Team Lotus T128 Renault

[RacingManiac]

seems crazy to compare a torpedo in water to a F1 car though....different fluid median and all....

[wickerbill]

That side comparison is really interesting. The Lotus's side pods look less bulky than the Ferrari, particularly width ways, but the rear of the Ferrari with their trick suspension actually looks lower. [/armchairanalysis]

No KERS hence no extra cooling?

[kilcoo316]

I've put question-mark behind supercavitation, suggesting that the idea of front blown exhaust perhaps might be based on benefits of principle of supercavitation or something similar.

Hardly.


Unless you are proposing they inject plasma ahead of the car to change the medium through which the car's surfaces actually travel... which is what supercavitation is; the boundary layer is formed from air (bubbles), not water, which dramatically reduces skin friction drag.

[nacho]

A few more photos:

http://adamcooperf1.com/2011/02/02/firs ... -valencia/

[H. Zedozil]

http://plixi.com/p/74186729

[imightbewrong]

Some interesting pictures of the internals, ripped from
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfUPxqUsMwg[/youtube]

Click for higher res.

[nacho]

Adam Cooper says it's a 2009 Red Bull gearbox.

[H. Zedozil]

[imightbewrong]

Adam Cooper says it's a 2009 Red Bull gearbox.

If you look closely at this image it says RB5 on the edge of the crash-structure, coincidence?
http://i.imgur.com/FRk6H.jpg

[H. Zedozil]

So, guys..what do you think of the front suspension?

[Raptor22]

I've put question-mark behind supercavitation, suggesting that the idea of front blown exhaust perhaps might be based on benefits of principle of supercavitation or something similar.

Hardly.


Unless you are proposing they inject plasma ahead of the car to change the medium through which the car's surfaces actually travel... which is what supercavitation is; the boundary layer is formed from air (bubbles), not water, which dramatically reduces skin friction drag.

Nicely summed, bt not only this, cavitation is a phenomena that occurs in liquid medium, not in air. Air cannot form bubbles of air... it is just air.
Cavitation by definition occurs only in "incompressible fluids".

supercavitation....

[nacho]

Adam Cooper says it's a 2009 Red Bull gearbox.

If you look closely at this image it says RB5 on the edge of the crash-structure, coincidence?
http://i.imgur.com/FRk6H.jpg

Nice find. Maybe they send RB6 and RB5 boxes to them and used a pen to mark them!

The reasoning is being that RB5 box is a better because it's designed (and the suspension and mating to the engine) for the single deck diffuser. If I remember correctly they lifted the gearbox in RB6 for aero purposes.

[nacho]

Gascoyne says the roll hoop is done like it is for saving weight, the aerodynamic effect is minimal.

[FW17]

Look at the difference in the pick up points of the RB6 pull rod on the gear box, so much higher in comparison to an RB5 gear box.

[nacho]

So true about the pick up points, I wonder if they came up with the RB5 box because they used it during fire up, anyways seems like its not really true.

Rear suspension geometry on the T128 looks the same as in RB7.