For me, this fully open throttle and unusual fuel mapping feature could explain why Vettel violently crashed sideways into his team-mate and Button last year and why Webber mounted the Lotus and took off. If during the development of the system there were bugs in the software and the features were unpredictable, resulting in sudden unexpected power surges from the engine the driver would be hard pressed to keep it under control. Those RB incidents did look clumsy in the extreme, is it possible it was not driver error, but more a control system glitch.
Interesting. It would certainly give the FIA grounds to ban it immediately if that were the case. How advanced (and effective) was the system on the RB6?
I thought the Webber on Kovalainen incident was purely down to Webber failing to realise just how early the Lotus had to brake for the corner, and getting caught out behind him, but it might go some way to explain the other peculiar crashes they've had.
It's nothing to do with that. The Button one was probably caused by instabilities in the flexing front wing when Vettel moved out of Button's slipstream. The Vettel-Webber one was an error on Seb's part and DHCanary has explained Webber's. Also in all those instances, the cars would've been running at maximum revs to make the pass. If anything went wrong with the engine mapping at that point it would cause them to lose power, not gain it. And they only use the system in qualifying, they don't use it in the race because it dramatically increases fuel consumption and engine wear. Here's the on board of Seb's crash with JB to explain what I was saying about the front wing.
I agree with the front wing, I've siad it before. Looks like it completely unbalances the car causing the crash. Still legal some how though.
It will be "banned" for 2013 when they stop the teams using cascading end plates. They won't be able to get sufficient load into the wing to bend it. They can't do it by simply increasing the load test because all teams use different carbon fibre layups and generate different levels of downforce.
Maybe, I also used to think the front wing was the sole cause but now I'm not so sure, I remember looking at the videos at the time, but a violent turn right down to the front wing, twice !
Mark Webber has been able to cut through traffic without his car squirming all over the place this year so it would be interesting to know if Red Bull made some compromises as they saw their car having issues when in turbulent air last year. Or maybe the car is just that fast it can breeze past others even with suspect aero stability.
Webber has climbed up the grid due to a tyre advantage and DRS. The only time we've seen an RB driver make an overtake on fairly even terms was Webber on Alonso in Turkey, and even then Alonso was pushing his car to the very limit, while Webber was driving a car who's sister car was miles further down the road and capable of so much more.
simply human errors. forget engine mapping ! Flexible wing - yes if moving out into turbulent air from the car in front. Driver should know the issues.
both crashes were driver error, Vettel got a lot of grief over Turkey but everyone seemed to let Webber off, who had already made his defensive move and then decided (illegally) to make another to squeeze vettel, who then made a poor error of judgment. the Button crash for me was 100% Vettel driving error, I think he missed his braking point and swerved mid brake to avoid hitting Button, lost the rear and then tried to regain control using opposite lock and that why it behaved so 'oddly'
But you have to admit he's using the soft tyre in damp conditions. Everybody was going off at that point. Well I didn't complain I won ã60 on Lewis to win that race.
