Formula 1 2020 (Will Contain Race Day Spoilers)

[Dryce]

Optimistic or in with a chance?

Who would have predicted RB's victories last season? I reckoned at the start that if MV got a few podiums and not to many DNFs that would be a good year. I was pesimistic - Honda delivered better than expected.

So I think it's all down to Honda as far as MV being WDC is concerned. Red Bull are a competent and solid team. If Honda can improve their power unit and keep it reliable then MV will exploit it to the Max.

 

[baxlin]

Have Torro Rosso changed their name?

 

[23 Romeo Tango]

Have Torro Rosso changed their name?

Yeah, I believe so.

Toro Rosso's name change to Alpha Tauri confirmed in provisional 2020 entry list | Formula 1®

Toro Rosso’s name change confirmed for F1 2020

 

[Mactech]

Interesting that Dead Bull had a 'rubbish' Renault engine in 2018 and Mclaren had a 'rubbish' Honda engine.
These two teams swapped engines for 2019 and finished 3rd and 4th in the teams championship.
Amazing what can be done when the team and engine suppliers believe in one another.
Exactly the same applies to drivers and teams.
F1 may well be an engineering led sport, but there is still a big dollop of psychology involved.

 

[GeeJayW]

Interesting that Dead Bull had a 'rubbish' Renault engine in 2018 and Mclaren had a 'rubbish' Honda engine.
These two teams swapped engines for 2019 and finished 3rd and 4th in the teams championship.
Amazing what can be done when the team and engine suppliers believe in one another.
Exactly the same applies to drivers and teams.
F1 may well be an engineering led sport, but there is still a big dollop of psychology involved.

Dumbo’s magic feather!

 

[Mactech]

Dumbo’s magic feather!

Not quite, but trust, respect and belief certainly comes into it!

Spool back to the start of the 1987 season and Brazilian Raul Boesel was testing at Silverstone the latest Jaugar Gp C car for me. it was the very last time F1 cars wold share a test with the Sportscars! Raul lapped under 90secs in our brand new car and Piquet (another Brazilian!?) in an F1 car cold not pass him....
Raul had a great light and economical style in high speed turns and had been outstanding in F3 at the same circuit.
First race at Monza and he dropped the car into a gravel trap in a freak rain shower whilst in the lead with Eddie Cheever, and eventually finished 4th.
He was devastated, but as his engineer, I assured him the both he and the car were Championship material. He went on to win the World Sportscar Championship in '87.
I caught up with him about a decade ago at Interlargos, still racing sportscars, but his "day" job was as one of the most famous DJ's in Sa Paulo

 

[bob6600]

Max signs new deal until end of 2023

Max Verstappen signs new Red Bull deal to 2023 F1 season

 

[Petrol Pete]

I think they must be trying to make the data centre robust against a common mode failure i.e. an aircon unit but they could have several small aircon units and not attempt to keep temperatures right down at 20 C. Just taking the edge off and keeping it below 30 C would be more than enough. Servers and switches can operate in temperatures that would be uncomfortable for humans so purely on environmental grounds I tend to set air con set points some way above 20 C to save energy which is not trivial when these units operate 24/7.

Agreed, but this is F1..saving energy is not that high on the agenda. It's still an odd thing to discover in such a high tech sport though.

 

[bob6600]

F1 RULES & REGULATIONS 2020: What’s new for the 2020 Formula 1 season? | Formula 1®

 

[bob6600]

UK start times confirmed

Formula 1 2020 race start times - UK time
Race Date Start time
Australian GP March 15 5.10am
Bahrain GP March 22 3.10pm
Vietnam GP April 5 8.10am
Chinese GP April 19 7.10am
Netherlands GP May 3 2.10pm
Spanish GP May 10 2.10pm
Monaco GP May 24 2.10pm
Azerbaijan GP June 7 1.10pm
Canadian GP June 14 7.10pm
French GP June 28 2.10pm
Austrian GP July 5 2.10pm
British GP July 19 3.10pm
Hungarian GP August 2 2.10pm
Belgian GP August 30 2.10pm
Italian GP September 6 2.10pm
Singapore GP September 20 1.10pm
Russian GP September 27 12.10pm
Japanese GP October 11 TBC
United States GP October 25 7.10pm
Mexican GP November 1 7.10pm
Brazilian GP November 15 5.10pm
Abu Dhabi GP November 29 1.10pm

 

[Bellow]

Pat says 2T.

Two-stroke engines & eco-fuel: F1 aims to be greener than Formula E

 

[Mactech]

Pat says 2T.

Two-stroke engines & eco-fuel: F1 aims to be greener than Formula E

Now that smells like a good idea! Although in practice in the new eco world it probably won't smell at all....
Racing, two strokes and motorcycles have been in the same sentence as long as I can remember, it is not a great leap to include F1 as well.
Honda have made some remarkable 2T engines in the past. I'd love to see engine wars again in F1, but I suspect we will have a much more prescriptive engine, but it has to sound better than the current ones.

 

[Bellow]

Now that smells like a good idea! Although in practice in the new eco world it probably won't smell at all....
Racing, two strokes and motorcycles have been in the same sentence as long as I can remember, it is not a great leap to include F1 as well.
Honda have made some remarkable 2T engines in the past. I'd love to see engine wars again in F1, but I suspect we will have a much more prescriptive engine, but it has to sound better than the current ones.

I can't see it happening unless manufacturers intend offering 2T for road use and as far as I can ascertain the European manufacturers have no intention of offering any Euro 7 compliant IC engines - electrified only. Unless of course F1 returns to being closer to its origins where companies supplying engines and transmissions could survive selling those alone. I notice a clamour for 2T to be allowed again in the lower reaches of bike racing - to cut costs.

The demise, rise and demise of the 2T is a mystery. Inherent in it is the potential to be a cleaner engine than the 4T (esp NOx) but it is overlooked and when engaged with the 4T guys apply their 4T thinking (all they have, sadly) to it and it doesn't respond.
Direct injection showed promise (but has never been followed up with higher pressure systems as now used on 4T that would offer benefits) but wasn't the complete answer but came very close for relatively slow (5500-6000rpm) motors (higher rpm (8500-9000rpm) required an additional set of injectors for the crankcase for use at high rpm) such as outboards. But I read of a guy in the USA who was part of Yamaha's distribution network in the USA who had a warehouse full of DI 2Ts ready to go to market in his territory who was told to destroy all of them. Thereafter, Yamaha sold 4Ts as outboards - despite them needing a supercharger to compete with the 2T's torque. Who knows? Not me!

 

[Dryce]

Honda have made some remarkable 2T engines in the past. I'd love to see engine wars again in F1, but I suspect we will have a much more prescriptive engine, but it has to sound better than the current ones.

When it comes to two-stroke I tend to think of large ones Napier and Deltics ....and the Leyland L60 tank engine.

Deltic clag from a F1 car would be an impressive sight. But I suspect at the start only the lead cars would be visible and after a coule of lasp at racing speed nothing would be visble on the main straights.

 

[Bellow]

When it comes to two-stroke I tend to think of large ones Napier and Deltics ....and the Leyland L60 tank engine.

Tiddlers! At least they are compared to the Cathedral Diesels powering ships

Deltic clag from a F1 car would be an impressive sight. But I suspect at the start only the lead cars would be visible and after a coule of lasp at racing speed nothing would be visble on the main straights.

Back when fuel oil ratios were of the order of 16:1 that would have been true. Less so at 50:1 - and even that assumes petroil mix where a better system could be employed.

 

[tbourner]

Where can us non-Sky people watch F1 this year? Has it been revoked even more than last year or are we good for CH4 highlights?

 

[bob6600]

Where can us non-Sky people watch F1 this year? Has it been revoked even more than last year or are we good for CH4 highlights?

F1 highlights to remain on Channel 4 in 2020, as broadcaster strikes Sky deal

 

[bob6600]

McLaren have announced their launch date for the MCL35

 

[Dryce]

Tiddlers! At least they are compared to the Cathedral Diesels powering ships

Deltics can move quite quickly though ..... on water or on rails.

 

[Mactech]

When it comes to two-stroke I tend to think of large ones Napier and Deltics ....and the Leyland L60 tank engine.

Whilst I just about remember a Deltic class loco from my model railway as a kid, I really had no idea what mechanical mayhem ensued inside these trains!
Genius or madness, the environment and economics seems to have confined these to history.
However, some of the ideas combined with modern electronics, materials and manufacturing could just be worth another look