F1 you still watching

[fuzzyedges]

The malaysian GP was certainly wheel to wheel racing

Bit contreversial depending on where you stand with team orders

Its not a procession nowadays Phil

 

But with everyone conserving tyres nobody races 10 tenths anymore they are all racing 8 tenths which isnt what F1 should be but its still very exciting (well for an old fan like me anyway)  

[Pete]

Really enjoyed watching, Hamilton the numpty going into his old pit ...LOL

 

Webber and Rosberg, both were aggrieved by team orders/team mates

[Phil]

Must confess that I didn't see either race so far, but I will make the effort.

 

2 weeks to the start of Moto GP 

[JohnP]

I think they have gone way too far regarding tyres... what the heck are they made of... putty. I wish that the tyres were more durable than the rubbish they are forced to use by the FIA. Lets have several compounds of dry weather tyres and let the teams use any of the tyres that suit their car best.

[JohnP]

Must confess that I didn't see either race so far, but I will make the effort.

 

2 weeks to the start of Moto GP 

 

I reckon Marc Marquez could give the established MotoGP riders a run for their money judging by his times in testing.

[fuzzyedges]

Webber and Rosberg, both were aggrieved by team orders/team mates

 

Rosberg because he stuck to them Webber because Vettal didnt

Multi 21 said Webber as he glared at Vettal in the room before the podium

Nobody really knows what Multi21 is but the look suggested you **** vettal

 

There is a MULT thumb switch on the steering wheel 21 could mean non race mode cruise conserve keep in formation

Who knows

[Guest DaveW]

They keep introducing methods to hopefully slow the cars down to make racing safer as manufacturers extract greater speed from virtually the same package each year, but I'm not sure manufacturing substandard tyres helps vehicle development.  Something claimed for having motor racing in that it's ideas are eventually embodied in road cars. What I would like to see is them introducing silencers onto F1 exhausts instead to cut the ear damaging racket for those at the track, but also it would vastly improve silencing technology that would eventually spin off to the family car, since their minds would be put to technology that cut noise but minimised performance reduction and fuel consumption, which would be a boon for the average motorist.

 

Also why can't they introduce a handicapping system like that used for saloon car or horse racing where the winner of the previous race had to carry an extra weight penalty.  That would make for more interesting racing?

[fuzzyedges]

If you want quieter racing go for the electric f1 whisper cars

Silencers limit power  Handicapping by heavier weight is artifical racing

F1 is the pinicle of motor racing This is the best of the best

There have to be rules otherwise the cars would be 50foot wide and totally stupid

Most rules are to clip the enginneers who would design right on the edge of safety Anyone remember the fan cars or the adjustable skirts on the cars Fabulas ideas but if they went wrong they did it quite spectaculaly

But yes the tyres are not right as many teams are now saying. 4 pit stops a race are doing nothing for F1 Must run on the worst tyre is doing nothing for F1 Grip Grip off the cliff is doing nothing for F1 although saying that if they were brilliant grip for 1/2 the race and a pit stop would then be acceptable

They have (just like Vettal) crossed an acceptable line

the line crossed is between entertainment (as per wrestling) and racing (as per boxing) we are now heading towards wrestling entertainment

[Leon]

Being a petrol head I find myself needing to watch "proper" Motorsport  drivers build the cars themselves and care if the car gets trashed as they will have to rebuild it, no team orders (except BTCC which is brilliant)  

 

F1 just does not do it for me....(did I mention I may have the opportunity to go to Silverstone with full hospitality later this year?... hypercritical Leon!)

[fuzzyedges]

F1 just does not do it for me

 

Each to there own

But I love to read how they make these cars win, the engineering is phenominal

 

I know all sorts of new words coander effect, magnus effect, monkey seat, vortex generator,

[Guest DaveW]

It has been a stared intention of the F1 organisers to slow the cars down every year Fuzzy to make track racing safer, since the manufacturers manage to extract more speed from the same package each year, which is why the regulations are constantly changed so they need to produce a new initially slower car every season. That is why an F1 car is much slower than a Bugatti Veyron for instance. As soon as the manufactures bring in something like the double diffuser to make it go faster, it is usually outlawed a season or so later:-

 

"Revised regulations introduced in 2005 forced the aerodynamicists to be even more ingenious. In a bid to cut speeds, the FIA robbed the cars of a chunk of downforce by raising the front wing, bringing the rear wing forward and modifying the rear diffuser profile. The designers quickly clawed back much of the loss, with a variety of intricate and novel solutions such as the ‘horn’ winglets first seen on the McLaren MP4-20. Most of those innovations were effectively outlawed under even more stringent aero regulations imposed by the FIA for 2009."

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formula_One_car

 

Therefore as it is the stated intention by F1 organisers to reduce speed it would be far more sensible to use something like silencing to cut engine power by using a set decibel limit, the evolution of which on F1 cars would eventually benefit road cars, than to do it by making degradable rather than longer lasting tyres that again would benefit the family car eventually. I know many youngsters like noise, but how many pop groups and their concert attendees finish up with significant hearing loss in middle age, even though most don't realise it? Engine noise in itself is a loss of power anyway, energy is being converted into sound rather than powering the wheels.

 

As you can see from the link above F1 cars already carry handicap weights since they are built too light for the regulations, the only difference is they are all on the same handicap at the moment. Weight handicapping is used in saloon car racing already, so not a novel system in motor racing:-

 

"Perhaps the best-known handicap system in use in the Super GT is the 'success ballast' system, called "weight handicap" where weight penalties are assigned depending on a cars performance during the race weekend. While this system is also used in other series like the FIA GT and the BTCC, who pioneered the system, the Super GT's version of the system is notable in that weight penalties are meted out more aggressively. While other series mete out penalties based on final position at the end of the race, Super GT also adds ballast based on qualifying position and individual lap times, and even in specific modifications (with the penalty on fastest lap in final lifted in 2007)."

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_GT

 

If F1 is going to use methods to slow down cars it might as well use methods that would produce enhancements in technology that would benefit road cars and the introduction of silencing would no doubt bring about a lot of technical advances in reducing noise with the minimum effect on engine performance and fuel consumption. Degradable tyres benefits nobody.

Edited March 26, 2013 by DaveW

[fuzzyedges]

It has been a stared intention of the F1 organisers to slow the cars down every year Fuzzy to make track racing safer

That is what I said

Most rules are to clip the enginneers who would design right on the edge of safety

 

Perhaps the best-known handicap system in use in the Super GT is the 'success ballast' system, called "weight handicap

That becomes artifical racing

 

Engine noise in itself is a loss of power anyway, energy is being converted into sound rather than powering the wheels.

The racket is what the crowds want (and me )

Watch next year as KERS becomes ERS (energy recovery system) this will include anything that can be recovered, heat, as well as kinetic

Sound is not the most favoured but has been mentioned

Brake harvesting has its drawbacks

[fuzzyedges]

Make of this what you want