekend at the Long Beach Grand Prix. Originally introduced in 2020, and developed in conjunction with Red Bull Advanced Technologies, the screen fulfils the same role as F1’s Halo, but with the addition of a ballistic screen to protect drivers from debris.
The new screen has several modifications, including vents for driver cooling – with the vent ducting 3D printed in a rubber material to minimize the possibility of injuries.
“One of the objectives of doing a 2.0 version was to save weight,” said Tino Belli, director of aerodynamic development at Indycar. “Then we’ve taken that opportunity to also make the styling nicer, improve the driver ventilation, and make the thinner polycarbonate as strong as the thicker polycarbonate.”
In addition to aesthetic improvements, the new screen assembly is approximately 2kg lighter than the first generation. Indycar had already introduced a new, topologically optimized frame at the start of the 2024 season, and the screen and frame combined are now 5kg lighter than in 2023. Notably, the revised screen cuts downforce by around 15kg.
According to Indycar, during its initial redesign evaluation, venting for drivers was identified as a key demand. As it turned out, these vents could be added without a complete rework of the original design with driver feedback indicating that the wide range of vision in the original design was not needed.
“We learned over the years where the limit of the vision was,” Belli said. “In the first version, we were conservative. We gave them a wider field of vision. We found out that they didn’t need it. So, now we’ve used that space to create a vent which comes underneath the titanium top frame and it gets ducted down to blow air toward the driver’s chest.” An optional filter can be added to the honeycomb mesh to help filter any dust from entering the cockpit.
The new screen was not due to arrive until Indianapolis in May, however, sufficient units were available to enable this to be brought forward to Long Beach.
