Honda launch new wind tunnel

Officially opened in a ceremony hosted by Alistair Darling MP, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, and Shigeru Takagi, President of Honda Motor Europe, the new wind tunnel will be a boost for the struggling Honda Racing team.

The fully automated, fully instrumented testing facility will be able to accommodate one of the team's full-size race cars.

The tunnel can generate a wind speed of 80 metres per second (the equivalent of 180mph), driven by the 5.3m diameter fan and its 16 rotating and 27 static blades, and is powered by a 2263kW electric three-phase induction motor, generating 43560N.m of torque at 495rpm.

The rolling road is also capable of running at 80 metres per second.

"This facility is a demonstration of our strong commitment to the United Kingdom, to motor sport and to our research and development capability," said Takagi.

"Our passion for the toughest challenge in motor sport and our desire to become Formula One champions requires a very strong infrastructure and it is with this in mind that we have invested in our new wind tunnel at Brackley.

"This kind of deep commitment to racing is not new to us. It has been a constant throughout Honda's history, simply because we regard racing as an investment in the research and development that drives our future.

"It is our aim that the same spirit of challenge which goes into making Formula One racing cars should go into every one of the twenty million Honda products we will sell around the world this year.

"I would like to offer my sincere thanks to all our partners and to the citizens of Brackley for their co-operation in allowing us to complete the wind tunnel ahead of schedule."