Rules mandate low noses for 2012

[raymondu999]

Yeap. He had a follow up tweet to me:

2012 changes at the of the 2011 regs

[timbo]

Interestingly, I haven't found an article that bans exhaust blown diffuser.
Of course I may misunderstood FIAspeak though...

[Tozza Mazza]

Interestingly, I haven't found an article that bans exhaust blown diffuser.
Of course I may misunderstood FIAspeak though...

It's an old copy of the regs, from December 2010, so they are only pre planned changes for 2012, and not yet confirmed.

[MIKEY_!]

You can gain DF by running a larger flap on the rear wing can't you? FIA may have killed their DRS a bit.

[TzeiTzei]

Btw in the regulations for 2012 i found this:
"4.2 Weight distribution :
For 2012 only, the weight applied on the front and rear wheels must not be less than 291kg and
342kg respectively at all times during the qualifying practice session", which is exactly the same as in 2011. I thought the fixed weight distribution was to be scrapped for next year.

It's in here. Article 21: changes for 2012.

[ESPImperium]

Btw in the regulations for 2012 i found this:
"4.2 Weight distribution :
For 2012 only, the weight applied on the front and rear wheels must not be less than 291kg and
342kg respectively at all times during the qualifying practice session", which is exactly the same as in 2011. I thought the fixed weight distribution was to be scrapped for next year.

It's in here. Article 21: changes for 2012.

Tthoughtso too, but they have been kept for one more year as the teams dont want to chance someone lucking into the Pirelli optimal distrubution to optimal weight. Means you can run a heavier car and get that percentage right tho.

[matt21]

Maybe it is a silly question.
But can somebody explain me what the apprevations "TE upper", "TE lower", and "LE" stand for?

And "Highest" and "Lowest" mean the upper and lower curvature of the profile?

[Richard]

Its a silly diagram. The co-ordinates are far too close together, and who can manufacture or measure to 0.001 mmm?

If you look at the numbers, the first co-ordinate in the first column is the at the trailing edge, hence TE.

Then both the x & y values rise in the first column. The second column starts off with the biggest y value, hence the high point.

The x vaulues keep increasing in the second column, but the y values decrease until we get to the leading edge, hence LE.

Then x starts decreasing in the third column, so we going backwards, y keep decreasing until we get to the lowest point.

The fourth column takes us back to where we started.

[Tyler]

I wonder if the low noses reg will give Merc-gp any advantage.
They've had the most recent experience in building a championship winning low nose car in a year when most of the other cars had high noses - The Brawn BGP001.
That car had great balance and part of the reason was so they could put more ballast in the front.
Perhaps this knowledge will help them in 2012?
I've got high hopes for the W03.
Maybe Brawn's experience with periscope exhausts from his Ferrari days will also be an advantage for 2012?

[matt21]

Thanks Richard!

[raymondu999]

I'm not sure if having experience with periscope exhausts would stand them much good in particular. Everyone got it working in the end anyways.

While the BGP001 was very good, their end of 2009 car was not championship material. The McLaren was a better car in slow corners, and the Bulls better in high speed. The ballast thing won't really come into play given the mandated weight distribution. But it will be the airflow management around and under the nose that will benefit them methinks

[Neco FEROX]

To be honest, I don't that lowering the nose will stop the car from going airborne when it does hit another car's rear wheel. But to be honest, there is so many different factors to take into question. Speed? Headwind? Marbles? Racing line?

[MIKEY_!]

Given the rules now in place for 2012 it won't stop the cars flipping. A nose at the rumored half wheel height would but only when the nose hits the wheel of another car. It would also stop the nose riding up over the sidepod and hitting the driver in a side on. Strictly by the rules a nose tip could potentially be just as high as many of this years ones.

[wesley123]

Yes and with the low nose(ofc lower then now) one could scoop under the crashboxof the other guys and get a whole car shoved in his face

[SiLo]

It might stop cars riding up from behind (lol) but it may cause them to scoop up the cars they are hitting. Surely this is solving nothing?