2008 Barcelona Testing Thread (17 Nov - 19 Nov)

[rjsa]

As noted in autosport forums, the rear wing is 3 elements and the diffuser seems different that the one on the williams.

Front wing seems to have 3 elements also.

[Scotracer]

I thought they were limited to 2 rear-wing elements?

Other than that, the car is hideous

[timbo]

watching that ferrari "cooling bulge" on top of one of the sidepods made me think. could teams opt to get air intake for the engine in a similar fashion, and only leave the empty roll bar loop on top to make room for more air to pass thru there onto the now very narrow and tall rear wing?

Don't think so. You want to have very clean air for engine (note that engine inlet is the only inlet where teams try to detach boundary layer).

One thing I thought is maybe teams would use more "inboard" placement for radiator inlets (akin to 2001 Jordan) as front setup allows more area at the center of the car, and they don't have bargeboards to guide the air.

[ds2taieb]

Hello

Antrock, I think that you idea is good.
Then providing the air to the two rows of cylinder laterally may be an interesting alternative. The air box is dividing in two blocks placed on the sidepods (adapted for this, of course )

However the quality of the air entring inside the air box is low (because of the wheels, the front wing, the pilot helmet,...) comparing when the intake is in the classical position.

A compromise between the rear wing efficiency and the engine air supply have to be done.

David

[wesley123]

I thought they were limited to 2 rear-wing elements?

Other than that, the car is hideous

They probably found loopholes, i must say that those cars are too ugly to watch, BMW's version looks ugly, but highly developed. I think im gonna read the rules pretty good one more time to see what is allowed, maybe there is a loophole that allows wider rearwings

[imightbewrong]

new Honda front wing, looks more like the BMW version than the Williams one:

[Scotracer]

What's with the BMW and Honda having the endplates perpendicular to motion?

[timbo]

What's with the BMW and Honda having the endplates perpendicular to motion?

They cover front wheels as much as they can. But that endplates are buggin' me... Too boxy!

[meves]

If I didn't know better I'd think this was some ellaborate practical joke. The Honda looks even worse

Do you think the trend will be to run large noses (like the BMW) to add more weight to the front with the new tyres and regs? God question on the endplates, they're quite cubist on the Honda, even more than the BMW.

[Shaddock]

watching that ferrari "cooling bulge" on top of one of the sidepods made me think. could teams opt to get air intake for the engine in a similar fashion, and only leave the empty roll bar loop on top to make room for more air to pass thru there onto the now very narrow and tall rear wing?

Possible but probably unlikely as teams use this profile as a flow straightener to the rear wing. Will Red Bull produce another version of the shark fin for this year.

[Scotracer]

If they sort out the endplates I think the new wings will look very good.

[Shaddock]

Btw, why would BMW waste time driving the 2009 car on grooved tires? Is it only cause this is a shake down run?

It looks like they tested both types of tyre ?



Front suspension

[DaveKillens]

You see that guy with the leather gloves? he's also holding a grounding wire, to discharge any electrical potential from the car. Remember, just a few months ago a tech got knocked on his butt from touching a car as it came into the pits. It seems KERS has a few potential safety issues still to be resolved. Especially in the pitting/refuelling scenario. Maybe, in the interests of safety, KERS should have it's electrical/mechanical stored energy discharged before entering the pits......
The BMW front wing endplates have a very aggressive scoop discharging air directly sideways. Interesting how much this will affect other cars alongside or behind.
The sidepods have been totally redesigned. The sides are vertical and flat, as per the new regulations. But since the aero guys want a strong venturi effect at the sidepod/undertray junction, the sidepods rapidly narrow further aft. Completely new packaging issues, reflected in the high sidepod. The nose is HUGE. Maybe if they use capacitors, maybe a convenient location? Since most likely the CG is too far aft without locating some substantial mass in the nose. I'm probably totally incorrect on that one, but we have to keep the options open.
It's very hard to place BMW's state of development compared to the others, since very little is known at this time, but my opinion is that BMW is at a very advanced state of development, and without any doubt .. they are very, very serious. All the hard work and devopment is just a prelude to this year's car, which is definitely designed to be a serious title contender.

[Shaddock]

More on track action:

[rjsa]

I'd put money where my mouth is. Those endplates are a joke.