Jersey Tom wrote:Driver adjustable diffs are actually one of my favorite bits of tech on F1 cars. Pretty crappy if they do ban them.
seriously!? As long as they've been around, it would make no sense. they've had them forever, so I don't see much scope for cost savings. They are also extremely cool.
“To be able to actually make something is awfully nice”
Bruce McLaren on building his first McLaren racecars, 1970
“I've got to be careful what I say, but possibly to probably Juan would have had a bigger go”
Sir Frank Williams after the 2003 Canadian GP, where Ralf hesitated to pass brother M. Schumacher
1) What aspects of their use or design do you find interesting?
2) I think this ban has something to do with off throttle mapping and not cost reduction. No cost to be saved by restricting the driver's ability to adjust them. The diff's design is not going to change one way or the other.
I find ramp and clutch diffs in themselves to be very interesting, with the ability to significantly impact the handling of the car by varying the amount of differential locking on-throttle, off-throttle, and neutral throttle.
Being able to adjust those parameters on the fly with an E-diff is bad ass.
Grip is a four letter word. All opinions are my own and not those of current or previous employers.
I believe that each map of a F1 diff must mimic a mechanical unit. So, a selected diff map must control on-throttle, off-throttle, and neutral throttle with a fixed relationship similar to that of a mechanical system. In the case of a diff with ramps, you can not vary the ramp angle within one map setting. Of coarse this quasi mechanical diff is replicated by means of a electronic/hydraulic system.
