CART Online (January 18) – The new Swift 007.i may be the only American-made chassis at the season-opening Marlboro Grand Prix of Miami in March, but Dan Gurney’s All American Racers does indeed plan to have a new Eagle chassis in CART competition in 1997.

Gurney’s group will use British-built Reynards for the first part of the 1997 PPG Cup season as the team also builds and develops the next generation Eagle.

"All along, our plans have called for starting with the Reynard and switching to the Eagle," said team public relations representative Barry Smith. "The Swift will not be the only American-made chassis out there."

Last season, AAR drivers Juan Manuel Fangio II and PJ Jones struggled while having to develop both a new Eagle chassis and a debuting Toyota engine. While both the chassis and engine had progressed by season’s end, avoiding the double development dilemma may be the ticket for 1997. By using proven Reynards early, Gurney’s group can focus on working with Toyota to take the new engine to the next level while completing the next chassis. When the new Eagle is ready, it will likely have a Toyota engine with at least one-and-a-half seasons of development behind it.

The strategy seems to be working. Fangio was third quickest (of eight drivers) in pre-season testing at Homestead earlier in the month despite an accident in Turn Three. Fangio was uninjured and even returned to the track later in the day to resume testing.

Until the new Eagle is ready for racing, all four of Toyota’s 1997 PPG Cup entries will be Reynards. Arciero-Wells Racing returns for its third season of CART competition with Reynards and its second year with Toyota engines. Max Papis will be teamed with the returning Hiro Matsushita who drove for the team in 1995.