F1 2014

Thinkkker wrote: Does anyone else notice that the noses on the Lotus are different lengths? *edit* well not refreshing for hours makes a difference. At least I am not the only one.* I would love to see an analysis of this one.

The longer extension meets the FIA safety regs and the shorter is used as a second mounting point for the front wing. More here:

Unknown Source said: The nose is by far the most interesting part of the new E22. Although the “finger” solution will be the most common design this year, there is a way of dodging the bullet of having the small extension at the front as an obstruction to the underside of the car. It would seem that Lotus have exploited this loophole perfectly. The FIA require that the nose must form one single cross section – when viewed from the side. This is where Lotus have come up trumps compared to the other solutions seen so far. Whereas the others have gone for a single cross section entirely, the E22′s nose has two cross sections that form a large opening in between them, allowing airflow to fill the space beneath the chassis to improve rear downforce. This is why the nose height has been steadily increasing over the past four years, as teams looked to fill the underside of the car with a higher volume of airflow. From the right side, however, only one cross section is visible therefore it is totally legal. The nose is asymmetric, with the left side “prong” being shorter than the right. The longer side is the entire crash structure that must withstand the forces applied during the FIA crash tests. This prong then extends back towards the other side as it reaches the front bulkhead to form the rest of the nose. The other side is a vanity panel – a hollow shell. Vanity panels are still permitted within the regulations and this allows the front wing to remain attached in a normal manner, with each prong consisting of one of the two pylons that connect to the wing itself. If vanity panels were not allowed this design would not be legal, as the front wing pylon on the left side would have to attach the main crash structure. The crash structure itself is asymmetric, therefore the pylon would have to extend upwards and backwards much further than the right pylon. The pylons must be symmetrical and of a maximum cross section, therefore the design would illegal. This design is very difficult to manufacture and I am sure the aerodynamic design team pushed for this more than anyone. Passing the crash tests must have been extremely difficult as the asymmetric format means that the load spreads unevenly up the nose as it crumples. The vanity panel is not only used to mount the front wing pylon, but also as an extra energy absorbent structure to help pass the tests. Reducing its length saves a little bit of weight and I would imagine that the entire assembly is a lot heavier than the average 2014 nose to pass the crash tests, so every gram counts.

Also: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-D5RPHqazc

The double-schnoz is awesome! Did anybody else notice the EMpire logo and "Yodaphone" on the front wing endplate? Funny. Apparently Lotus and McLaren are fighting over landing Vodaphone as the main sponsor.

McLaren:

Mercedes had the lower front wing in 2010, I wish they would do that, instead of the nose looking structure.

Javelin wrote: Did anybody else notice the EMpire logo and "Yodaphone" on the front wing endplate? Funny. Apparently Lotus and McLaren are fighting over landing Vodaphone as the main sponsor.

I was wondering if that was a real company...I didn't get the Yota/Yoda thing.

I wonder if there's a joke hidden in "Richard Mille" as well...

Pics of Ferrari's car are out today, first car without a dick!

http://www.racecar-engineering.com/news/ferrari-f14-t-launched/

GameboyRMH wrote: Pics of Ferrari's car are out today, first car without a dick! http://www.racecar-engineering.com/news/ferrari-f14-t-launched/

hmmmm, not sure... it is different!

I do like new regs.... at least they tend to generate ideas...

So, three major players have introduced cars with three distinctive looks; I like seeing how the engineers are responding to the new rules with different ideas.

Now we just have to wait to see which design works best and how fast it will be copied by everyone else.

GameboyRMH wrote: Pics of Ferrari's car are out today, first car without a dick! http://www.racecar-engineering.com/news/ferrari-f14-t-launched/

That's homely enough to make the 2012 car look good.

Testing times are starting to come in.

Jenson Button McLaren 1m24.165s 43 laps
Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1m24.812s 47 laps
Valtteri Bottas Williams 1m25.344s 35 laps
Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m25.588s 97 laps
Sergio Perez Force India 1m28.376s 37 laps
Esteban Gutierrez Sauber 1m33.270s 53 laps
Marcus Ericsson Caterham 1m37.975s 11 laps
Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1m38.320s 8 laps

Looks like only the Mercedes runners are getting any significant laps in. The Renault guys have very few. Seb only got 8 laps before being sent home as his car had a 'power storage issue'. Total of all Renault runners was just 19 laps

GameboyRMH wrote: Pics of Ferrari's car are out today http://www.racecar-engineering.com/news/ferrari-f14-t-launched/

Prior to the public unveiling, it would have been the secret aardvark...

Is anyone else wondering about how "rigid" the noses are on these things? Wouldn't they tend to increase the possibility of the nose penetrating another tub in a side-on collision?

Hmmmmmm, the nose of the Red Bull is a bit like Ferrari... but upon close inspection is rather unique....

What... the...

Okay, the Caterham broke me. That's hideous.

GameboyRMH wrote:

Javelin wrote: Did anybody else notice the EMpire logo and "Yodaphone" on the front wing endplate? Funny. Apparently Lotus and McLaren are fighting over landing Vodaphone as the main sponsor.

I was wondering if that was a real company...I didn't get the Yota/Yoda thing. I wonder if there's a joke hidden in "Richard Mille" as well...

High end watch manufacturer

The RBR nose is very interesting:

very interesting indeed. still allows a significant amount of air to the central underbody/splitter, like the finger noses, yet not unappealing to the eye (unless viewed from the side, then it is still unappealing but not as bad as the others).

It looks like there is an air passage IN the nose. I wonder why? It looks like the little "tab" on the top of the opening may be a "hinge". Could it be that at speed, that opens and directs air somewhere else?

^Behind it and under the nose. The reason in years past for the noses going higher and higher was to get more air under the car to the diffuser where it could make more downforce. Caterham is trying the same thing, but it looks horrendous.

Well looks like Red Bull wins the beauty contest hands-down. Either Lotus or Caterham lost it hardest, but I appreciate the functionality and honesty of the Caterham design. It's like "Look, the rules are telling us to put a dick on this car, let's just bolt it to the front and get lots of air onto the prow."

z31maniac wrote: ^Behind it and under the nose. The reason in years past for the noses going higher and higher was to get more air under the car to the diffuser where it could make more downforce. Caterham is trying the same thing, but it looks horrendous.

It's more about getting more air to the "prow" and "tea tray" which works like a front air dam & splitter on a typical box-shaped car - except it generates downforce at the center of an F1 car.

oldeskewltoy wrote:

I am a function over form guy, but that is the ugliest F1 car ever

aussiesmg wrote:

oldeskewltoy wrote:

I am a function over form guy, but that is the ugliest F1 car ever

Ugly as hell yes, but not alone

It's not just F1 over the years either: Indy cars

Can Am

WTF and other

Costin, but I like this becuase it was aerodynamic and made of wood

Those cars are really freaking ugly. What is purpose of the dick nose? And how can Ferrari get away without having one?