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Johnny Claes David Clapham Jim ClarkÜ Kevin Cogan Peter Collins
Monday, October 31, 2011
Ferrari: Massa runs afoul of kerbs ? and Hamilton | 2011 Indian GP team review
Felipe Massa had yet another run-in with Lewis Hamilton but kerbs also caused him problems.
Vettel shines as troubled Hamilton toils
In Singapore
In more ways than one, the Singapore Grand Prix was a microcosm of the 2011 Formula 1 season as a whole.
Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull produced another immaculate weekend, exploiting their blistering pace to take pole position and then quickly extend an advantage in the opening laps that they could then defend for the rest of the race, pacing themselves to their closest 'rivals'.
The victory, the German's ninth of the season, has effectively won him a second consecutive world title. Vettel has been either first or second in all the races bar one, in which he was fourth. To clinch the title, he needs to score only one more point in the remaining five races - and that's only if Jenson Button wins them all.
As he admitted himself with a wry grin after the race: "Obviously, it should not be a problem."
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It has been a quite stunning season from Vettel and his team - almost completely flawless while operating at a level no one else has generally been able to match.
He has won all the races he should have won, as well as the odd one that he perhaps should not. As every single one of his rivals was all too happy to admit this weekend, he fully deserves this title.
Vettel and Red Bull's superiority has had an interesting effect on his rivals.
McLaren's Button and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso have knuckled down, accepted that they generally have not had the car to challenge Vettel, and concentrated on doing the best they can with what they have.
The result is they lie second and third in the championship - ahead of Vettel's team-mate Mark Webber.
By contrast, Button's team-mate Lewis Hamilton seems to be battling inner demons, the exact nature of which perhaps even those closest to him do not understand.
Not for the first time this year, Hamilton wrecked his race with an avoidable collision with a rival. In Singapore, it was Ferrari's Felipe Massa.
Hamilton was trying to make up ground after losing places at the start when he was forced to back out of an attempt to pass Webber, who was slow off the line for the third race in a row.
The move on Massa was never on. Hamilton was on the outside and behind the Ferrari, and he simply made an error of judgment as they turned into the left-hander at Turn Seven.
He clipped the Ferrari's rear wheel with his front wing, and both their races were ruined there and then. Massa's right-rear tyre was punctured, and Hamilton's front wing damaged - and the stewards added insult to injury by giving him a drive-through penalty.
As he battled to climb back through the field from 16th place, Hamilton's frustration at the situation became clear in his communications with his team - again, not for the first time this season.
"Would you please give me some info on how I'm doing," he said, "what I'm racing for?"
Most people interpreted that as effectively saying, "Is it really worth me continuing with this?" Which is a surprising thing, to say the least, to hear from F1's most aggressive, attacking racing driver.
His team responded by reassuring him that he was fighting for a points finish, adding that there would definitely be a safety car that would further aid his cause - correctly as it turned out, although they were not to know it at the time.
Having been told that, Hamilton got his head down and produced what his team principal Martin Whitmarsh was "a great drive".
Whitmarsh added: "He did some of the best overtaking, some fantastic driving, to get back up into the points, so I think he should be given credit for that."
In that, Whitmarsh was absolutely right, but so, too, was he when he said: "He's a driver who wants to overtake in a hurry. Afterwards he'll regret that and maybe he could have waited another few corners."
Whitmarsh initially bristled after the race when he started to be questioned by the media about Hamilton's race, and his season.
When it was pointed out that this was not the first avoidable accident Hamilton had been involved in, and asked how McLaren and Hamilton could prevent such incidents from recurring, he replied: "If you stay in the garage, any accident is avoidable. Any serious questions?"
But as he was pressed on the same issue again and again, he finally admitted that the race "went badly", adding: "Undeniably this has not been a good year for Lewis Hamilton."
Indeed not. On the one hand, he has delivered two of the greatest wins of the season - his victories in China and Germany rank with any of Vettel's.
But the same driver was over-aggressive and incautious in Monaco - a fact Hamilton has admitted himself; collided with his team-mate in Canada; crashed out of the Belgian race after misjudging an overtaking move; and got into two altercations in two days with Massa in Singapore.
The one in the race followed him barging his way past the Ferrari at the start of final qualifying on Saturday, a move that prompted Massa to say: "I think he didn't use his mind. Again."
After their altercation in the TV interview area post-race in Singapore, Massa implied that if Hamilton kept driving this way, he would find it difficult to win any more world championships.
To which Whitmarsh countered: "I think he's wrong. Lewis is still a young guy, he's learning all the time. He'll win races and I'm sure he'll win more world championships."
Hamilton may indeed be young - but he is two and a half years older than Vettel, who is driving with a maturity way beyond his years. And many people in the F1 paddock feel that if Hamilton is to compete with Vettel in the future, he needs a change of approach.
No one wants to see him abandon the aggressive, charging driving style that makes him the most exciting driver in F1.
But there is no doubt he needs to find a better balance than he has done this year - or indeed in any of his seasons in F1 bar perhaps the first one. A better way, too, of coping with the frustration of not having the best car - which is what seems to be at the root of some of his behaviour this year.
Nor is it just Hamilton who has committed costly errors this season. McLaren have racked up a fair few as well.
"None of us are perfect," Whitmarsh said in mitigation. "The team has made some mistakes; we'll make more mistakes. We don't want to, but that's life. We're pretty open and honest about that. We have to try to get better, Lewis has to try to get better as a race driver."
The honesty and openness is admirable. The fact is, though, that Vettel and Red Bull have raised the bar this season to a level beyond their rivals' capabilities.
Such has been their superiority that even a flawless year from Hamilton and McLaren would almost certainly not have prevented Vettel winning the title - although it would have been a lot closer than it has been.
But however quick McLaren's car is in 2012, they are going to find it hard to beat Vettel and Red Bull if they and Hamilton keep performing like this.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/andrewbenson/2011/09/vettel_shines_as_troubled_hami.html
Ray Crawford Alberto Crespo Antonio Creus Larry Crockett Tony Crook
Ford Mustangs announced for SEMA
Ford has announced plans to introduce four Mustangs at the SEMA Motor Show. They include models by Forgiato Wheels, Creations n' Chrome, MRT Performance and H&R Springs.
Source: http://feeds.worldcarfans.com/~r/worldcarfans/Jxfz/~3/BExL0rET5qw/ford-mustangs-announced-for-sema
Luiz Bueno Ian Burgess Luciano Burti Roberto Bussinello Jenson Button
Up, up and away
It is two thirty in the morning and we just had lunch. GP+ is out. The newsletter is finished. I am in the lounge (no airline mentioned) in Delhi. I have had a couple of glasses of wine and that has done wonders for the blood sugar level. I have dealt with all the normal [...]
Source: http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2011/10/30/up-up-and-away-2/
Ivor Bueb Sebastien Buemi Luiz Bueno Ian Burgess Luciano Burti
F1 2011 : Technical Regulations
The FIA's publication of the details of the 2011 technical regulations points out to the effective ban of double diffusers, F-ducts and slotted rear wings. Newly introduced are the adjustable rear wings, tyres and mandated weight distribution.
Link
F1 2011: Tyres, adjustable rear wings, 640 kg and...
Craig Scarborough of scarbsf1 gives us the detailed explanation of the F1 2011 Technical regulations with amazing illustrations.
Ban on connected shark fins
Another route to banning F-ducts, as well as a move to limit the ever expanding rear fin, the rule prevents any bodywork reaching the rear wing.
?3.9.1 No bodywork situated between 50mm and 330mm forward of the rear wheel centre line may be more than 730mm above the reference plane.?
Ban on slots in the rear wing
As with the beam wing, the upper rear wing is prevented from having slots extending beyond the central 15cm. This prevent F-ducts or other blown slots, the latter which have been exploited for several years.
?3.10.2 Other than the bodywork defined in Article 3.10.9, any bodywork behind a point lying 50mm forward of the rear wheel centre line which is more than 730mm above the reference plane, and less than 355mm from the car centre line, must lie in an area when viewed from the side of the car that is situated between the rear wheel centre line and a point 350mm behind it.
With the exception of minimal parts solely associated with adjustment of the section in accordance with Article 3.18 :Once the rearmost and uppermost section is defined, ?gurney? type trim tabs may be fitted to the trailing edge. When measured in any longitudinal cross section no dimension of any such trim tab may exceed 20mm.
- when viewed from the side of the car, no longitudinal cross section may have more than two sections in this area, each of which must be closed.
- no part of these longitudinal cross sections in contact with the external air stream may have a local concave radius of curvature smaller than 100mm.
The chord of the rearmost and uppermost closed section must always be smaller than the chord of the lowermost section at the same lateral station.?
Clarification of the starter motor hole
After some teams were exploiting oversized starter motor holes in the diffuser to create a slotted effect, the FIA clamped down with a clarification. This has now been written into the rule book.
?3.12.7 No bodywork which is visible from beneath the car and which lies between the rear wheel centre line and a point 350mm rearward of it may be more than 125mm above the reference plane. With the exception of the aperture described below, any intersection of the surfaces in this area with a lateral or longitudinal vertical plane should form one continuous line which is visible from beneath the car.
An aperture for the purpose of allowing access for the device referred to in Article 5.16 is permitted in this surface. However, no such aperture may have an area greater than 3500mm2 when projected onto the surface itself and no point on the aperture may be more than 100mm from any other point on the aperture.?
Ban on Double Diffusers (DDD) and Open Exhaust Blown Diffusers (EBD)
Due to a previous weakness in the rules defining the underfloor, teams were able to exploit this to create the double diffuser. Double diffusers were only possible as an opening could be created in the gap been the reference plane, step plane and the diffuser. Now the rules close this avenue off.
Additionally this opening allowed teams to open up the front of the diffuser to blow the exhaust through for an even greater blown diffuser effect. This rule also prevents this opening in all but the outer 50mm of the split between the diffuser and the floor.
One additional clarification is that the suspension must not form any of the measured point for the under floor. Previously the minimum height was exploited by some teams placing wishbones or Toe-Control arms across the top an opening in the diffuser.
?3.12.9 In an area lying 450mm or less from the car centre line, and from 450mm forward of the rear face of the cockpit entry template to 350mm rearward of the rear wheel centre line, any intersection of any bodywork visible from beneath the car with a lateral or longitudinal vertical plane should form one continuous line which is visible from beneath the car. When assessing the compliance of bodywork surfaces in this area the aperture referred to in Article 3.12.7 need not be considered.
3.12.10 In an area lying 650mm or less from the car centre line, and from 450mm forward of the rear face of the cockpit entry template to 350mm forward of the rear wheel centre line, any intersection of any bodywork visible from beneath the car with a lateral or longitudinal vertical plane should form one continuous line which is visible from beneath the car.
3.12.11 Compliance with Article 3.12 must be demonstrated with the panels referred to in Articles 15.4.7 and 15.4.8 and all unsprung parts of the car removed.?
Driver operated F-duct
Even though the loop holes in the rear wing regulations have been closed, this additional new regulation prevents the driver influencing aerodynamics. So that other driver controlled F-duct type devices cannot be exploited other areas, such as: front wings, sidepods or diffuser.
?3.15 With the exception of the parts necessary for the adjustment described in Article 3.18, any car system, device or procedure which uses, or is suspected of using, driver movement as a means of altering the aerodynamic characteristics of the car is prohibited.?
Driver adjustable rear wing
The driver adjustable front wing is now deleted from the rules and instead the rear wing is now driver adjustable. This is because the expected benefit of greater front wing angle never provided the driver with more grip when following another car. The front flap adjustment was much more a solution to tune the cars handling in between pitstops. The TWG found that the loss of drag from the rear wing was a more effective solution to allow the following to overtake. Now the rear wing flap can pivot near its rear most point and open the slot gap from 10-15mm to up to 50mm. Opening this gap unloads the flap and reduced both downforce and drag.
This being controlled by the timing gap to the car ahead and managed by the FIA. So there?s two ways the driver can use the system. Firstly in free practice and qualifying the rear wing is solely at the control of the driver. They can adjust the wing at any point on the track and any number of times per lap. So for the ideal lap time, as soon as the car is no longer downforce dependant (straights and fast curves) the driver can operate the wing, just as they did with the F-duct. Although a small complication to the driving process, at least their hands remain on the wheel and not on a duct to the side of the cockpit.
Then in the race the wing cannot be adjusted for two laps, then race control will send signals to the driver via the steering wheel, such that when they?re 1s or less behind another car at a designated point on the circuit, the rear wing can be trimmed out. The wing returns to the original setting as soon as the brakes are touched.
?Furthermore, the distance between adjacent sections at any longitudinal plane must lie between 10mm and 15mm at their closest position, except, in accordance with Article 3.18, when this distance must lie between 10mm and 50mm.?
3.18.1 The incidence of the rearmost and uppermost closed section described in Article 3.10.2 may be varied whilst the car is in motion provided :
- It comprises only one component that must be symmetrically arranged about the car centre line with a minimum width of 708mm.
- With the exception of minimal parts solely associated with adjustment of the section, no parts of the section in contact with the external airstream may be located any more than 355mm from of the car centre line.
- With the exception of any minimal parts solely associated with adjustment of the rearmost and uppermost section, two closed sections are used in the area described in Article 3.10.2.
- Any such variation of incidence maintains compliance with all of the bodywork regulations.
- When viewed from the side of the car at any longitudinal vertical cross section, the physical point of rotation of the rearmost and uppermost closed section must be fixed and located no more than 20mm below the upper extremity and no more than 20mm forward of the rear extremity of the area described in Article 3.10.2 at all times.
- The design is such that failure of the system will result in the uppermost closed section returning to the normal high incidence position.
- Any alteration of the incidence of the uppermost closed section may only be commanded by direct driver input and controlled using the control electronics specified in Article 8.2.
3.18.2 The adjustable bodywork may be activated by the driver at any time prior to the start of the race and, for the sole purpose of improving overtaking opportunities during the race, after the driver has completed a minimum of two laps after the race start or following a safety car period.
The driver may only activate the adjustable bodywork in the race when he has been notified via the control electronics (see Article 8.2) that it is enabled. It will only be enabled if the driver is less than one second behind another at any of the pre-determined positions around each circuit. The system will be disabled by the control electronics the first time the driver uses the brakes after he has activated the system.
The FIA may, after consulting all competitors, adjust the above time proximity in order to ensure the stated purpose of the adjustable bodywork is met.?
Mandated weight distribution
Along with the supply of Pirelli control tyres they will be matched to a mandatory weight distribution. Now the cars minimum weight is 640Kg, the specified minimum axle weights, equate to a weight distribution ranging between 45.5-46.7% on the front axle. This is a few percent behind the typical 2010 loadings.
?4.2 Weight distribution :
For 2011 only, the weight applied on the front and rear wheels must not be less than 291kg and 342kg respectively at all times during the qualifying practice session.
If, when required for checking, a car is not already fitted with dry-weather tyres, it will be weighed on a set of dry-weather tyres selected by the FIA technical delegate.?
Double wheel tethers
For safety a doubling of the wheel tethers has been regulated. Each tether needs to pass through a different suspension member and have its own mounting points on the upright and the chassis. There?s not expected to be any performance impact with this. But the tethers are somewhat heavier, so they and the side intrusion panel are part of the reason for the greater minimum weight limit.
?10.3.6 In order to help prevent a wheel becoming separated in the event of all suspension members connecting it to the car failing provision must be made to accommodate flexible tethers, each with a cross sectional area greater than 110mm�. The sole purpose of the tethers is to prevent a wheel becoming separated from the car, they should perform no other function.
The tethers and their attachments must also be designed in order to help prevent a wheel making contact with the driver?s head during an accident.
Each wheel must be fitted with two tethers each of which exceed the requirements of 3.1.1 of Test Procedure 03/07.
Each tether must have its own separate attachments at both ends which :
- are able to withstand a tensile force of 70kN in any direction within a cone of 45� (included angle) measured from the load line of the relevant suspension member ;
- on the survival cell or gearbox are separated by at least 100mm measured between the centres of the two attachment points ;
- on each wheel/upright assembly are located on opposite sides of the vertical and horizontal wheel centre lines and are separated by at least 100mm measured between the centres of the two attachment points ;
- are able to accommodate tether end fittings with a minimum inside diameter of 15mm.
Furthermore, no suspension member may contain more than one tether.
Each tether must exceed 450mm in length and must utilise end fittings which result in a tether bend radius greater than 7.5mm.?
No more shaped wheel spokes
After the static front wheel fairings that abounded in 2009, were banned and the wheel design homologated, there must have been some surprise that Ferrari managed to create an aerodynamic wheel shape in 2010. This is partly limited now by the restriction on surface area for spokes and shaping. The limited only allows 13% of the wheel centre to be spoked, meaning that a ten spoke wheel has to have spokes just 16mm wide.
?12.4.6 When viewed perpendicular to the plane formed by the outer face of the wheel and between the diameters of 120mm and 270mm the wheel may have an area of no greater than 24,000mm2.?
Clarification of mirror positions
Again when the FIA clarify a rule or make a change for safety reasons, we don?t get to see the detail of this change until its put into the regulations. The removal of outboard mirrors was brought in early last year and now the mirrors can effectively be no more than 27.5cm from the cockpit opening
?14.3.3 All parts of the rear view mirrors, including their housings and mountings, must be situated between 250mm and 500mm from the car centre line and between 550mm and 750mm from the rear edge of the cockpit entry template.?
Ban on blade roll structures
Mercedes surprised many with their blade-like roll structure, reducing the obstruction to the rear wing and allowing for a much shorter inlet tract for the engine, the solution was likely to be copied. A minimum cross section forced teams to have a wider section above the drivers head, negating the fundamental benefit of the solution
?15.2.4 The principal roll structure must have a minimum enclosed structural cross section of 10000mm�, in vertical projection, across a horizontal plane 50mm below its highest point. The area thus established must not exceed 200mm in length or width and may not be less than 10000mm2 below this point.?
Dash roll structure point maximum height
With the cockpit opening fixed at 550mm, teams have often raised the front of the chassis around the dash bulkhead to create a raised nose. In the first of several limits for both 2011 and 2013, with even more stringent plans for 2013, the height of the front of the chassis is now being controlled. The limit for this point is now 670mm, still some 120mm above the cockpit opening.
?15.2.3 The highest point of the second structure may not be more than 670mm above the reference plane and must pass a static load test details of which may be found in Article 17.3.?
Limit on front chassis height
As already explained teams raise the position of the front (AA) and dash (BB) bulkheads to create space under the nose for airflow to pass in between the front wheels and reach the rear of the car. The trend for ?V? sections noses, introduced on the Red Bull RB5 in 2009, makes the front of the chassis even higher, often being visible above the height of the front tyres (~660mm). Now both these bulkheads need to be at 625mm, some 75mm above the cockpit opening.
?15.4.4 The maximum height of the survival cell between the lines A-A and B-B is 625mm above the reference plane.?
Limit on shaped Rear Impact Structures
Since the 2009 aero rules, teams have been shaping the rear impact structures into ever more curved shapes to lift it clear of the diffuser and pass it underneath the beam wing. The tail of this structure must be centred at 300mm high, to prevent extreme banana shaped structures, this rule forces the structure to vary by no more 275mm.
?Furthermore, when viewed from the side, the lowest and highest points of the impact absorbing structure between its rear face and 50mm aft of the rear wheel centre line may not be separated vertically by more than 275 mm.?
Craig Scarborough is a journalist/illustrator who focuses solely on the technology of F1. His technical illustrations have appeared in AtlasF1, Autosport and print magazines.
Peter Collins Bernard Collomb Alberto Colombo Erik Comas Franco Comotti
HRT F111 unveiled in Barcelona (photos)
After confirming Vitantonio Liuzzi as their second starter for the 2011 campaign, and therefore completing their lineup for the new season, the Spanish team unveiled their F111 challenger in front of reporters on Friday (11th of March), in the penultimate day of testing this off-season.
(Ctrl+Click on the images for enlarged view)
Images(C) MotionCompany, toilef1.com
Luca Badoer Giancarlo Baghetti Julian Bailey Mauro Baldi Bobby Ball
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