2005/2006 F1 News and Testing.

[Flibster]

FIA content with current V10 restrictions

Scuderia Toro Rosso have been assured that there will be no move by the FIA to slow down their V10 engines before the start of the season - even though rival teams are concerned about their pace.

The Red Bull Junior team are the only outfit running a restricted V10 engine this year and some other teams are worried that the current rev limit and air intake hand it an advantage over some of the V8 power-units on the grid.

But FIA president Max Mosley said today that the governing body is happy with the current performance levels of the two types of engines - and has made it clear that the V10 will not be automatically slowed to be at the back of the field.

"We think it shouldn't be an engine that you would voluntarily use if you had access to a competitive V8," he said when asked by autosport.com about whether the V10s should be slower than every V8 on the grid.

"Well, what is a competitive V8? We think that from all the test and all the information we have got, it will be in the lower half of the spectrum of engines on the power curve, although it will have an advantage with a more favourable duty cycle. It can use what it has got all the time, unlike the faster engines.

"We have got an open mind, but we think it is sufficiently below a competitive engine. So it (the V10 resitriction) has achieved its purpose."

Although work by the Midland team in testing last year to provide back-to-back data on a Toyota V10 engine performance against a V8 indicated that the older power-units did have an advantage, Mosley believes that by the start of the season the two configurations will be on a more level-playing field.

"Midland did some good tests, which were very scientific, and the V10 came out ahead of the V8," Mosley said. "But there were several factors there.

"The Toyota V10 was probably better than the Cosworth V10 from the previous years, and the V8s will all improve whereas the V10 will not. So by the time we get to Bahrain, it (the V10) will be quite a long way down the pecking order."

Despite his satisfaction with the current performance of the V10s engines, however, Mosley has not ruled out taking action if the power-unit started achieving decent results during 2006.

"We have said to Cosworth, 'Don't get it wrong because we will change it at a moment's notice if you do.' That would be massively inconvenient, so they have got a huge incentive not to take the Mickey."

The FIA's belief that the V10s are currently performing at a satisfactory level will come as a blow to the Midland team, who have made no secret of their unhappiness at the Cosworth power-units being used in F1.

Team principal Colin Kolles said recently: "If they are in front of us then they will have a problem, because I will not be very happy with this and I am very clear about this."

 

[Flibster]

...and who said there wasn't anything going on?

Router is still screwed at work - we're stumped so we're leaving it for now...new router and hardware firewall ordered.

Simon/~Flibster

 

[Flibster]

Flibster, that is too much for me to read
How do u get so much infomation about F1? Do u have spys working for you undercover in all the team or do u genrelly just search it all up with good ol trusty google?

Too much? Pah - thats only the best of what I get sent.

Used to work in motorsport *F1 and sports car development primarially* and as such worked with a majority of the major teams in motorsport.

Dealt with everything from limited edition road cars like the Plymouth Prowler, to production cars like the Lotus Elise and Lexus IS200 Sport, to rare stuff like the Shelby GT 500E, to rallying, Indy car, F3, Lotus one make series, F1, Touring cars and much more - including private contracts with wealthy people and the odd Military contract. We were the best in the business...

Monaco may look glamarous - but it's a nasty place to have a Grand Prix...

Still have lots of friends who are willing to forward info onto me *7 out of 11 teams anyway...* also have a mate who works in the the press who emails me copies of what crosses his desk.

It's all who you now.

Simon/~Flibster

 

[Flibster]

How did u get a job like that!?!?!
I would kill to be able to have had your job.

Whats wrong with having the GP at Monaco? Have you already posted why but im just going to need to read it and find it my self?

Left uni and Went to an agency to try and get some temp work - only did 2 years on a 6/7 year course in Aerospace systems engineering.

2 days later got a phonecall.
Can you read technical drawings?
Yup.
Can you use micrometers and vernier and things like that?
Yup.
Interested in motorsport?
Yup.
Can you travel 30 miles to this job?
Yup.
Fancy an interview?
Yup

Had an interview on a monday - started the next monday.

Started in quality control until we went to the local track and were given the keys to a Lotus Elise...and after around 5 laps clocked a time only half a second slower than the in house test drivers.

Was then moved into 'special projects' which dealt with the more specalised areas of motorsport *F1 and GT cars mainly* and the internal vehicle dynamics team. In other words - test driving.

Spent 2 years driving and travelling around with the race teams.

Monaco is a crap place for a Grand Prix becuase...it's too bloody small! Track doesn't allow overtaking - facilities are terrible compare to other circuits *ie...Silverstone and Spa...*

1 car one side of the pit lane - the 2nd car the other side of the pit lane and the spare car is a couple of hundred meters away...

It's cramped, generally unplesent and we had to drive there as it was a European race. 18 hour drive...

Worst bit - wasn't allowed to chat up any of the totty. Shame - there was some fantastic legs there.

Simon/~Flibster

 

[Flibster]

You lucky git
Thanks for clearing up the monoco thing
One more question. How do u become an in house test driver for car componys?

Wasn't a car company - we built very few full cars *Mainly race cars like the Lola B2K/40 LMP675 car - which won it's class at Le Mans on it's first time out. *

We specalised in taking other companies cars and getting them to drive properly by setting the suspension up properly. We dealt with some serious sports car companies - We did a lot of work with Lotus in particular developing the Lotus Motorsport Elise and Exige as well as other companies.

As for becoming a test driver - the easiest way is to be very good at driving fast, driving consistantly and at driving on the limit *and frequently beyond* and to have no fear of personal injury or death.

Hitting concrete at 160mph is not a nice experience - can't remember the impact myself - I remember the surgery afterwards.

Simon/~Flibster

 

[Flibster]

Simon, You might have to do a photo thread about all this........ please


did I say please?

Would do - but as I was driving and most of the stuff we were working was pre-release or confidential camera's were pretty much banned from everywhere.

However.... http://www.flibster.com/F1/damper/ contains a few images of some of the kit I managed to 'borrow' Thats a 2002 spec rear F1 damper from the Arrows team. It wasn't the most advanced stuff we used either.

Will get one labelled up with the materials used soon

Ok i lied, maybe there were more questions to be asked
How would you go about showing a compony that you as u put it very good at driving fast, driving consistantly and at driving on the limit *and frequently beyond* and to have no fear of personal injury or death.(Saves me of rewording it all ) Would they discover you at track days and at things like that?

I got lucky - we went for a day at our local track as a party as it was the companies birthday. 10 Lotus Elises, 2 pre-release Exige's, couple of Ferrari's *both the bosses* and a TVR *which broke down - shock horror...* and the keys were freely distributed.

Times were only taken as the kit was available and it seemd like a bit of friendly rivalry at the time.

How other drivers got the job - pass. Apart from Franchesco - he worked with Franco for years in various companies and was a nutter. Akiko was the same - except he was a bike nutter.

Simon/~Flibster

 

[Flibster]

You did get very lucky. Im jelous
When u said "How other drivers got the job - pass." Does that mean you dont really know or did they pass a test.

that was the last question, sorry for hyjacking the thread

Honestly don't know how they got the job tbh.

Generally there was 2 of us at a track with 1 or 2 cars though. In exceptional circumstances there could be all 6 of us in the same place though - that was leading up to Le Mans though where we did 48 hours of straight testing on the car.

We'd generally work on 1 car each - unless one got damaged *read - totalled* then we'd share the workload if we could. usually they'd be cars that could put in similar laptimes so we wouldn't get in the way of each other.

Some of the stuff we couldn't - Single seaters primarially as there would be too many adjustments to share the car - so then the one who was free would go back to the truck or the factory - get a massage and spend some time in the gym - then go do some other work - generally read reports, writing reports, visiting the teams, building dampers for events - that kind of stuff.

Simon/~Flibster

 

[Flibster]

It most certainly is a news thread...

And here's some news...

Super Aguri confirm Sato, Ide for 2006

The Super Aguri Formula One team have confirmed that Takuma Sato and Yuji Ide will be the team's race drivers for the 2006 Formula One season.

The announcement finally confirms the long-held speculation that Sato would drive for the team since the Super Aguri venture was announced late last year, whilst also confirming recent speculation by autosport.com that Ide would be his teammate.

Sato, who drove for Honda-powered Jordan in 2002 and BAR in 2004 and 2005 as well as a one-off appearance for BAR in 2003, will once again be powered by Honda in Super Aguri's debut season.

With his drive now confirmed, Sato is looking forward to the work ahead: "Everyone at Super Aguri has done a great job to make the team happen in such a short period of time. I am extremely excited to be working with the team and especially with Aguri-san who has achieved huge success in motorsport.

"Yesterday I was delighted to shakedown the car for the very first time with all of the boys who have done such a great job. We know that there is a lot of hard work to do, but we are up for the challenge and I am really looking forward to it."

Sato's teammate for 2006, Yuji Ide, is making his Formula One debut alongside the Super Aguri team, following a runner-up result in last year's Formula Nippon series, the premier open-wheel racing series in Japan. Ide also has previous experience in GT and other open-wheel series.

"This year will be very exciting and challenging," said Ide. "I would like to thank Suzuki-san for giving me the opportunity to drive in Formula One.

"I drove an F1 car for the first time yesterday and I was nervous, but very excited. The car is powerful! I would also like to thank the whole team for working so hard to get the car ready for yesterday's shakedown. We had no problems and now I am very much looking forward to testing in Barcelona next week."

With his driving line-up confirmed, Super Aguri team principal Aguri Suzuki is glad to have a pair of experienced racing drivers driving his cars as the team makes its Formula One debut: "I am grateful that these highly experienced drivers are joining my team. Although I expect a tough year as it is our first in Formula One, with these two drivers I will put all my efforts into creating a positive outcome."

 

[Flibster]

The router is still knackered here - now not allowing anything larger than 1472 bytes through the firewall???????

Something screwey is goign on here...

Updates throughout the day may be slow coming...

Simon/~Flibster

 

[Flibster]

Who is Yuji Ide?

Yuji Ide was born in Saitama, Japan on January 21st 1975 and after making his race debut in 1990 in karts, he spent last fifteen years working himself up to the pinnacle of Motorsports after being confirmed to race for the Super Aguri Formula One team in 2006.

This follows on from a 2005 season that saw him participate in the Formula Nippon series where he narrowly missed out on the crown.

Date of Birth - January 21st, 1975
Birthplace - Saitama Pref.
Height - 178cm
Weight - 63kg

1990 Debut at the Racing Kart
1992 Regional Kart Championship East Kanto A1 Class (Series Ranking : 2nd) Japan Kart Grand Prix (SS Stock Class winner)
1993 Japan Kart Championship FA Class
1994 Japanese F3 Championship
1995 Japanese F3 Championship
1996 Japanese F3 Championship
1997 Japanese F3 Championship
1998 Japanese F3 Championship
1999 Formula Dream (Series Champion)
2000 Japanese F3 Championship (Series Ranking : 2nd)
2001 Japanese F3 Championship
2002 French F3 Championship
2003 Japanese Championship Formula Nippon (Series Ranking:7th)
2004 Japanese Championship Formula Nippon (Series Ranking:3rd, Win:1)
2005 Formula Nippon Mobilecast TEAM IMPUL (Winning team championship and just missing out on winning driver's championship)

 

[Flibster]

Bahrain test is 'advantage' - Tost

At four locations around the world, F1 testing continued on Tuesday, little more than three weeks ahead of the 2006 season opener.

At Valencia in sunny Spain, four teams - with Williams' Mark Webber leading runners for Red Bull, McLaren and MF1 - circulated. Of note, McLaren's chrome-silver livery debuted in the hands of Pedro de la Rosa, while Austria's Alex Wurz marked his 32nd birthday.

Also on Valentine's Day at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, Red Bull ran its full Bahrain-spec RB2 package, complete with new bodywork and cooling.

Over at Barcelona, also in warm Spain, BMW Sauber's Jacques Villeneuve and Robert Kubica circulated alone, even though the Hinwil squad had expected other teams to also be in action at the Circuit de Catalunya.

In fact, Sauber had actually booked the circuit in advance for exclusive use on Thursday.

Meanwhile, at the second day of Bahrain running, Ferrari's V10-powered Luca Badoer still led the field of five.

It was a more representative session at warm Sakhir, after the dust had been worn away on the opening day.

Honda's race duo Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello shone, with Ferrari racer Michael Schumacher to run on Wednesday.

'This test, we expect,' said Toro Rosso's team principal Franz Tost, 'will give us an advantage over our rivals who are back in the cold in Europe.'

 

[Flibster]

The KEY to unlocking the M16’s performance

Following a brief shakedown at its Silverstone launch on February 3rd, the new M16 enjoyed its first extended run at Jerez last week. Christijan Albers drove the car on Tuesday and again on Thursday morning, while Tiago Monteiro took over testing duties for Thursday afternoon and Friday.
As planned, the new car did not run on Wednesday, a respite which allowed the mechanics to examine it in detail following its first full day on the track. The interim car ran throughout the four days of the test, enabling the team to collect more information.

Jerez was just the start of a thorough pre-season test programme that continues this week with more running at Valencia, followed by Barcelona next week. As preparations for the first race in Bahrain intensify, there’s no time to be wasted.

The good news is that the M16 has thus far been devoid of any major problems, allowing the team to focus on gathering vital set-up data. While the car itself has been trucked from Jerez to Valencia, Technical Director James Key and his engineering colleagues dashed back to MF1 Racing’s Silverstone base for a full debrief and additional planning. The tech boss will be back in Spain by Monday night, albeit with some new bits in his hand luggage.

“We’re very happy with the progress we’ve been making,” says Key of the Jerez outing. “Thankfully, we didn’t have any major issues with the new car. Reliability was good for all three days of running and we did over 70 laps on each day. By the end of the week, we’d made a fair amount of headway into setting the car up and finding more ways to get better times out of it. In that respect, I’m very satisfied.

“We booked the four days (at Jerez), but we only planned to run the M16 for three of them. We had scheduled to skip the second day so that we could do any work we needed to on the new car, rather than rush through the night before. It proved to be quite a useful day, so we’re glad we did that.”

Testing isn’t just about pounding out lap after lap, trying to set the quickest times. No, in order to make it work properly, a team must know what it’s looking for and use its time - and mileage - as efficiently as possible. In that respect, MF1 was blessed with mechanical good fortune.

“The biggest relief is that we’ve maintained our reliability, which is really good news, because one of the objectives with the new car was to make sure we retained our solid record from last year. The cooling system is working the way we hoped it would and the numbers we expected from the car’s data system, in terms of chassis and aerodynamics, add up as well - although you always have to keep re-evaluating these things.

“The car is pretty much doing what we expected it to, but having said that, I think we’ve got more work to do at this stage, because I think we can find some more performance still. We were aware at the outset that the car might have a few unique handling characteristics, but you can never tell until you go track testing. Some of these characteristics have come to light and they need to be looked at to help us develop the car further. We’ve got a little bit of work to do on that, which we’re undertaking now at the factory.”

The drivers will have a specific programme to run through during their four days at Valencia, commencing on Tuesday.

“Now that we’ve run the car, we’ve established a direction in terms of developing various attributes. We’ve got new parts coming out to Valencia - some that were following on to the initial build, and some that were fabricated as a reaction to what we found in Jerez. We’ve got a few ideas for set-up, and we need to go tyre testing in more detail.

“We did quite a bit of tyre testing at Jerez with the old interim car, and a little bit on Friday with the new car, but we really need to get stuck into a programme there. Bridgestone has made some good steps forward, so we need to investigate that. And we need to start getting into race simulation mode and that sort of thing fairly soon, as well.”

 

[Flibster]

GPMA 'won't react' to Max attack

F1's rogue 'GPMA' alliance of carmakers says it will not be provoked by FIA president Max Mosley's aggressive comments this week.
Taunted by the prospect of no income, less technology and looming deadlines to enter in 2008, a spokesman for the group refrained from turning the situation into yet another political storm.

"We will not react (to Mosley's comments)," the GPMA spokesman - on behalf of Mercedes-Benz, Renault, BMW, Toyota and Honda - said.
The GPMA non-reaction follows Mosley's gathering with selected British reporters in London this week, where he also proposed a plan to create a sort of 'second division' (GP2), where F1's bottom team could be demoted, and the GP2 champion promoted to F1. Max said a promoted GP2 team, with a small budget, should be able to afford F1 because it would receive more income, and the step-up would attract new sponsors.

Plus, of course, F1 will inherently be a lot cheaper. He agreed: "To make it work we do need to first get costs under control."

Mosley also said the FIA wants to impose a 'freeze' on engine developments between 2008-2010, but denied that he is deliberately trying to provoke the already disgruntled carmakers. The Briton said: "I don't see it that way, or, at least, it is absolutely not my intention."

 

[Flibster]

Newey says he's happier at Red Bull

Adrian Newey says he left McLaren because Ron Dennis' Woking based team had become too big.

The highly lauded technical brain, who is set to soon begin work on Red Bull's 2007-spec 'RB3', told Auto Motor Und Sport' that the 'chemistry' at Mercedes-powered McLaren no longer suited him.

"McLaren is like a big, big company," the 47-year-old told the German motoring magazine. Newey, in contrast, enthused about Milton Keynes based Red Bull, a more 'relaxed' environment, even if the actual budgets of the two are not dissimilar.

"I am finding the people straightforward and open," he explained.

The McLaren system, by contrast, had almost replaced the individual, with a 'committee' making the decisions, rather than a person, according to Newey.

Perhaps a link between Newey's departure and the so-far uncompetitive McLaren MP4-21 should not be made, but the Briton said he would keep an eye on his car's progress throughout 2006. He said: "If the McLaren is successful, then I will be proud. But my future is Red Bull."

 

[Flibster]

'We are not where we want to be' - McLaren

A senior representative of the McLaren-Mercedes team has admitted that the new 'MP4-21' racer is not ready to dominate grands prix in 2006.

Even with the newly revised V8 engine now up and running, Mercedes' competitor director Norbert Haug said progress at the silver team is currently lagging.

"We are not where we wanted to be in mid February," the German told Auto Motor Und Sport. "At the moment, we are perhaps where we should have been in the middle of December."

The new Mercedes V8, reportedly correcting problems with the inlet system and the pistons, has moved the MP4-21 closer to the leading pace. But analysts still estimate that, if the Bahrain opener was held today, McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya would finish behind the two Renaults, the two Ferraris and the Hondas.

Haug maintained a similar theme in the 'Motorsport Aktuell' magazine.

"Some teams are ahead of us. Certainly, we would not mind if we could add another month to our preparation time. "But we are doing everything possible in order to be competitive for the first race in Bahrain. "We have not had a dream start. We are behind where we want to be."

 

[Flibster]

Ferrari set for new aero package

Ferrari's full aerodynamic package for the 2006 season will be fitted to the '248 F1' car in Bahrain next week.

At the wheel will be Michael Schumacher, who said recently that his Maranello based team had headed to the Sakhir track - scene of the season opening race in less than a month - in order to escape the cold and damp of Europe.

"It will be a long test," Schumacher said, referring to Ferrari's nine-day schedule, "in order to fully prepare for the season in good weather."

After Luca Badoer and Felipe Massa kicked off the Bahrain session on Monday, Schumacher, 37, will take over from Badoer on Wednesday morning.

 

[Flibster]

Mosley on why 'A1' may fail

FIA president Max Mosley says Sheikh Maktoum's 'A1 Grand Prix' open wheeler concept will not succeed because it lacks true star drivers.
The Briton, 65, likened the so-called 'world cup of motor sport' to the FIA's Group C sports car championship of the 80s -- an interesting racing concept that ultimately failed.

"Something like A1 only works if the biggest and most famous names are on board -- and that is not the case."

Even the involvement of legendary F1 faces like John Surtees, and world champions like Alan Jones and Emerson Fittipaldi, is not helping A1 to truly compete with formula one, according to Mosley. Contrasting A1 with Group C, he said: "We had all the big marques - Mercedes, Jaguar, Toyota, Peugeot - but only a handful of spectators at the races. "

"The fans were not really interested in the technology or the teams; they wanted to see (drivers Alain) Prost and (Ayrton) Senna. "It is something the F1 teams forget even today."

 

[Flibster]

Indian GP would be logical

A Formula One grand prix in India would be 'logical'. The speaker is Max Mosley, President of F1's governing body, when asked by reporters in London whether vacant spots on the calendar - opened up by axed Belgium and Hockenheim's possible demise - could be filled.

He said that in the event that replacements are sought, "it would be very logical to have a Grand Prix in India. With India and China you would be getting on for half the world's population (represented)."

The FIA boss' comments come at a time when speculation that Bernie Ecclestone visited India as recently as December 2005 does the rounds.

Ecclestone apparently toured the country as a guest of the Federation Of Motor Sport Clubs Of India.

"A Grand Prix would help improve our image," said Indian F1 driver Narain Karthikeyan.

 

[Flibster]

Liuzzi: Toro Rosso better than Minardi

Toro Rosso driver Vitantonio Liuzzi believes his team will be stronger than Minardi in their first season under the new ownership.

Red Bull took over the Minardi team at the end of last year and renamed the squad Toro Rosso, also giving them a cash boost that will help the team move forward.

Liuzzi, who will race for the team alongside American Scott Speed, is confident Toro Rosso will perform better than Minardi, but the Italian admits he is under no illusions for the 2006 season.

"We'll have a hard time until 2007," Liuzzi told Gazzetta dello Sport. "The relaunch started in November, which is too late to be ready now. But the car isn't bad: it improves with each modification.

"We'll be quicker than Minardi, despite the 77mm raised edge on the air intake, limiting the V10's revs to 16,700 per minute."

Toro Rosso will be the only team this season to use a restricted V10 engine.

 

[Flibster]

McLaren announce 'Direxiv Dynamic Wellbeing Programme'

McLaren and Direxiv are pleased to announce the establishment of the “Direxiv Dynamic Wellbeing Programme”. This programme will see Team McLaren Mercedes operating in close co-operation with Direxiv, to create a dedicated team of highly qualified and well resourced individuals with the sole objective of improving and optimising the fitness, health, wellbeing and diet of not only all of the Formula One team and drivers but also of the participants in the Direxiv Driver Programme.
The “Direxiv Dynamic Wellbeing Programme" is headed by Aki Hintsa, the Chief Physician of the Finnish Olympic Committee. Aki has already worked with Team McLaren Mercedes for more than a year on a part-time basis and after the 2006 Winter Olympics Aki will leave the Finnish Olympic Committee and join McLaren. He will be supported by a team of four employees, two of whom will be based at the McLaren Technology Centre, staffing McLaren’s Fitness and Wellbeing Centre. The other two are Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya's personal trainers Mark Arnall and Gerry Convey who will continue to form an integral part of the team.

Direxiv’s involvement with Team McLaren Mercedes has not only resulted in the establishment of the “Direxiv Dynamic Wellbeing Programme” but also sees the Direxiv identity appear on the team's Formula One racing cars and on members of the Team operating the Programme at the races. In addition, the Direxiv logo will also, via agreement with McLaren, appear on the race car of Lewis Hamilton in his 2006 GP2 car run by the championship winning ART team.

McLaren and Direxiv will also explore opportunities to work together in synergistic sections of technology linked to their areas of respective expertise. This will be channelled through McLaren Group company 'McLaren Applied Technologies'.

Commenting on the announcement Misato Haga, CEO of Direxiv said: “Direxiv’s motorsport objective is twofold: to support the drivers in our programme to compete at the highest level of motorsport and to provide a platform to promote the Direxiv products and services internationally. I am delighted to have entered into this agreement with McLaren whose renowned expertise and professionalism will help us get closer to achieving our goals.”

Martin Whitmarsh, McLaren Group CEO “I am delighted to formally welcome Misato Haga and the Direxiv brand to the Team McLaren Mercedes family. Misato has been a friend of the Team for some time and it is wonderful that we have found a way to work together in a manner that the Direxiv brand and Team McLaren Mercedes can both benefit. I have a longstanding belief in the role that pro-active health, fitness and dietary measures can play in the performance of drivers, team members and other individuals and the establishment of the “Direxiv Dynamic Wellbeing Programme” will take this to the next step. I am also particularly pleased that we have been able to extend the benefit of the facilities to our younger drivers such as Lewis Hamilton, as well as making facilities available more generally to staff at the McLaren Technology Centre."