[kropotkin thinks...] - Suter MotoGP Project To Use No Part Of Ilmor X3

[Ninjette Newsbot]

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The news that Eskil Suter and Gil Motor Sport are to enter MotoGP in 2010 was met with enthusiasm, but also some puzzlement. Initial reports had suggested that the GMS project would be based on the former Ilmor X3 bikes, but when MotoGPMatters.com asked Ilmor if they knew anything about this, they confirmed that they had not been approached by Eskil Suter about using the Ilmor X3.

The reason for this, it appears, is that the bike the team is hoping to field will be brand new, according to the French website Moto Caradisiac. Both engine and chassis are brand new, and designed and built by Eskil Suter's Suter Racing Technology company at their facility in Switzerland. The new engine bears no relation to the engine designed by Ilmor, with Suter claiming the engine will produce around 240 bhp - 25 bhp more than the Ilmor power plant - although it, too, will be a V4 configuration.

The chassis is also said to be brand new, though photos shown on the Moto Caradisiac website show the family resemblance that all of Suter's bikes bear, with angular forms and a prominent, stubby nose. The project is due to be finalized on September 30th of this year, when an announcement will be made in full.