Official Pre-season testing thread

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All I was suggesting was that I thought maybe it would be easier to have engine development going on, given that this is the biggest power-change in F1 history, meaning that eventually everyone gets it right, pushes technology further, and we can have great racing.

Instead, you get a team(s) with an advantage and others with their hands tied unable to catch up due to FIA regulation.


That's not the pinnacle of motorsport, that's just ridiculous.
 
Han Shot First:6510474 said:
I'm about 4 days late with this, but Susie Wolff did a pretty decent job again, maybe she can actually drive?
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I can't give you any Arsenal grief today.... Grrrr! :p My wife's a Gooner though, so at least it's a happy household. :)

And yeah... not too shabby. Will anybody have the balls to give her a drive?
 
Aside from Susie's lovely smile, interesting to see Mercedes have already dropped the megaphone exhaust. Here's an idea, why don't FOM just fiddle with the audio settings during a live broadcast, and make the engines louder that way? More people watch on a broadcast than at an actual event, so it doesn't really hurt anyone, just artificially boost the engine sounds and everyone would stop complaining. Whilst they're there, why not pipe in sounds from a V10, so the cars don't sound like broken dishwashers?
 
Han Shot First said:
Aside from Susie's lovely smile, interesting to see Mercedes have already dropped the megaphone exhaust. Here's an idea, why don't FOM just fiddle with the audio settings during a live broadcast, and make the engines louder that way? More people watch on a broadcast than at an actual event, so it doesn't really hurt anyone, just artificially boost the engine sounds and everyone would stop complaining. Whilst they're there, why not pipe in sounds from a V10, so the cars don't sound like broken dishwashers?
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If it means Crofty is quieter then anything is good!

Wolffy was half a second quicker than Massa. Looking forward to see what she can do in Britain and German FP1's.
 
TopClass said:
All I was suggesting was that I thought maybe it would be easier to have engine development going on, given that this is the biggest power-change in F1 history, meaning that eventually everyone gets it right, pushes technology further, and we can have great racing.

Instead, you get a team(s) with an advantage and others with their hands tied unable to catch up due to FIA regulation.


That's not the pinnacle of motorsport, that's just ridiculous.
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So you think all the others would catch up, yet Mercedes would just rest on their laurels and not develop their engine further?

As Sgt said, it's not just the engine. They just have a fantastic package overall.
 
allsaintchris. said:
If it means Crofty is quieter then anything is good!

Wolffy was half a second quicker than Massa. Looking forward to see what she can do in Britain and German FP1's.
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Different scenario though, Massa had lesser track conditions than Wolff. She was impressive, but i don't think she'd get a drive, would be fun to see her kick Max Chilton's arse in a Marussia though.
 
Han Shot First said:
Different scenario though, Massa had lesser track conditions than Wolff. She was impressive, but i don't think she'd get a drive, would be fun to see her kick Max Chilton's arse in a Marussia though.
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Agree, she's on a par with some drivers, but would never get a top drive anywhere.
 
She's quit attractive. Had some good drives in Indy given her car. She should have stuck with Indy... unless Sauber have the nuts to put her in a car.
 
allsaintchris. said:
So you think all the others would catch up, yet Mercedes would just rest on their laurels and not develop their engine further?

As Sgt said, it's not just the engine. They just have a fantastic package overall.
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Yeah, I think they'd stand still and let everyone turn it around <doh>

Obviously Mercedes have a real complete package, but I think the crux of their advantage is how they use their power train. There's no way that the Mercedes is 2 seconds up on most cars because of the chassis alone.

I think every single interview you read with anyone close to the sport tells you that whatever the Mercedes advantage is, it is untouchable this season. That pretty much indicates to me that developing downforce, chassis, aero and whatever else you want to change, isn't enough to bridge the gap. Why? Because the power train is a massive advantage and no one can play with those until next season. The Red Bull team seem pretty certain that Renault is what is costing them at the moment.

I might well be completely wrong. Monaco, far less of a power circuit, might indicate where the advantage really lies. If the pack close up substantially this weekend, I think we'll know. However, if Mercedes are still a second up per lap on a street circuit, then maybe they just have an incredible car in every aspect.
 
There was an article released detailing how Merc had an advantage as a complete unit (not just the engine) and because the customer teams didnt receive the engines or lay out specification (not sure which) they were months behind on development and how to extract the maximum performance.
 
Found it.

The secret of Mercedes' current domination of F1's new turbo era has been made public after Sky Sports F1's Mark Hughes revealed intricate details of how the Silver Arrows are packaging the hitherto-dominant W05.

Sky F1 analyst Hughes has learnt that, in a highly complicated engineering feat, the team have successfully packaged their turbine and air compressor at either end of the W05's engine.

The innovative design - which, like the best ideas, sounds simple, is vastly complex and brilliantly effective - is believed to have been conceived over two years ago.

The revelation is also the best explanation yet for why the W05 has so far proved unbeatable in 2014, with Nico Rosberg's cruise to victory in Australia followed by Lewis Hamilton scoring F1's version of a hat-trick - pole position, the fastest lap of the race and victory - in Malaysia on Sunday.

Hughes has learnt that the Brackley team's ties with Mercedes High Performance Engines gave them a critical headstart at the start of F1's new turbo age.

F1 2014 - The Power Train
Looking to achieve the most aerodynamically efficient car possible, the Mercedes team had significant influence over power unit design created at the German manufacturer's engine base in Brixworth.

Writing in Motorsport magazine, Hughes discloses that Mercedes' breakthrough 'innovation is having the turbo's compressor at one end of the engine and the turbine at the other, linked by a long shaft through the vee of the engine'.

The 'trick turbo layout' triggers a series of critical performance benefits. A reduction in turbo lag means less power needs to be be harvested from the car's ERS unit to keep the turbine spooled off throttle. That in turn improves the efficiency of the car, with more power reserved for performance gain and less fuel consequentially used up.

Mercedes' customer teams all have the same advantage. However, because McLaren, Williams and Force India only took delivery of their power units relatively recently, they have had less time to work the layout into their respective car designs.
 
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