Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

2010 Formula One Thread

SpookTheHamster said:
Like what? You can't connect to the wheel, it's spinning.
Click to expand...

I have no idea: the people making the suggestions don't really understand what they are saying. In their viewpoint they have tethers so the wheels should never come free. But clearly that's impossible: there will always be situations where the wheel can break free.

Thankfully no-one was hurt in the incident and we had a good race today. Congratulations to Lotus on finishing ahead of one of the "real" cars :)
 
As much as I hate to say this, I'm glad to see Button giving Hamilton a much needed run for his money. I'm hoping for McLaren as the Constructors Champions.:D

I'd like to see Karun Chandhok in a better car. Seems he has the most press out of all the Formula 1B teams, but also seems like a cool cat.
 
rezenclowd3 said:
How isn't the Mercedes rear wing with "pressure" sensors not Active Aero?
Click to expand...

Sensors aren't active. They can't make anything happen. The rear wing is not moving/changing (the definition of active).

The sensors are there to measure the pressure on the surface of the wing. By doing this they can quantify the performance of the aerodynamics of the car and make changes with new parts.

The car will have pressure sensors in all important places: front wing, underbody, rear wing, etc. Not all of these will be on for the race, however. The amount of sensors is greater on a Friday (test day) and even moreso at a separate aero test event.
 
SpookTheHamster said:
Sensors aren't active. They can't make anything happen. The rear wing is not moving/changing (the definition of active).

The sensors are there to measure the pressure on the surface of the wing. By doing this they can quantify the performance of the aerodynamics of the car and make changes with new parts.

The car will have pressure sensors in all important places: front wing, underbody, rear wing, etc. Not all of these will be on for the race, however. The amount of sensors is greater on a Friday (test day) and even moreso at a separate aero test event.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the clarification. I knew teams utilized all kinds of sensors, but I read it as the sensors being used to open/close something in their wing as sensors are usually not mentioned in the technical news on the formula1.com site.
 
Don't panic said:
that's got to be one of the biggest WTF moments in motorsport history.

can you just imagine being in that cockpit when it happened?
Is it even technically possible to have a reaction that is NOT a giant WTF !?!? :D
Click to expand...

Another amazing thing about that crash is how Buemi tries to correct the spin by using the steering wheel despite missing both front wheels. Must have been in shock and was reacting out of instinct.
 
Schumacher vs. Rosberg

Is this the week Schumacher beats Rosberg? Schumi is supposedly getting a different chassis with a longer wheelbase to help better distribute weight. He likes his cars more twitchy and with more oversteer. I always thought it was shorter wheelbase cars that tended to be more tail-happy. It's obviously more complicated than that.

I think Schumi will be closer (how could he get further behind) to Rosberg but he'll still be out-qualified and out-raced this weekend in Spain by his teammate.

Any thoughts?
 
ValSalva said:
Is this the week Schumacher beats Rosberg? Schumi is supposedly getting a different chassis with a longer wheelbase to help better distribute weight. He likes his cars more twitchy and with more oversteer. I always thought it was shorter wheelbase cars that tended to be more tail-happy. It's obviously more complicated than that.

I think Schumi will be closer (how could he get further behind) to Rosberg but he'll still be out-qualified and out-raced this weekend in Spain by his teammate.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

Not sure, will have to see how practice goes. It's possible they screwed up other aspects of the car while making it bigger.

In unrelated news it looks like Virgin will only be able to run on car with the modified fuel tank. Sounds like the volcanic ash cloud caused issues with outfitting both cars in time.
 
ValSalva said:
Is this the week Schumacher beats Rosberg? Schumi is supposedly getting a different chassis with a longer wheelbase to help better distribute weight. He likes his cars more twitchy and with more oversteer. I always thought it was shorter wheelbase cars that tended to be more tail-happy. It's obviously more complicated than that.

I think Schumi will be closer (how could he get further behind) to Rosberg but he'll still be out-qualified and out-raced this weekend in Spain by his teammate.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

AFAIK, both drivers are receiving the revised wheelbase, the change is reportedly being achieved by revising the suspension, and introducing a smaller gearbox, as opposed to actually lengthening the chassis (presumably because the tubs are homologated now at the start of the season and cannot be changed).

Schumacher is just receiving a different chassis (the pre-season test chassis as opposed to an entirely new one) as it's been reported that he's been running with a damaged race chassis since Australia.

With regards to the length of the wheelbase, shorter ones tend to be naturally more edgy, but you've answered the question yourself really, it's more to do with allowing them to better redistribute the ballast, which will allow them to adapt the set-up to suit Schumacher's driving style more, which is based around a super-pointy front end, with little to no understeer whatsoever… completely unlike the car he has at the moment.

I suspect he'll be close again to Rosberg, China was abnormal… but he's been desperately unlucky really, with the wheel nut failure in Malaysia and then been wiped out of 4th place by Alonso and Button's brain fart in Australia, it's difficult to really gauge his current performance, because we've not been able to see it since Bahrain, where he was really evenly matched with Rosberg on race pace.
 
Stacked qualifying for Monaco?

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/83341

I don't like that idea. Despite the fact that they expect certain cars to be at the front that isn't always the case. I mean look a few races back where McLaren and Ferrari were out in Q3.

If anything I'd say they should let them all do 1-3 laps on their own and then take the best times and cut off that way. That way each has a fair chance and still the possibility of something screwing up or going really well due to improvements or the car set up in general.
 
It seems the Mercedes upgrade is not without controversy:

(from the BBC)

"One part of the Mercedes upgrades is causing a bit of a stir. Mercedes have mounted their on-board television camera low down on the front wing pillar, where it could influence the airflow and give them an aerodynamic advantage. At least one of the other teams applied to do this earlier in the season and were told by governing body the FIA that it was not allowed."
 
Superman07 said:
Stacked qualifying for Monaco?

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/83341

I don't like that idea. Despite the fact that they expect certain cars to be at the front that isn't always the case. I mean look a few races back where McLaren and Ferrari were out in Q3.

If anything I'd say they should let them all do 1-3 laps on their own and then take the best times and cut off that way. That way each has a fair chance and still the possibility of something screwing up or going really well due to improvements or the car set up in general.
Click to expand...

I like your idea. Maybe they could have a 'pre-qualifying' possibly based on times from combined practices or your idea of them going out on their own. This could split the field into two or three groups. Then each of these groups qualifies for positions within that group, the top 10-12 for the pole and the rest for the remaining spots.

It's not completely fair, especially if the conditions are wet or mixed but the reality is that Monaco is a unique anachronism.

I don't see them having a separate session where they each go out on their own. It's not that it isn't a good idea, it's just that they have limited tires and time - and Frank Williams will vote against it ;)
 
robbieduncan said:
It seems the Mercedes upgrade is not without controversy...
Click to expand...

The Williams have a TV camera on the nose of their car, do they not? It sure looks like those two things sticking out to either side of the nose are TV cameras.

And is there something wrong with Alonso's left hand? During Free Practice Two coverage on SPEED, they noted that Alonso has extra padding on his glove and there is some additional pink padding around the upper part of the cockpit that is not present on Massa's car. They also noted that Alonso was reaching across with his right hand to change the Brake Bias and on long corners he was mostly steering with his right hand. They also showed him...exercising...his left arm in the pits.
 
I hope Webber is able to hang on to his advantage through the first corner. As fast as Vettel is in qualifying he hasn't displayed the ability to overtake that a worthy champion must possess. Hamilton, Button, Webber, Alonso all have the skill, willingness, and killer instinct to overtake. The most overtaking I've seen from Vettel was in China but then he got stuck behind Kubica. IMHO Vettel is a great qualifier but if he's not driving from the front he's mediocre.
 
Red Bull again is the class of the field. And that is without an F-Duct / Blown Rear Wing, so when they add that... :eek:

And we now know how Ferrari's drivers activate their Blown Rear Wing system - the in-car showed Alonso moving the top of his left hand to something inside the left side of the cockpit. SPEED TV's commentators thought it might either be a button or a magnetic switch and it's why Alonso was using his right-hand to adjust his brake bias instead of his left hand when traveling down the straight.
 
CWallace said:
Red Bull again is the class of the field. And that is without an F-Duct / Blown Rear Wing, so when they add that... :eek:

And we now know how Ferrari's drivers activate their Blown Rear Wing system - the in-car showed Alonso moving the top of his left hand to something inside the left side of the cockpit. SPEED TV's commentators thought it might either be a button or a magnetic switch and it's why Alonso was using his right-hand to adjust his brake bias instead of his left hand when traveling down the straight.
Click to expand...

Adrian Newey is a genius, in the truest sense of the word. The biggest surprise for me is how Red Bull have achieved their domination with Renault engines. I didn't think they'd be a factor this year because of Renault.

These drivers are amazing. With all the stuff they have to think about and do, all the buttons and dials on the steering wheel, they now have to activate an f-duct too. I'd be willing to bet that this technology get banned for next year though.
 
ValSalva said:
Adrian Newey is a genius, in the truest sense of the word. The biggest surprise for me is how Red Bull have achieved their domination with Renault engines. I didn't think they'd be a factor this year because of Renault.

These drivers are amazing. With all the stuff they have to think about and do, all the buttons and dials on the steering wheel, they now have to activate an f-duct too. I'd be willing to bet that this technology get banned for next year though.
Click to expand...

I'm starting to believe they're there because of Renault. Most reports put Renault as the most fuel efficient engine there. I'm still intrigued about their ride height - to lose the diffuser in practice because it was running so low is a bit suspicious.
 
MOFS said:
I'm starting to believe they're there because of Renault. Most reports put Renault as the most fuel efficient engine there.
Click to expand...

Yes, you are right - it's kind of the flip side of my post. Renault have pulled out from the crisis of last year in amazing fashion. The factory car isn't great but it's significantly better than last year's car. Kubica's been amazing. I thought it was career suicide to move to Renault but he's as hot a property as he's ever been and might end up at Ferrari next year. Even Petrov has shined.
 
Ferrari have been fined $20k for releasing Alonso into Rosberg. LAME...there was no contact, no damage done, just a touch scary moment for Rosberg.

It like when a cop ALMOST hit me (by 30ft) when I pulled into a street. He had to slow down a touch. I couldn't see because of parked cars, so I was creeping forward....got a fine for $150....no damage, not even close. Close to me is an inch at that speed....

Again...LAME.


And Spook, I was going to say the same thing. It's a HUGE team groupthink effort....
 
rezenclowd3 said:
Ferrari have been fined $20k for releasing Alonso into Rosberg. LAME...there was no contact, no damage done, just a touch scary moment for Rosberg.
Click to expand...

Rosberg nearly hit the pit wall. That's not only dangerous for him, but also for all the pit crews around in the garages and on the wall. Fining the team is the 'fairer' alternative to docking Alonso grid positions.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back