Ferrari F14T

[danwilkie90]

I remember Martin Brundle saying in an interview a while ago that going into some corners some teams may turn the engine off and then rely purely on the torque of the electric engine for acceleration out the other side.

Might this be what Ferrari are doing?

[henra]

I remember Martin Brundle saying in an interview a while ago that going into some corners some teams may turn the engine off and then rely purely on the torque of the electric engine for acceleration out the other side.

Might this be what Ferrari are doing?

Unlikely. Not enough HP (160). This would only work in very slow corners and only very briefly at the exit (<1s per corner). Probably not worth the trouble.
Going from 100 km/h to 150km/h at traction limit will take roughly 1s (assuming 1,5g at the exit of a tight turn).
Kinetic energy difference will be 340kJ or 340kWs (@700kg). This means with a traction limit of 1,5g (accelerating onto a straight) you could use 340kW.
Even with a traction limit of 1g (accelerating while still in exit of the turn) this would still be ~225kW (rather than the 115 available).
Now count the number of turns where the cars are that slow and you will find that the amount of fuel to be saved would be completely negligeable. Using it for traction control will instead of the IC engine will only work below 100 km/h, since above that you would loose accelration compared to what would be possible.

[Crucial_Xtreme]

Gazzetta reports we will see a very different F14T in Bahrain with new FW, RW & other new bodywork, as well as an update to the PU in which Marmorini has turned up the power a bit. Gazzetta suggest the changes are so great that it could be considered a "b-spec".


via @joseluisf1

[321apex]

What are you on about? Upshifts have been silent for a long time via the seamless shift. It is quite possible that this has been extended to downshifts.

I think you are correct. Although we are in the exploratory phases of 2014 ERS technology, Ferrari may have avoided downshifts altogether, relying 100% on ERS contribution to slowing the car down in the rear only. Should be noted, that no matter how smooth the throttle blip, each downshifts sends an unpleasant jolt thru the drivetrain which often destabilizes traction at the wheel. Usually blipped downshifts are risky in the corners and avoided.

Additional benefit from NO THROTTLE BLIP is a reduction in fuel consumption. Ferrari may definitely be on to something.

[hendrix]

A very interesting interview, Resume:
1 New wind tunnel works fine.
2 A new car for Bahraim with changes in aero and engine.
3 A better correlation of the information given for both pilots.
4 No problem in 1115 kms of tests.
5 Very soon to say where they are comparing with other teams.

[vtr]

Ferrari may have avoided downshifts altogether, relying 100% on ERS contribution to slowing the car down in the rear only.

Do you mean that you think they could, say, keep the car in 8th gear in the Monza main straight through the entire braking phase in the first chicane?
I think it would work better if you could then engage 2nd(or 3rd, 4th, who knows) directly to exit the corner. I am not sure if that is allowed with the mandatory sequential transmission.
Although, with such a wide power band, and the ERS help, the car might be able to exit the corner in a higher gear than they would in previous years.
Could they make it work?

[321apex]

Do you mean that you think they could, say, keep the car in 8th gear in the Monza main straight through the entire braking phase in the first chicane?

So far we only saw those cars at Jerez, so talking about Monza braking into turn 1 @ 100% ERS and no downshift is a bit of a stretch. Who knows it may be possible although I doubt the ERS system at this stage can "soak up" this much electricity so quickly. As far as I know, there is no requirement in the rules that a race car must be braked by engine using downshifts.

[vtr]

I doubt the ERS system at this stage can "soak up" this much electricity so quickly.

And there is a maximum ammount of energy the car can harvest through a lap, IIRC. Of course, we can't forget the rear brakes! No fuel is wasted by applying the rear brakes.

[RZS10]

AMuS writes that Ferrari had no mechanical issues in Jerez, just false error messages, software issues and damaged sensors. The powertrain was at 80% of its potential and mappings were made with maximum flexibility in mind so they could react to problems easily. They will use a modified power unit for the first Bahrain test in order to gain as much data as possible before the freeze, the new aero package will be brought to the second Bahrain test. They supposedly have a cooling system that saves 15% space, there's no official comment from Ferrari, they just said that they have "something special".

[muelte]

Well, the car definitely DID downshift when braking, just it was much quierter than other cars but the Sauber, which was a only bit louder even though it was lapping at a lower pace. It was a subtle whistle, instead of an 'uprev roar' from Merc and Renault powered cars.

[miguelalvesreis]

Well, the car definitely DID downshift when braking, just it was much quierter than other cars but the Sauber, which was a only bit louder even though it was lapping at a lower pace. It was a subtle whistle, instead of an 'uprev roar' from Merc and Renault powered cars.

Can they use the ers thru the crankshaft to make a "tip and toe" technique to increase rpm of the gearbox main shaft without revving up the ic engine an d make downshift like seamless?

[ptw]

I remember Martin Brundle saying in an interview a while ago that going into some corners some teams may turn the engine off and then rely purely on the torque of the electric engine for acceleration out the other side.

Might this be what Ferrari are doing?

The ERS-K is working as generator (alternator) under braking so it can't rotate the crankshaft as it's being rotated by it

[PlatinumZealot]

Not exactly an idea from RedBull (or a signal of cooling problems) It was there last year as well:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CxCJm8M2fUU/U ... ustom).jpg

BMW sauber had this in 2009.

[PlatinumZealot]

My take on the seamless downshifts is a pretty simple one. I think Ferrari are ahead of the game with the Brake by wire.

Normally on downshifts you blip the throttle to rev-match the engine with the road speed so you can use either compression from the engine to slow the car, or to use the power at that rpm range to accelerate the car if you chose to.

What Ferrari is doing is to not blip the throttle when under braking. they don't need to because they use the KERS brake by wire and run the engine lean.

[Coefficient]

On the contrary, a silent gear change implies illegal technology is in use such as CVT. We wouldn't want to get excited about something like that if it wasn't true.[/quote]
What are you on about? Upshifts have been silent for a long time via the seamless shift. It is quite possible that this has been extended to downshifts.[/quote][/quote]

No they haven't. There is still minimum shift time imposed by the fia and its perfectly noticeable on the telly during a race.