5: Spare Parts, Prices Standoff

I documented this dang thing to death and can’t bring myself to go into heavy detail here, so let’s try the Cliff’s Notes version:

IndyCar said the new 2012 Indy car and the costs to run it would be cheaper than the 2011 package.

They were wrong.

The guys who bought the cars said it cost more.

A lot more.

The series disagreed.

Then they kinda’ agreed and listened to the owners’ concerns.

Then they didn’t do much to address those concerns.

So the owners got mad.

Then they got madder and madder as more time went by.

Then the series asked them to put together a spreadsheet of their costs to own and run the car.

The teams did that, and presented it, but the series really wasn’t feeling it.

And the CEO, who was tired of being yelled at about the costs, dug in his heels and fought the owners.

A lot.

So the owners kinda vowed to take the matter into their own hands and start making cheaper parts by themselves.

Even though the rules said that was a no-no.

And that pissed off the CEO even more.

So we had owners that were pissed and a CEO that was pissed.

Then the CEO appointed the former series president and competition director guy to oversee a cost reduction initiative.

And the owners liked that.

A lot.

But that didn’t go anywhere for a while, although the former series president did a really, really good job once he started doing something, according to the owners.

Then the owners realized they liked working with the former president a lot more than the CEO and kinda stopped talking to the CEO.

Then the guys that made the new car agreed to reduce the price on spare parts a little bit, but the owners didn’t think it was enough and said no.

And that made the CEO even madder than before when he was really mad.

Then the owners got mad because the CEO got mad.

And the owners also wanted cost reductions in every area, but that didn’t really go anywhere.

So then the season was about to end and the guys that make the cars agreed to a pretty good discount on parts and stuff.

And they also said they’d give back a rebate of like 30 grand to each team.

But then that didn’t really go anywhere.

So then the owners and the CEO guy were totally mad at each other to the point that they REALLY didn’t talk to each other anymore.

And enough of the owners thought it would be a good idea if the CEO went away, so they let his bosses know they felt that way.

And they told his bosses how they felt on that matter A LOT.

Then the CEO, with enough other people feeling that way and telling that to his bosses A LOT, got fired.

Next thing you know, it was almost the next year and the guys that make the cars who said they’d rewrite their contract to lower the prices, also said the series people hadn’t followed through to make that happen.

They also wondered when the series people would.

And the owners also wondered about the same thing.

The end.

INDYCAR: Owners, Series Continue To Work On Cost Reduction Strategies