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Hi all, as a reasonable veteran of F1 (19 races attended since '96) I am reading "Countdown to a Grand Prix" (Howard) and finding it amazing just how technical the sport was by that time, although, clearly, it was always at that level since GP racing. To keep us going over winter, I would just like to get some other opinions as to when the modern era would be considered to have started....apologies if this has been discussed previously, my first post!
Not sure what you mean by "modern".
F1 as we know it began in 1950.
As rolling billboards? In 1967 the RAC relaxed it's rules on stickers and on car advertising and in 1968 you had Gold Leaf providing backing and the gates were thrown open.
"Initially commercial sponsorship meant little more than a change of hue some different more long winded names, but gradually the sport began to evolve in the 1970s when the first corporate motorhomes began to arrive in t6he paddock, along the first wave of marketing men. Instead of recognizing a sport with traditions and heritage , they saw only a new weapon in their marketing armory a new sales tool to be exploited." from the Encyclopedia of Formula One
To achieve anything, you must be prepared to dabble on the boundary of disaster.”
Sir Stirling Moss
Hi, thanks for your reply. I was probably thinking of when the technology became (relatively)of a level of that comparable to that of the current era, in other words, crazy amounts of money being spent in order to achieve performance. Not completely sure what I mean myself (!) but when the balance between design and driver started to change.. "even" more knowledge being applied more quickly than previously, when I am under the impression that there was maybe still a bit more "suck it and see" approach? A fuller understanding of aerodynamics perhaps?
Hi all, as a reasonable veteran of F1 (19 races attended since '96) I am reading "Countdown to a Grand Prix" (Howard) and finding it amazing just how technical the sport was by that time, although, clearly, it was always at that level since GP racing. To keep us going over winter, I would just like to get some other opinions as to when the modern era would be considered to have started....apologies if this has been discussed previously, my first post!
There really isn't a 'begin' for 'modern' f1, unless you have a specific point which you would call modern.
as the poster above mentions, the V6T hybrid era started in 2014, so then modern f1 will have started from 2014.
then again, in 2021 there is a rule revision so will it start then? how about 2009, also quite the difference from 2008.
if we look at a less high-tech aspect (even though F1 always has been high tech for its era) then what is your definition of exactly that?
if you started looking in 1996, well, yes, Williams iirc had a 'concept' with active suspension and an automatic variable transmission,
even though it was never allowed to be raced. if it's safety, then 1996 surely was a huge change due to the severity that 1994 caused.
before that? well Senna's Mclaren was one of the most incredibly fast f1 cars ever, but if we'd concider steering shift paddles to be modern,
then that car wasn't modern as it had a stick shift.
but if we compare that carbon fiber mclaren to aluminum bodies just a decade or so before, then that same mclaren was modern.
and if we go back further, well. do spoilers and bodywork make f1 cars modern? then we can go back to the 70s.
f1 is an evolution. there have been a few significant changes in f1 evolution due to 'breakthrough' engineering which shaped f1 cars in what
they are today, and those are engine position (balance), downforce (wings), grip (wheels and tires), suspension, aerodynamics, and materials.
from cast iron blocks and metal bodies to aluminum engines and bodies to even more exotic metals and carbon fibre bodies.
i think personally the 'biggest' change in recent times are not the changes from 2009 or coming in 2021 for example,
but far more the (mandated) hybrid start in F1 since 2014, as before 2014, there was 'just' car, gasoline engine, driver.
now we have car, gasoline engine, electric power, driver. there are now essentially 4 areas that must work together in full harmony,
where before it was 'just' 3.
aswell as the fact that it opens up new areas for performance, with the side effect that weight has greatly increased since.
even though 2021 will see a pretty influencial difference in aerodynamics and design, the thing is, we have seen many times aero differences,
and even though the hybrid era has been forced by the rules too, it's a different philosophy alltogether imho.
but to come back to the point: f1 is a 'evolution' result of motorsport engineering for open-wheeler open-cockpit competition.
could we have far more advanced machines? sure, far more 'modern' cars could very well be possible.
Money/resources are offcourse the binding factor here. If money was no object,
then we'd have cars of far lighter and more exotic body materials, including wheels.
super advanced tires. even more incredible brakes. more exotic materials in engines.
fuel. active suspension, active aerodynamics.
we could have absolutely insane fast and odd shaped f1 cars.
but the end problem is, apart from money, above all, safety. how far can we push or engineer technology to the point it becomes dangerous for the driver
or simply, that it is uncontrollable for a human driver and the driver must be replaced by a computer, or from a remote location?
is it then still F1? I don't think so, and i think everybody will agree there.
So that means there is a limit to high-tech engineering to remain acceptable.
In other words, there will be a 'natural' end or limit to the evolution of F1 / F1 design.
And quite frankly, that limit is more or less achieved, which is why in general, you could argue, that since about the late 90s untill now, F1 cars look relatively the same.
the HALO has made a difference in design and it's inevitable that at one point we'll get some sort of aeroscreen and though somewhere deep inside i really don't like it,
i'm absolutely sure that there will be a moment where f1 cars will be closed cockpit (canopy).
so there's still a bit of stretch in it's evolution, including the power plants (will it eventually become full electric, will it become a hydrogen/electric mix?),
which will alter design without any doubt, but the truth is, general aerodynamics, have reached the point where there will not be such a heavy design change between
now and the future, compared to the design difference we see in 50's cars, 60's cars and 70's cars all the way to now.
"Explain the ending to F1 in football terms"
"Hamilton was beating Verstappen 7-0, then the ref decided F%$& rules, next goal wins
while also sending off 4 Hamilton players to make it more interesting"
I believe it was 1992 that Williams had their all singing all dancing FW14B active suspension car.
Many would say that was the peak only for it to be outlawed.
To achieve anything, you must be prepared to dabble on the boundary of disaster.”
Sir Stirling Moss
I would say when Bernie stepped in to make F1 a commercial travelling circus and Marlboro funding Project 4 to take over McLaren with “money is no object”.
With the ban on unlimited testing perhaps? Since then, the focus is on simulators, CFD and improving wind tunnels, which is definitely the modern way of designing / developing the cars rather than 'throw everything at the wall and see what sticks'.
With the ban on unlimited testing perhaps? Since then, the focus is on simulators, CFD and improving wind tunnels, which is definitely the modern way of designing / developing the cars rather than 'throw everything at the wall and see what sticks'.
yes this was a step wasn't it, and Piero Ferrari seems to think this is the start of 'modern F1' he doesn't identify with
I would say when Bernie stepped in to make F1 a commercial travelling circus and Marlboro funding Project 4 to take over McLaren with “money is no object”.
that was like 1980? FOCA and all that. it's another landmark. I don't think there's one "Modern F1" point, more a series of step changes and that was one for sure
Thanks for all of the answers, some excellent points here. I really have no clue myself, although I have considered some of the elements discussed. The book which got me thinking "Countdown to a grand prix" is opening my eyes to a far greater level of technical achievement than I would have considered to be the case in 1983.....
Modern changes every fey years. It has always been leading edge, but usually road car based. The 'formula" has been anything from 500cc to open.
I see the start as being the Ford DFV, but Italian racers may as well have been especially built as they were almost the same in some road cars.
You will probably get as may opinions as people reading your post.
When arguing with a fool, be sure the other person is not doing the same thing.
Technical achievements does not mark the start of modern F1, if technical achievements do, there would have been hundreds of modern F1 starts.
Formula one has its roots in the European GP championships of the 1920’s and 1930’s, though the foundation of modern formula one began in 1946 with the federation international de l’automoble’s (FIA) standardization of the rules, which was followed by a world championship of drivers in 1950.
