myurr wrote: ↑28 May 2023, 08:13
chrisc90 wrote: ↑27 May 2023, 22:41
F1 Aerodynamicist's take on the W14-B
His channel name is a good bit of branding, but he had a student placement at Red Bull. He doesn't have any real F1 experience, wouldn't have seen anything sensitive at Red Bull, etc. The fact that he starts off talking about the "anti-dive" front suspension shows how little he knows and is leaning upon stuff written by other journalists who similarly don't have much of a clue.
He certainly has more F1 experience than 99% of us, having studied aerodynamics and gained experience in an F1 team. This practical experience, the insights he could collect directly on Formula 1 cars themselves, certainly gives him a knowledge that is superior to anyone else who has not worked in a Formula 1 team. Therefore, to be honest, I find such comments that obviously question his knowledge and analysis, quite questionable, presumptuous and inappropriate. Sometimes it seems to me as if one or the other here, as soon as he hears something he doesn't like, has to discredit the person who says it.
And this should not happen in a technical forum that should be based on factual and technical arguments.
i have not watched the video yet, but thats not important. He is an aerodynamicist, not a suspension engineer. Pure aerodynamicists often have no idea about suspension. That's why the McLarens had 0% anti-dive and anti-squat in the early 1990s, namely because their chief aerodynamicist had so much influence that he dictated the suspension points and as he didn't believe in "anti-dive"... There is a nice story Steve Nichols told about when he came back to McLaren, he couldn't believe that they didn't use any anti-dive or anti-squat. But anyway, the aerodynamic qualifications and knowledge of this "F1 aerodynamicist" should not be up for debate. He is certainly ahead of most others in this respect and has more experience and knowledge in this regard as 99,9% In this forum. Because very few here have ever even set foot in a F1 factory....
He has Formula Student experience and did one year as a Student Placement at RB. I have looked at his Linkedin, there is no way shape or form I’d listen to him as an authority. I’m sure he is very smart and seems like a nice guy, but classic early career engineer doesn’t know what they don’t know, and I mean that is the most positively critical way. I have had to instruct jr engineers out of school that I have managed that are enthusiastic, but often know-it-alls, to sit back and listen more. They often thank me later when they realized they would have ended up with mud on their face if they blurted what they wanted to say out loud or worst, gone rogue and made decisions they weren’t qualified to make.
There are thousands of us out there with Formula Student / SAE experience too, some of us have some pro racing experience, some of us are still involved in amateur racing (because pro motorsports careers kind of suck), and I have heard him say things that I know are wrong. F1 may be regarded as the pinnacle, but one year there doesn’t make you an expert, especially as a student placement where they are going to very selective with what you are involved on and the information you are shown.
So yes, he has more experience than 99% of the people here who have NO experience, but that still doesn’t make him right or an authority on it. There are hundreds of engineers in F1, thousands if you extend it out to suppliers and consultants, and despite all them, and despite many have a decade plus experiences, you still have performance disparities. If anything he’s probably shot himself in the foot in terms of career… teams don’t want engineers that are influencers and then he advertises to all them what he doesn’t know.
I’m sure I’ll get downvoted because this place is more about a popularity contest than about being right or wrong,, but it’s true, and anyone looking to have a career in engineering will experience the same, and I’m sure a decade from now he’ll go back with the hindsight of more experience and cringe at some of the things he has said.
As for the W14B, it’s hard to say after Monaco. It doesn’t seemed to have hurt, but I’m looking forward to Barcelona to see how it shakes out. I suspect raw pace is similar but I hope to see them a little closer to Aston in the race.