“During practice we had engine trouble which kept us in the pits most of the time”, Carlo reflects. “Then in qualifying a wheel broke off on the first lap of the session so as a result we could not record a lap timeand had to start from the back. In the race the brakes failed all of a sudden at the end of lap 66; the brake pedal just went to the floor at the end of the main straight and the car thus went straight on. It was quite a big crash. There was nothing to be done about it, but of course I feel for the team, as it ended up with a damaged car and no result.”

Carlo: "So far, we did 6 laps during two practice sessions. We have a new engine in the car, but it leaks oil. We cannot find the problem so far. The team is stripping the car to find the problem. I'm hopefull they can solve it and we can qualify tomorrow morning. With some luck, we can have a good race in the evening as well."

“First of all, I am very happy for the team”, Carlo says. “They have worked extremely hard all week and they have really impressed me with their effort and professionalism. Already during qualifying it was clear that we had quite a good pace and both yesterday’s and today’s race we could drive Nuna5 into the top three. The teams that finished in the first two positions were simply too quick for us, they have been racing solar cars built specifically for circuit racing for the past fifteen years, while Nuna5, built for long runs in the desert, made its racetrack debut here. Together, as a team, we got the maximum out of the car and because it was a bit cloudy it was quite a challenge to optimally balance our speed and our energy consumption. I think we did so very well, because our third place was never really in danger. After all the races I did here at Suzuka, so far I was always on the podium, so its nice to have been able to maintain that one hundred percent podium finishing rate today!”

“All in all, it was a wonderful week with a fantastic team. Great, too, to see that this event generated so much publicity and that we were able to wrap it all up with a good result. I will stay in Japan now for a while for a few meetings and a karting race, before returning to Europe later this month to competer in the1000 KM-race in Budapest, the next round of the Le Mans Series.”

Together with the Dutch consul in Osaka, Nuna5 has earlier this month toured Japan promoting its participation in the Suzuka Dream Cup, the Dutch team travelling to places such as Kobe, Osaka and Kyoto. Especially for the Dream Cup Nuna 5 is sporting a typically Dutch, Delfts blue livery. Teamleader Geert Kroon: “Visiting Kyota was quite unique in particular, as we were even allowed to drive Nuna5 on the public roads there.”

This week, testing started for the Dream Cup for which the Nuon Solar Team has asked Dutch racing driver to race Nuna 5. Carlo won the 2008 Japanese Formula 3 championship and thus knows the Suzuka-circuit very well. “I have had some great races here, but racing Nuna 5 is something else off course. I tested the car at Zandvoort [in Holland] already, but I knew that the corners and unevenness here at Suzuka would be a challenge. During the first test we did last Monday, we recorded the lap times we had expected to do, but the energy consumption and engine temperatures were a bit too high. On Tuesday my teammate Jan-Willem took over and he drove the correct lines instantly while consumption and temperatures were okay. After studying his driving style, I later that day managed to go a bit quicker still, and using less energy, so Jan-Willem and I complement each other well. In the race it will be important to overtake other cars without using too much energy or losing too much time. Also, the weather in Japan is always quite unpredictable, so it could be that the heat of the last few days will result in some rain or thunderstorms. In any case, I am looking forward to the first race this Saturday!”

“Just two cars competed in the GT1-class here in Portugal”, says Carlo, who was partnered by Julien Schroyen and Norbert Walchofer. “Consequently, our only opponent was the Saleen of the French Larbreteam, for which I happen to have raced in a round of the Asian Le Mans Series last year. Larbre is of coursea renowned team that won the GT1-class of the Le Mans 24 Hours earlier this year, so I was happy to be able to beat their car to pole position by over 0,7 of a second.”

“Also in the race, which finished in the dark, my pace compared well to that of the Larbre-Saleen and I managed to set the fastest lap in GT1. We lost time due to repairs and because over 1000 kilometres the difference in speed between our drivers and between theirs was simply a bit bigger. However, I am happy that we finished the race and that I was able to get the maximum out of the car again all weekend.”

The fourth of the five races the 2010 Le Mans Series comprises, is held on Sunday August 22 at the Hungaroring in Budapest.

Carlo: "The weekend started well during free practice. Together with the team we could improve the car. The car is driving better and the team is working good as well. When we started qualifying, I was able to improve as well, when I took pole position with 8 tenths in front of the other Saleen and second car in the GT1 class. It's nice to have pole position, also for the team. I'm looking forward to the race. It will start at 17:00 local time, and we end in the dark around midnight. I hope we can win the race in our class and step onto the podium!"

For optimal race track performance, having an experienced racing driver onboard is essential. The Nuna5 has been modified to meet the tough requirements for circuit racing and the Nuon Solar Team decided to add Carlo van Dam to their team to drive its car as economically and fast as possible on the Japanese race track. Together with team member and experienced amateur racing driver Jan Willem van Gent, Carlo will drive Nuna5 during the Suzuka Dream Cup race on the 31st of July and the 1st of August.

Carlo caused a stir in Japan in 2008 by winning the national Formula 3 championship for TOM’s Toyota with an impressive series of victories. Meanwhile, he starred for Subaru in the Japanese GT-championship. Therefore, he knows the Suzuka circuit intimately.

Operational leader Geert Kroon is happy to see Carlo joining the team. "During testing at Zandvoort, we noticed that a racing driver has an enormous influence on the car's energy consumption. Especially during a race on a bendy circuit it is great to have a driver who knows everything about how to race around such atrack."

Thanks to Carlo’s achievements in Japan, he has become quite well known in the land of the rising sun. Mechanical engineer Bart van Riessen: "Of course we hope that impresses the Japanese competitors! We do not only have a very good car, but also a highly rated driver who became a champion on their grounds."

Carlo himself is equally satisfied with the opportunity. "Nuna5 is a completely different machine than the cars that I normally race so it will be a unique experience to drive a solar car in Japan."

The Suzuka Dream Cup is the largest circuit race for solar cars and attracts about 40 competitors, mostly from Japan. Most Japanese entrants have built their car especially for this race and have quite some advantages compared to Nuna5. Nevertheless, the team expects a top five finish to be possible.

“I am really happy with this result”, says Carlo. “We have had a problem-free race, as we only pitted for our scheduled stops for fuel and tires. The team was perfectly prepared beforehand and during the race everybody in the team performed faultlessly. Most importantly, the Impreza impressed by not missing a beat and being very reliable, allowing me to be quick all throughout the race, which was very pleasing. The team was happy with my performance and its nice to have moved up so highly in the overall standings and to have also achieved a good result in our class. All in all, it was a race to be satisfied with.”

“Yesterday it rained and we set third fastest time in our class”, Carlo says. “At a dry track the car is a bit challenging, though, so today, on a dry track, it was quite a handful. But I am enjoying myself immensely here; Subaru takes things very serious and they have organized everything very well. For a driver it is nice to be part of such a great operation. You feel that this event now really is a very big race, which is further underlined by the amount of works teams competing. And of course there is a huge crowd again, who create a unique ambiance. Tomorrow we will start from thirteenth place in our class. This is a long and tough race and especially if it rains I am sure we could achieve a good result. In any case we got the maximum out of the car in qualifying, we did not experience any problems and my team mates [Japan’s Kazuo Shimizu and Toshihiro Yoshida and Germany’s Marcel Engels] and I are closely matched so
together we form a good team and I am looking forward to the race.”

“It was a problem free test, the car did well, everything worked okay and nothing went wrong. The Saleen still ran on older Pirelli-tires, while we will race on the latest Michelins at Spa, but we managed to do some valuable running anyway. I did the test together with my Belgian team mate Julien Schroyen. I am of course looking forward to racing the car at Spa. K-plus-K are involved in the running of the car and they have achieved quite some good results with Saleens already. I think that in the GT1-class we can expect quite some competition, but it is a long race and if we don’t make any mistakes and don’t run into too much trouble, there is no reason why we shouldn’t be able to get a good result.” This coming weekend, the GT1- class of the Spa 1000 KM will comprise two Saleens S7-R, three Fords GT40, a Corvette C6.R and a Aston
Martin DBR9.

Carlo will compete in all the remaining 2010 Le Mans Series-races: “The team skipped the first race of the season and while we will now do the remaining for LMS-events, it will also develop its plans for 2011.”