Pirelli 2013

[turbof1]

Complete turn around concerning the use of a 2013 car for tyre testing:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/108489

I'm very glad actually about this. The FIA shows it can be rational and reasonable. It also looks like the tyre deal for 2014 is mere formality now.

[WhiteBlue]

Complete turn around concerning the use of a 2013 car for tyre testing:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/108489

I'm very glad actually about this. The FIA shows it can be rational and reasonable. It also looks like the tyre deal for 2014 is mere formality now.

You can't undo the past mistakes but you can avoid to make more in the future. The FiA urgently needs to define the parameters for these tests irrespective whether they are run in Paul Ricard or Barcelona, Silverstone or Brazil.

And according to the latest information Pirelli should also make sure that they test with loads that are created by curb induced oscillations on high speed circuits.

I'm not so sure that Pirelli still has the trust of all teams and the FiA or is worthy of that trust. If the FiA tries to prevent the mistakes of the past it is not an exculpation of Pirelli. Personally I would prefer to see Michelin. They seem to have learned something from Indy 2005.

One last thing one should consider is the balloon shape of the current F1 tyres. If we get indeed standing waves it might be beneficial to use much stiffer 17" or 18" wheels that do not have such elaborate spring and damper properties. It might be a lot safer to do the springing and damping in a proper suspension element.

[MOWOG]

All of this is most interesting, however, the reality is that the tires for the Nurburgring race later this week have already been manufactured. Whether exploding tires will be the highlight of the German GP or not I have no idea. What I DO know is that the major parties in interest of Formula One have made a complete cock up of the tire situation this season. And the prime mover behind the specs for this year's tires is Bernie. Combine that with the seeming impossibility of getting all the teams to agree unanimously what day it is and a relatively weak FIA president and you have a recipe for disaster.That no driver was seriously injured at Silverstone is down completely to luck and not to any sane, mature decisions by any of the parties involved. A pox on all their houses.

[Huntresa]

So are the teams gonna flip a coin or draw a straw to decide who shall give Pirelli a car ? Since i cant see any other fair way

[WhiteBlue]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/23130753
Some of the things Gary Anderson say start to make sense. I believe he is still wrong about the failure mechanism with the sharp curbs but he has realized that the tyres are subjected to massive oscillations which are excited by the curbs on high speed tracks such as Silverstone, Spa and Monza. He also recognized that the root cause has existed all season and Pirelli have fudged their communication about it in order to look better in the media.

[tomislavp4]

He also recognized that the root cause has existed all season and Pirelli have fudged their communication about it in order to look better in the media.

Pirelli's behavior is totally unacceptable, in my opinion. As more light is shed on these issues, more nasty information about how they do stuff comes out. Let someone with greater sense of responsibility supply tires, Pirelli isn't up to the job.

[monsi]

I don't think that's fair. They did devise a new construction, and presented it for use. It was F1 politicking that put the kybosh on that. Whether that new construction would have prevented this weekend's catastrophic failures, I guess will come out eventually.

[Huntresa]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/23130753
Some of the things Gary Anderson say start to make sense. I believe he is still wrong about the failure mechanism with the sharp curbs but he has realized that the tyres are subjected to massive oscillations which are excited by the curbs on high speed tracks such as Silverstone, Spa and Monza. He also recognized that the root cause has existed all season and Pirelli have fudged their communication about it in order to look better in the media.

But where do the cuts come from ? Or do they appear via what you showed on previous page?

[xpensive]

So are the teams gonna flip a coin or draw a straw to decide who shall give Pirelli a car ? Since i cant see any other fair way

I'm sure that CW will find it necessary to ask Mercedes again, all in order of consistency of course?

[WhiteBlue]

But where do the cuts come from ? Or do they appear via what you showed on previous page?

What was called cuts can also be the result of forces that rip the tyre up. In the initial state you only see cracks on the surface but later the ruptures go through the whole fibre construction which seems to be made from steel and Kevlar as we see in this picture.



The yellow fibres are most likely Kevlar and the dark fibres steel. Both colours are clearly distinguishable in the picture.

[PhatalOne]

Pirelli's behavior is totally unacceptable, in my opinion. As more light is shed on these issues, more nasty information about how they do stuff comes out. Let someone with greater sense of responsibility supply tires, Pirelli isn't up to the job.

Before grabbing the pitchforks and chasing Pirelli, let's get reasonable. Blind moral outrage like yours does nothing to help to solve the problem and allows the true culprits to go unpunished. I would say we could start by having a sanctioning body (FIA), a commericial rights holder (F1 Group), and the teams start acting like adults and develop some sensible testing policies that allows the tire supplier to gather testing data from current year machines in relevant conditions.

Also, what tire manufacturer in their right mind would sign up for this garbage when there are many other forms of motorsport that are actually relevant to the product lines the companies sell to stay in business? With the current F1 testing schedule/rules, the mandate to purposefully produce a tire to "liven up the show", the politicking by the teams, and the mob all to ready to shoot the messenger make F1 a three-ring circus. Without permanent changes to the status quo there is NO upside to being the official tire supplier. You can damn Pirelli all you want, but I would challenge you to name a replacement who would willing submit themselves to the farce that everyone involved in F1 has created.

<sarcasm> Honestly, if you don't want any tire failures, let the teams run around on solid rubber donuts. Be forewarned, the handling and ride quality will be significantly compromised and you will likely have some spectacular suspension/brake failures but that's for the engineers and teams to figure out since the tires will not fail. The upshot of this equally absurd scenario is that you'd also be getting a bit closer to blaming the correct people than you are now.</sarcasm>

[WhiteBlue]

FIA seeks solution to Silverstone tyre failures
Mon 01.07.13
In light of a number of significant tyre failures at last weekend’s British Grand Prix, Jean Todt today said that the FIA is determined to seek an urgent solution to the problem and as such the FIA will change the format of this month’s Formula One Young Driver Test.

“Our priority is to ensure safety for all in Formula One and we believe the incidents at Silverstone represent a genuine safety concern for the drivers,” said President Todt. “We have thus taken the decision to alter the Young Driver Test to allow teams to use drivers they deem fit to carry out tyre development work in a bid to solve the problems we saw at the British Grand Prix. I believe it is fitting to carry out this work at the circuit upon which the issues were manifested.”

The test, scheduled for July 17-19 at Silverstone, will now allow teams to field drivers who have competed in more than two F1 World Championship events provided it is clear that the purpose of them doing this is to test tyres for Pirelli. The test may also be extended by one day.

To provide for this, the FIA today informed Formula One’s teams that the approval of the World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) will be immediately sought for a change to article 22.4h (i)* of the 2013 Formula One Sporting Regulations.

Approval will also be sought for a change to the wording of article 12.6.3 of the 2013 Formula One Technical Regulations** to allow for a modification of the specification of the tyres during the Championship season without the unanimous agreement of all competing teams.

This will allow the FIA to take all necessary actions to ensure safety.

Notwithstanding the revised conditions as set out above, in the interests of the sport the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team has accepted to not participate in this test, as per the recent decision of the International Tribunal.

In the meantime, the FIA has asked Pirelli for an assurance that there will be no repetition of the tyre problems at this weekend’s German Grand Prix or at subsequent grand prix.

*Formula One Sporting Regulations 2013, Article 22.4h (i) states: No track testing may take place between the start of a ten-day period which precedes the start of the first Event of the Championship and 31 December of the same year with the following exceptions: i) One three day young driver training test carried out on a date and site approved by the FIA following consultation with all teams. No driver who has competed in more than two F1 World Championship races may take part in this test and all drivers must be in possession of an International A Licence.

** Formula One Technical Regulations 2013 Article 12.6.3 states: Tyre specifications will be determined by the FIA no later than 1 September of the previous season. Once determined in this way, the specification of the tyres will not be changed during the Championship season without the agreement of all competing teams.

Some of you may remember that something liker the bolded sentence was also used by Max Mosley in 2005 three weeks before the Indy tyre debacle. Later Michelin were sentenced by the WMSC and withdrew from F1. History repeating itself?

[xpensive]

Such a good reason to let Mercedes participate, as this is not a "Young Driver test" anymore, what a farce indeed.

[Jersey Tom]

Also, what tire manufacturer in their right mind would sign up for this garbage when there are many other forms of motorsport that are actually relevant to the product lines the companies sell to stay in business?

I don't think I can agree with that statement...

[FoxHound]

Such a good reason to let Mercedes participate, as this is not a "Young Driver test" anymore, what a farce indeed.

Or alternatively, a tyre that will be used this year for safety reasons will need to be tested by all teams to be sure of its safety.

It's called common sense.