F1 Tyres - Engines - What a Joke!!

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atom3624

atom3624

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Well, here we are.
Another 'fascinating' F1 race this weekend, this time in Shanghai!!

F1 - ultimate in technology in motorsport - I think not!!
Most expensive, YES!!

Fuel is limited, and most 'top' teams run 'light' in the vein hope of an accident / safety car to recover the 'lost laps'.
Didn't work for Lewis and probably Nico, if we believe Ross Brawn, even if Nico thought he had enough to hammer at full bore to the end .... that we'll never know.

This weekend they're running SOFT and MEDIUM compound tyres.
SOFT are 0.8-1.2 seconds per lap quicker at optimum but are not expected to last more than 8-10 laps.
'Q3', or 'Last 10 Shootout' for qualifying had only Renault, Ferrari and Mercedes capable of a fastest lap, so McLaren and Red Bull didn't even compete, preferring to lap on MEDIUM, which will go further before needing to change.

Unless Lewis, on Pole, and fastest in all 3 sessions, can pull out a gap of more than 20-25 seconds on the others, he could be caught ....

They're ALWAYS talking about 'saving the tyres', but not just a little, but REALLY A LOT.
This isn't racing.

BRING BACK QUALIFYING TYRES.
BRING BACK 20k ENGINE LIMITS - Cosworth were talking of 24k when they were developing their 2.4-litre V8. All are limited to 18k.
BRING BACK RACE TYRES.

The fortune they spend on aerodynamics more than makes up for the so-called saving in engines and gearboxes.
BRING BACK RACING AND MAKE FORMULA ONE REALLY THE BEST AGAIN!!

Rant over.
Al.
 
It was exciting times in the 90's but it has dropped off over the last decade to a very sterile and safe environment. I haven't watched a full race for years as I find it boring to a point, most of the time the only overtaking is done on who's pitstop is the quickest. This is supposed to be one of the richest sports in the world so let them have unlimited tyres, thrash the living daylights out of the engines, bring back re-fuelling and get rid of KERS. KERS is very clever but does nothing for racing IMO. It makes passing far to easy and there are no real duels any more. Get it back to the exciting days of Mansell / Senna / Prost / when driver skill, a touch of genius and huge balls meant everything rather than holding back saving fuel and tyres or thinking about saving the engine for the next 2 races.

F1 circuits are the safest in motorsport as are the cars themselves and the drivers are supposed to be the best in the business so why not give them the tools to exploit their skills?
 
Why has gross vehicle weight INCREASED?

Safety - definitely should.
Dimensions - why not - materials technology has come on in leaps and bounds.

Did you know some teams use steel exhausts instead of inconel or equivalent - superlight, strong, heat resistant ... just to get the weight UP? !!!!

I think a good challenge would be to DECREASE minimum gross weight, whilst increasing crash safety requirements as deemed necessary.
Al.

PS Reckon 'the Finger' will do well tomorrow, unless Lewis can pull away. Jenson has a chance unless he's really off the pace. Kimi .... Fezzas are always good on race day ... getting set for a good race, after all the ranting!!
 
Couldn't agree more Alan, Q3 was shite with like you say a handful of cars puttin in a quick lap, glad Lewis is on pole but if the softer tyres are as bad as they've been in P1,2&3 then it may be red bulls and mclarens day tomorrow!

All the new regs and for safety, money savin and so on but it's makin it a little borin imo, I miss the excitement of all 10 cars goin out for 10 minutes tryin for that 1 perfect lap!!!!


;) If it ain't broke, bash it till it is ;)
 
At the end of the day, it was quite an entertaining race.
Glad Lewis kept 'The Finger' out at the end!!
Lewis' tyres went off.

Conspiracy theories for Mark Webber gents? !!!!!

Table's looking nice and tight - hopefully the Finger will go further backwards!!
Al.
 
Yeah mate was a good race, nail biting on the last 2-3 laps though lol

As for mark lol it always seems to be him with the bad luck, think he really needs to be thinking of a new team if he ever wants the title chance IMO!!


;) If it ain't broke, bash it till it is ;)
 
Mark Webber - as good as he is, will never have the big chair at a team that has the tools to win a championship with the other names that are around these days. He is getting a bit long in the tooth, maybe he should consider BTCC.

As for the tech side of things, I think things need restrictions to let the little guy have any sort of chance rather than the cheque book racers having everything their own way. If not, it will be a one man series like the Schumacher days.
 
Regs are there to define things - agreed.
Are the current ones saving money? No idea - I'm not remotely signing the cheques but it does appear that much of the money 'saved' in engine/gearbox development has already been used in aero.

I DO believe they need to DECREASE the maximum gross weight, whilst maintaining dimensional and safety parameters - that will save fuel - obviously.
Al.
 
Draggline53 said:
Do you have to run the fg formula 1 on smooth compound surfaces? Can they be driven on park n lots
Click to expand...

I believe this thread is dedicated to actual 1:1 F-1 racing. To answer your question: Softer the better (tire and suspension) when driving on parking lots. Smooth, clean, warm surfaces can handle harder compounds of tires and stiffer suspension.
 
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