Re:Formula 1′s Leading Team Has a Big Secret
by cvos on Saturday October 12, 2013 @01:28AM
(#6537421)
The main reason for the strict limits on car and engine design is safety.
It is possible to build an uncontrollable death rocket on 4 wheels, but this would simply be to dangerous for the drivers and fans.
If these strict regulations were not in place the teams would create cars that would be self destructive.
While there has been some of this back in the 80s (e.g., the Williams FW14B[1]), these regulations are also blocking a whole lot of real out-of-the-box thinking.
When I think of technical innovations from F1, I think of cars that showcased really unusual technologies. Some of my favorites have been the 1976 Tyrrell six-wheel car [2], which used four small wheels in the front to improve downforce; and the 1978 Brabham BT46 "fan car" [3], which used a big fan like a vacuum, sucking the car down onto the track for better traction.
These regulations may help prevent escalation of dumb "big iron", but they also completely shut the door on any kind of revolutionary thinking.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Williams_FW14
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrrell_P34
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brabham_BT46