My Digital Life » Cars

Lewis Hamilton at Monaco

Tom Basham — Sun, 29 May 2011 22:33:09 +0000

Today’s Monaco Grand Prix was probably the most enjoyable race from Monte Carlo since Senna and Mansell fought their way to the finish there in ‘92. Usually Monaco is a glamorous setting but a dull race but the 2011 race was a real classic. Perhaps the only disappointment from today was Lewis Hamilton. I’ve been a fan of Lewis since he joined the F1 circus in 2007. I liked the way he took his McLaren by the scruff of the neck and hustled it around the race track whether it wanted to or not. In the first season of his career he did things in an F1 car that no other driver did. He pulled off some fantastic passes like the one at Monza above. Today however I thought he let himself down. Not by the after race comments that will grab the headlines, I can understand the frustration leading to his unwise words. More I thought his driving was reckless and destroyed the races of others who did little deserve being hit by his McLaren. I wonder whether when he looks back at the videos he’ll regret his comments blaming the other drivers. He was never going to get past Massa in the inside of the hairpin, and his attempt on poor Maldonado was ambitious at best. I do hope that Lewis comes to realise that those incidents had more to do with his own driving that theirs. Following his championship win Lewis seemed to be maturing as a driver. He toned down his do-or-die style and whilst he wasn’t perhaps as exciting to watch, it did make him a more consistent driver. Since the middle of last season though he seems to have taken a step backwards. The composure that kept is aggressive driving in check isn’t always present leading to silly mistakes like those today (or Monza and Singapore last year). Lewis is clearly a world class driver, he’s shown a natural talent for racing that lets him haul even a slow car to a competitive position. I don’t think its his driving per se that’s at fault. Attitude and mental state play an equal part in success and I suspect that this is the problem. Looking back at some of the performances below I hope Lewis gets the support he needs to regain his composure as the sport will be all the better with an on form Lewis Hamilton. Silverstone 2006 (GP2)

Lewis and Kimi in the rain at Spa in 2008 Oh… and just because I can, the Senna and Mansell footage from Monaco. Sorry about the Japanese commentary!

Robots in disguise!

Tom Basham — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 20:20:07 +0000

Ever wondered what the cars behind the autobots were...?

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Bruno Senna at the Goodwood Festival of Speed

Tom Basham — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 08:40:57 +0000

Bruno Senna posted a great clip of him driving one his uncles (Ayton Senna) old race cars back down the Goodwood hill to the paddock, filming the entire thing on his phone. As Bruno says on twitter:

I was holding my mobile phone with my left hand and the steering wheel with the right. Don't do this at home. Definitely not on the street!!

I thought this was a good demonstration of the reasons I love the Festival of Speed. Where else would you get the best drivers in the world hooning the best cars in the world up and down someone's driveway?

Another Jenson and Lewis Video

Tom Basham — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 10:36:12 +0000

I could spend days looking around that warehouse…

Jenson and Lewis build a McLaren F1 Car

Tom Basham — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 15:25:26 +0000

A nice video with Jenson and Lewis trying to build one of the teams old F1 cars without the rest of their team. Looks like goof fun, and it’s good to see that they seem to get on.

The clip also reminds me that I really must find a way to blag a factory tour!

Building a race car from scratch

Tom Basham — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 23:06:01 +0000

Years ago when I was first looking into getting my Elise I spent quite a bit of time on the British Cars BBS, which at the time was a lively place to find out about such things. I remember have a couple of chats to a guy who went by the name of DP on the site. He had one of the few Elise’s in the states at that time, which was quite a feat as they weren’t actually street legal over there.

Anyway, last time I remember him posting there he was looking into building his own car from scratch based on a layout with the driver and engine side-by-side with chains driving both the front and rear wheels.

I kept up with the project at the time, but today I noticed a post on Jalopnik about a new ‘DP4 Super-kart’. Turns out in the 8 years since then Dennis has been busy building on those original plans and developing a number of different cars based on that layout.

The latest project looks pretty impressive… it’s smaller than an original Mini but powered by a ~200bhp motorbike engine though a 4wd system. If the video below is anything to go by it looks like a lot of fun. Especially when you consider that’s the cars first real run so it hasn’t had much development on it’s setup etc.

He’s also got a really good blog detailing the development of all his projects including the DP4. If you’re a car geek it’s well worth a read. It’ll be interesting to see how his other projects go, as they include electric track cars based on the same sort of designs.

There's more info on the Palatov Motorsport site and DP's own site.

F1 Car Setup for Monaco

Tom Basham — Sat, 15 May 2010 12:12:40 +0000

It’s the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend, one of my favourite F1 races of the season. Ok the races often aren’t the best but the track is unique and the overall event something worth watching.

Of course the short, tight track poses some interesting challenges for the teams. The layout is very different from purpose build circuit, with the corners, bump and armco barriers all meaning that in terms of setup the cars are quite different from any other time in the season. With no real straights to speak of, aerodynamic efficiency is far less important than outright mechanical grip.

If (like me) you’re a car geek and you find that sort of stuff interesting, ScarbsF1 posted up an interesting article on the differences that Monaco brings. It’s worth a read: Monaco Set up- the misconception of wheelbase

Are Aerodynamics really F1′s big problem?

Tom Basham — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 07:39:32 +0000

I’m just watching a fantastic Australian Grand Prix, at the moment Lewis is chasing the Renault of Robert Kubica to try and make it a McLaren 1-2 finish.

And yet there’s been a lot of worry about the ‘sceptical’ of F1 being diminished, particularly after the dull season opener in Bahrain. One of the things you’ll hear is that the blame lays squarely with the aerodynamics of a modern F1 car.

The argument is that the aero components of the cars provide so much downforce that the cars performance is completely reliant on it. What’s more, with the car’s taking so much of it’s performance from the airflow, the wake of disturbed air that the car’s leave behind them then destroys the efficiency of the aero of any car following behind. These two things conspire to make it that much harder for cars to run close to each other and give us all the close running and overtaking that we all enjoy.

But I’m not so sure… of course the aero parts make a huge contribution to the fantastic performance of modern grand prix cars, but I’m not so sure it’s the sole cause of the problem.

A couple of weeks ago Frank Dernie the ex-Toyota aerodynamicist posted some interesting thoughts on James Allens blog about this very problem. He offers a counter argument that the lack of overtaking is more to do with the mechanical grip of the tyres and the lack of mistakes by the drivers. And I think he has a point.

“None of the facts in the last 30 years support the theory that grippy tyres and low downforce promote overtaking. If reducing downforce was the answer, then 1983 would have shown it, since we lost 80% of the aero efficiency in the 1983 rules, ” he says. “But there was no more overtaking than in 1982.
“Here’s the proof – if downforce prevented overtaking, historically the races with the fewest overtaking manoeuvres would have been the wet races, where maximum downforce settings are used… Why anybody still thinks a reduction in downforce is the solution when faced with the facts has been a consistent mystery and frustration to me.
“Too much difference in grip between on and off line is a major factor, caused by sticky tyres (lots of mechanical grip)
“Braking distances into slow corners are far too short, caused by sticky tyres (too much mechanical grip).
“The other reason why it is hard to overtake in current F1 is that the fastest cars are at the front with slower ones behind, so there is no reason to expect overtaking unless a driver makes a mistake.
“In this case overtaking will only ever happen following mistakes, which are rare nowadays with super sticky tyres, big runoff areas and semi automatic gearboxes.
“A few things have worked in the past.
– One set of tyre for the race worked, but Michelin’s tyres were much more suited to this than Bridgestone, so it was changed since Bridgestone were to become the only supplier.
– Single lap qualifying. Often fast cars qualified out of pace order, making overtaking likely. It was unpopular since it was “not fair”.
“When there was overtaking in the past it was mainly due to the low grip of the tyres leaving a wide racing line and long braking distances combined with cars much more difficult to drive due to low grip and manual gearboxes, hence more mistakes.
“We will never fix it whilst so many people ignore the facts and fixate on long held views which are completely at variance with the data.
“The problem is that quite a few influential people, like drivers and ex-drivers in the media, do not want the changes which certainly worked in the past. The drivers hate hard tyres, despite them probably being 50% solution, and the engineers love semi-automatic gearboxes, the other 50%…
Most overtakes took place in the past when a driver made a mistake due to poor grip or missed a gear.”

It may not be a popular point of view, but you only have to look at todays Grand Prix – a very good race by the way! - to see that all the interest has come from either mistakes by the drivers or from peoples tyres giving different levels of performance through the race and changing weather.

Whilst I don’t think there’s a single fix, the tracks themselves have a good part to play as well for example, I can’t see why the pundits have this fascination with aerodynamics being such a huge problem. As Frank says, there doesn’t seem to be any evidence to support it.

Rally driver + 911 GT3 RS + Route Napoleon

Tom Basham — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 19:08:48 +0000

I’m not sure I’d have have been so forthcoming with the information that the PSM (stability control) could be turned all the way off… God stuff Chris :)

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First F1, now Lotus-Cosworth go back to Indycar

Tom Basham — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 23:12:28 +0000

Following Lotus and Cosworth’s return to F1 this year, it sounds like the two companies have big plans for the future. As well as their recent agreement to jointly further develop the Toyota engines Lotus use in the Elise and Evora road cars, today they announced a return to the American Indycar series.

The two have teamed up with the existing KV Racing Technology team and will join the grid for the first USA round of this years series. The car will be in the traditional Green and Yellow Lotus colours, and will have Takuma Sato behind the wheel.

This isn’t the first time Lotus has raced in Indycar of course, back in the 60’s they were a common sight with Jim Clarke winning the Indy 500 in ‘65.

F1 technical information

Tom Basham — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 15:22:34 +0000

It’s been an interesting few weeks with most of the F1 teams now deeply into their test programmes before the new season starts in a few weeks.

This year Twitter seems to have been the place to keep up with the action, with the teams, drivers, the BBC and various independents posting updates and info.

One guy in particular has been tweeting some very good technical info about the new cars. @scarbsf1 is an independent journalist following F1 and posts some great analysis of F1’s technical side. He’s also setup a blog at http://scarbsf1.wordpress.com. If the techie side of things interests you it’s a very good resource.

Sports events to be broadcast in 3D

Tom Basham — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:26:33 +0000

Whilst catching up on some reading earlier I noticed an interesting post over on James Allen’s blog about ESPN’s announcement that they’re going to start broadcasting sports events in 3D. It seems like one of the first will be this years world cup.

Of course 3D TV’s still a bit of a rarity, though I imagine big sporting events will increase sales. However with the content starting to appear, I wonder if cinemas may well expand the use of their 3D enabled screens? They will have invested in the technology to supper 3D, so should be keen to be get the most use out of it as possible. They could use the screens to show, for example, the world cup matches in 3D. It would be a good way of increasing the use of screens at quiet times.

Now if only they would start showing F1 in 3D…

(Photo from ESPN, via Jame’s blog)

Lotus to test new F1 car at the Jerez test

Tom Basham — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 17:26:25 +0000

According to Autosport, Lotus F1 are going to be ready to test their new car at the second Jerez test on 17th February. Considering the team only got a place on the grid on the 12th September I think that’s quite a feat.

The teams technical director Mike Gascoyne say that the team is a week ahead of their plans, which should allow them to comfortably make the test, and have the second chassis running by the final Barcelona test.

The full article is here:
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/80763

Driving a Formula 1 Car

Tom Basham — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 20:56:23 +0000

If you’re anything like me you’ve probably had a conversation with a mate about just how quickly you might be able to drive an F1 car if someone was foolish enough to hand you one for a few hours.

Whether or not I’ll ever get that chance I don’t know, but I just stumbled across these three video’s from Autocar where Chris Harris gets the chance to drive an old Jaguar F1 car on the Silverstone National circuit. I’ve met Chris a few times at various events, and he always comes across as a decent chap. Lucky bastard, but a decent chap :) I know over the years he’s driven and raced some pretty special cars, so it’s interesting to hear how surprised he is at the performance of the Jaguar. It was obviously going to be fast, but he really seems taken aback by just how far ahead of other road and race cars it is.

Heikki and Trulli for Lotus F1

Tom Basham — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:29:27 +0000

Its been a while coming but the new Lotus F1 team have finally announced Jarno Trulli and Keikki Kovalainen as their lead drivers for 2010. It’s not a bad pairing to be honest, both have proved to be quick but neither (to my mind) have ever really stood out from the crowd. I think I’d rather have had young Kobayashi who was so impressive in his two outings for Toyota last year. They should be a good team to help develop the new car though. Here’s a copy of the Q&A session that accompanied the press release:

Jarno Trulli What were the reasons behind your decision to join Lotus F1 Racing? "I am really pleased to be joining Lotus F1 Racing. It was quite a difficult situation at the start of November with my former team withdrawing from Formula 1, but I was convinced I would stay in Formula 1. I was in contact with Mike (Gascoyne, Chief Technical Officer) about the possibility of joining the new Lotus team and it became quickly clear that it would be a very good opportunity for me. I have been in Formula 1 for many years but there is something extremely motivating about helping to build a team from the ground level up. There is a lot of ambition from Tony (Fernandes, Team Principal), Mike and in fact the whole of Malaysia as a nation, and that level of enthusiasm is infectious for a driver. I am really looking forward to the challenge." You are one of the longest-serving drivers in Formula 1 - how important will your experience be for the team? "I have driven for quite a few teams in my career, both manufacturer and independent teams, so I have a wide range of experience. I hope that this experience will be a positive asset for Lotus as we begin this new challenge together. We should not underestimate the task in hand. Formula 1 in 2010 is an exciting prospect with brand new teams, established manufacturers fighting back and of course other young teams looking to repeat their 2009 success. Everyone will be fighting hard for results, but we still have all our foundations to set, so we have a lot to do." Do you expect the team to be immediately competitive? "We have to set realistic targets for the first year. We are one of the new teams, so we have to prove ourselves and to gain respect in the paddock. We have to establish ourselves as the best of the new teams and see what gap we have between us and the rest. Only then will we really understand what gains we need to make during the season. The points system has changed to reward the top ten drivers, so I would like to see us making progress towards the top ten by Abu Dhabi." What do you think of the team's approach to Formula 1 based on your previous experiences? "Having spoken to Tony and to Mike, as well as being in Malaysia this week, I can see a very sensible attitude and professional approach to racing. Of course everyone supporting the team wants results but everybody knows that will take time. We certainly have the capabilities and the tools to do the job. I know Mike very well from our time at other teams and I have a lot of faith in his technical operation." What do you think of having Heikki as a team-mate? "It's great to have a younger driver like Heikki on board. He has been in Formula 1 for a few years now, so he has matured into a competitive and well-rounded race driver. His experiences at other teams will certainly help Lotus F1 Racing as a whole and I am looking forward to working alongside him. He is bringing a different character and driving style to the team which I think will benefit all of us during 2010." Heikki Kovalainen You are entering your fourth season as a Formula 1 race driver by joining a brand new team in Lotus F1 Racing - what factors were behind your decision to join the team? For me there were a couple of major factors - Tony and Mike being the two leading figures in the project, and the backing behind the team were both very important, and having spoken to both of them I became aware that the whole operation has a lot of potential, and a very good chance of being a successful team in the future. I saw Lotus F1 Racing as the best choice for me to progress my career, after considering several other options that were available to me. What have you seen of the team so far? I have visited the base of the team, as well as meeting Tony and Mike, and I can see that everyone involved is very motivated, excited and happy to be pushing this program forwards. The team has ambitious plans for the future and everyone will see Lotus F1 Racing in Bahrain GP as a professional, competitive yet very humble group of intelligent individuals. What do you think of your new team-mate Jarno? I have known Jarno for many years now and I think together we can push the team forwards very quickly, and develop our car and the team in a professional way. Do you have any specific targets for your first season with the team? I always race to win and I will do everything as if I was preparing to put the car on pole, but of course we have to be realistic and keep the focus on developing the team to a state where we can operate like any other current top F1 team. It will not be easy and we will have tough times at the beginning, there's no question about it, but as long as we keep improving all the way through the year and have the earned respect of the other top teams on the grid, then we can be pleased about the first year. Does the Lotus name add any pressure on you or the team? Well maybe at the beginning we will get away with some difficulties, but of course Lotus has been a winning team in the past and, like I said earlier, the team has ambitious plans to become successful, so after a little while we need to be making progress to keep the Lotus name at its current high status. Tony Fernandes There has been a lot of speculation recently about the driver line-up. How did you reach your decision? "Firstly, I would like to say this is an historic day for all us at Lotus F1 Racing as we announce our first driver line-up. We have three drivers who I believe complement each other excellently and who I think represent what Lotus F1 Racing and 1Malaysia is all about. That is not to say it was a straight-forward decision because we spoke with other drivers who I rate very highly, but ultimately we have opted for a careful mix of experience, youth and ambition. In Jarno we have the F1 veteran who proved in 2009 that he is as quick and determined as ever. In Heikki we have a continuing rising star who is still hungry to prove himself, and in Fairuz we have a Malaysian national driver who is eager to progress up the F1 ladder to fulfill the hopes of a nation. It's the full package if you ask me." What do you expect from the drivers in 2010? "It is more a question of what we all expect from each other rather than just from the drivers. 2010 will be the first season for Lotus F1 Racing and we have a lot to achieve in a short space of time. As with any new venture, it is a case of 'all hands on deck'. Everybody has a vital role to play but it is about bringing a new team together and gelling. The drivers each bring different experience to the team and I think the combination of their skills will help us quickly establish ourselves as the ones to watch in 2010 and beyond." Did you ever think you would see two race winning drivers in the team's first season? "I am still pinching myself. We have not even finished our first race car, so to attract two race winning drivers to the team is a huge achievement and honour. I think it is a testament to our ambition and our long-term vision that we have such talent on our books in year one. It is further proof that we are serious about what we do and I am sure the other new teams are looking at us with some envy right now." You have also unveiled the new team logo... "We have thought long and hard about our team brand and logo, and I am very pleased with the end result. F1 aficionados will immediately recognise the classic green and yellow colour of Lotus, but we have given it a modern twist which is essentially what this team is about. We are not pretending to be the Lotus of the past, but we are honoured to be able to bring the name back into Formula 1 at the start of a new decade of racing. We will draw on its heritage and use it to inspire and motivate our team, Lotus F1 Racing. I hope everybody likes the logo and enjoys a small glimpse into the livery of our race cars for our first season."