Racecar Engineering November 2015

The ancient Greek philosopher Plato wrestled with reality, and posed the interesting example of reality perceived being by the shadow cast on the wall of the cave by the light of the flickering fire. True reality would be only grasped by leaving the cave and seeing the real world. One interpretation of the allegory of the cave is about human ignorance and a people who are unable or unwilling to seek truth and wisdom. But there was another philosopher that looked at the world another way, Aristotle, Plato’s chief disciple. Against Plato’s belief in mysterious entities called Forms, available only to the intellect and whose presence provides the foundation for all material beings, Aristotle eschewed the Forms for an empiricism that begins with particular material beings as the most real beings…

Following Silverstone’s recent round of the World Series by Renault, there must be many people relieved to hear that Formula Renault 3.5 is to continue, despite being dropped by the French manufacturer after 11 years’ support and promotion. Jaime Alguersuari Snr’s company, RPM, will continue to promote and organise the championship in 2016, with only technical involvement from Renault. This news has, not surprisingly, been welcomed by the teams, given the investment in chassis, together with engine leases etc., that they have made. More than that, though, is that the formula has been a very successful one, with Sebastien Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and Carlos Sainz just some of the former FR3.5 stars currently driving in Formula 1. This makes Renault’s decision a little difficult to understand. Maybe it’s because of the…

By SAM COLLINS The 2015 Formula 1 season looked like it was going to be a good one for Sauber. Pre-season testing had gone well and the Swiss team arrived at Melbourne with some optimism and, despite a high profile dispute over driver contracts, it walked away with a strong finish in the race – a fifth and an eighth. A couple of races later it again had two cars in the points. But that was the last time (up to the Japanese Grand Prix) that it managed the feat. In Singapore, Felipe Nasr finished tenth, Marcus Ericsson 11th. Sauber’s C34 was in evolutionary design by Eric Gandelin, who had learned many lessons with last year’s C33. Visually, aside from the bright paint job, the biggest difference between the Swiss team’s 2014…

‘We started with last year’s power unit as a basis, but we developed it into a much better product’ Ferrari staged a special launch event for its new Formula 1 power unit, the 059/3, in late 2013. It was the first new F1 engine from the famous Italian constructor since 2006, so perhaps it was not surprising that its arrival was met with such fanfare. At the launch the bare V6 engine was shown lacking exhausts, turbo, hybrid system and many other parts, but once the power unit was fitted to a car, initially a one-off GT car test bed and later the 2014 Ferrari, Marussia and Sauber chassis, it took on a very different appearance. The exhaust manifolds took a tight route curving upwards around the cylinder head in a three-into-one…

‘We had three targets: improve the safety to meet front and rear F1 impact standards; improve the show with more overtaking, then the third target was to keep costs as low as possible’ When GP3 was first introduced five years ago it was not quite clear how it would position itself within the messy ranks of European open wheel racing classes. But with its regular slot on the Formula 1 support package and good media coverage the class has now become a key rung on the ladder to Formula 1 for many young drivers. In 2016, the series will welcome a new car designed by Dallara. Launched at the Italian Grand Prix the Dallara G316 (officially called the GP3/16) is the third iteration of GP3 car, though strictly speaking only the second…

The emphasis in season two will be placed on efficiency The FIA Formula E Championship enters a brave new world for its second season, which runs until summer 2016 and kicks off in Beijing on October 24 this year. For season two, the all-electric series takes the step from spec chassis and powertrain to a melting pot of freed-up technical solutions – which has been embraced by all bar two of its 10 teams. The technical road map implemented by the FIA, in conjunction with founding organiser and promoter Formula E Holdings (FEH), will see a diversity of packages this season as the series works toward its ‘one car/one driver’ plan for the fifth season in 2018/19; as opposed to drivers changing car mid race as is now the case. The freedom in…