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F1
New Formula 1 rules see cars changing dramatically
By Jack Martin
18:30 January 30, 2010 PST
Formula One will be quite different in 2010 thanks to a number of changes to the rules. The Kinetic Energy Recovery System is gone, front tires will be narrower (from 270mm to 245mm) and most significantly, there will be no refueling during races which will mean fuel tanks will need to be roughly three times larger than 2009. The changes have bred a different size and shape of car, as was evidenced over the last two days when we saw the first of the serious contender’s cars – the 2010 McLaren MP4-25 of Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton and the Ferrari F10 of Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso. Demonstrating the drawing power of the Prancing Horse, Ferrari attracted an audience of three million unique visitors to its web site for the launch. The season gets underway tomorrow when … Read More
Formula-looking EV Mini Sport fits motorized bicycle category
By Jeff Salton
22:43 January 26, 2010 PST
To many motoring enthusiasts, Japan’s Nobuhiro “Monster” Tajima is to hill climbing what Michael Schumacher is to F1 or Valentino Rossi is MotoGP. It’s no wonder then that when Tajima launches an electric car the motoring world gets a little excited. Released recently at the first EV and HEV Drive System Technology Expo in Tokyo, the Tajima Motor Corporation’s (in conjunction with Natural Energy) EV Mini Sport is an open wheeler, single-seater car that looks very comfortable on the track. Read More
Mercedes assembles Silver Arrows F1 dream team
By Gizmag Team
11:52 January 25, 2010 PST
The new Silver Arrows Formula One works team was presented in Stuttgart today and though there were no surprises, the line-up was nonetheless formidable. Take a world championship winning team (Brawn F1 2009), add to it substantial long term sponsorship from Petronas, the full weight of Mercedes Benz management, finances and engineering (with the emphasis on engine - the title engine of the last two years) and then slot in the winningest F1 driver in history, and you have a pretty impressive line-up. The most ominous aspect of it all though is that the pairing of Ross Brawn and Michael Schumacher is back together. It won two titles at Benetton, reestablished the Ferrari dynasty then Brawn created his own history last year. The car remains under a shroud of secrecy until its track debut next week. Read More
Valentino Rossi becomes the world's hottest property on 2 and 4 wheels
By Gizmag Team
13:09 January 23, 2010 PST
It is interesting to note that the three biggest stories in Formula One right now concern a driver who competed in 2010 but not in 2009 (the Michael Schumacher comeback), a driver who competed in 2009 but not 2010 (Raikkonen loses his drive and goes WRC) and a driver who has never competed in F1 and quite possibly never will – Valentino Rossi. Indeed, Rossi has only ever driven an F1 car six times, but his status as one of motorcycling’s all-time greats and one of the most popular and media-savvy sportspeople of all time make the possibility an incredibly enticing prospect. For Ferrari, Rossi brings a global army of fans and the possibility of a rare Italian driver-car title combination that hasn’t happened since Alberto Ascari in 1953, despite 15 drivers titles and 16 constructors titles for the marque since then. This week Rossi tested in a Ferrari F1 car again, and was so fast that the possibility might now be approaching a probability. Read More
Raikkonen hoping for a late Christmas present
By Gizmag Team
01:24 January 22, 2010 PST
Just two years ago, Finn Kimi Raikkonen was the reigning (2007) World Champion in the world’s most prominent television sport, and the number one driver for the world’s most famous racing marque, Ferrari. Forbes rated him the 26th highest paid celebrity in the world, the fifth highest paid sportsperson and the highest paid driver in the world with a weekly pay cheque of US$1,000,000. Late last year he lost his job in the cutthroat game of musical chairs played by the top half dozen drivers in the world and decided to sit out 2010 by driving rally cars. This weekend he starts his new job in a town made famous by none other than Father Christmas – could there be a belated Christmas Gift in the offing? Read More
Ferrari's F1 simulator pushes the limits
By Gizmag Team
15:12 December 23, 2009 PST
Simulators have long been used to teach new skills that would otherwise involve great expense and/or great risk - like learning to fly a new aeroplane. Now Ferrari has built its own F1 simulator so it can develop its Formula One cars and train its drivers to use new technology and to race on new tracks without breaking F1 rules limiting testing in the real world. The simulator uses ten linked computers, 60 GB of RAM, five giant 3D video screens, a 3500 watt Dolby sound system, and weighs more than 200 tonnes. Even the 130 kW electrical power supply for the machine is a beast. Read More
F1 inspired Factor 001 bicycle on sale at Harrods for $36K
22:15 December 7, 2009 PST
It weighs just 7.4kg, it's custom-built to the exact dimensions of the buyer and boasts the most advanced design and electronics system ever seen on a bicycle... and it's yours for a cool £21,995 (approx US$36K). Beru f1 systems Factor 001 bicycle is definitely at the high-end of high-end when it comes to two-wheeled transport. The company has turned its expertise in motorsport to the humble bicycle and produced a finely tuned machine that includes 8-spoke monocoque carbon composite wheels and a lightweight composite frame designed using modeling software borrowed from Formula One. Read More
Mechanical bolt-on KERS hybrid for buses offers 30% fuel saving
By Gizmag Team
03:05 October 3, 2009 PDT
It seems that the lessons learned in developing a mechanical KERS system for F1 may yet hold the key to a low-cost, high-efficiency hybrid system particularly suited for the stop-start patterns of buses, which are quite similar to the distances between capturing and delivering energy of those of a race car. Torotrak will deliver a paper at the SAE Commercial Vehicle Congress in Illinois next week showing how flywheel KERS for buses can offer more than 30 percent fuel saving over the London bus test cycle, yet package around an existing transmission. Read More
The world's best sports car show
By Gizmag Team
20:19 August 20, 2009 PDT
Imagine a sports car show held not in an exhibition center, but at the safest racetrack in the world, so the cars can be appreciated in their natural surroundings, without speed limits. The first “International GT & Supercar Show” will be held at Circuit Paul Ricard in the South of France on September 26 and 27. Exhibitors include Ferrari, Gumpert, Koenigsegg, Ad Tramontana, Aston Martin, Bentley, Bugatti, F&M, Morgan, Audi Wiesmann, Spyker, Mosler, Pagani, Porsche, Saleen, TVR, Yes, Venturi, Alfa Romeo Zagato, Jaguar, Lamborghini, Mercedes, Castagna Milano, Maserati, Lotus, Lightning and Tesla. Read More
Spyker C8 Aileron Spyder prototype let loose
By Jeff Salton
23:18 August 16, 2009 PDT
Spyker Cars may not have impressed in its F1 venture, but it certainly has made up for it off the track. The exclusive sportscar-maker has kept true to its promise made in March at the Geneva Auto Show by debuting the first prototype of the Spyder version of its second-generation Spyker C8 Aileron. The 300kmh open-top model is scheduled to go into production in the first half of 2010. Read More
Toyota F1 team puts hardware up for sale
By Mike Hanlon
18:32 May 28, 2009 PDT
Despite a propensity to eat its own, Formula One is still the globe’s most watched sporting series, and its merchandising machine is evident on the streets of every country in the world. The t-shirt, cap and key-ring knock-off makers will have a hard time replicating the latest offerings from the Toyota Panasonic F1 team though. The company has begun selling the used high-tech parts from its racing cars. A complete rear wing, engine cover and underbody section, virtually half a car, can be had for just UKP4,400 – we suspect some very realistic game console accessories will emanate soon due to this very clever move. “While stocks last” promises to be an apt sales pitch as F1 nutters rush to snap up the bargains. Read More
Ferrari set to withdraw from Formula One
By Mike Hanlon
16:51 May 12, 2009 PDT
May 13, 2009 In an announcement that shocked the motor racing world yesterday, Ferrari has signalled its intentions to withdraw from Formula One next year. Ferrari’s Board of Directors announced a EUR 54 million Q1, 2009 trading profit, only slightly down compared to EUR 59 million last year. At the same time it criticised the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile for its decision to introduce “two different sets of regulations based on arbitrary technical rules and economic parameters.” The Board announced that unless the regulatory framework for Formula 1 is changed, then “the reasons underlying Ferrari’s uninterrupted participation in the World Championship over the last 60 years – the only constructor to have taken part ever since its inception in 1950 – would come to a close.” Read More
Prost's infamous 1990 F1 Ferrari to go under the hammer
By Mike Hanlon
19:21 April 21, 2009 PDT
A Formula One car at the centre of one of the most bitter battles in F1 history, as well as one of its most infamous acts, goes under the hammer at the highly anticipated Ferrari Leggenda e Passione event at Ferrari’s home in Maranello on May 17. The car is the Ferrari 641/2 F1 car driven by Alain Prost in 1990 during his acrimonious run-ins with his McLaren rival, Ayrton Senna. It is also the actual car that Prost was driving when Senna punted him off the track in Japan within seconds of the start of the race, handing the Brazilian the 1990 title – an act which prompted an appalled Prost to make the comment that “motor racing is sport, not war.” In the hands of Prost, chassis 121 scored in total two third-place finishes, two second places and a victory in 1990, and is expected to fetch an estimated USD$700,000 at auction. Read More
Red Bull takes maiden F1 win – KERS dropped by all but three cars
By Mike Hanlon
03:24 April 19, 2009 PDT
Red Bull Racing finally took its maiden Formula One victory in a rain-soaked Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai today. German prodigy Sebastian Vettel took his second career win in the wet (he won in the rain at Monza last year for the other Red Bull Team, Torro Rosso), followed home by team mate Mark Webber to give the team a 1-2 finish. Only three cars elected to use the KERS hybrid systems after Ferrari, Renault and one BMW car dropped the system for the race. Read More
Formula One Double Deck Diffuser explained
By Paul Evans
06:59 April 7, 2009 PDT
Only two rounds into the 2009 FIA Formula One World Championship and the largest number of rule changes in the history of the sport have well and truly reshuffled the deck. We took a close look at the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) before the opening round got underway in Melbourne, Australia, but it turns out the biggest news in Formula One at the start of the season is the rear diffusers being used by the Brawn, Toyota and Williams teams. The diffusers in question were cleared by the FIA as long ago as January but the matter will again be considered by the FIA's International Court of Appeal on April 14. Paul Evans investigates. Read More
The Virgin Brawn GP team's spectacular first up effort
By Mike Hanlon
16:03 March 31, 2009 PDT
The feats of Brawn GP at Albert Park in the team's inaugural race at the first round of World Formula One Championship on March 29, 2009 will surely go down in the pantheon of spectacularly successful first-up sporting efforts. A month ago they were all unemployed, but in just 28 days they put two cars on the track, tested them over a normally-inadequate 2000 km and qualified them 1-2 for the first race, at the same time announcing a heavyweight backer in the form of Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group and involvement with a new Virgin Fuel, reportedly a clean-burning petroleum replacement. Next day, success fueled more success with a 1-2 finish for the team, and engine supplier Mercedes. Mastermind Ross Brawn was in tears after the race, as no doubt were Honda. Read More
Formula One KERS explained
By Paul Evans
01:33 March 26, 2009 PDT
The 2009 FIA Formula One World Championship starts this weekend with round one in Australia where we are about to witness the biggest number of rule changes in the history the sport. The front and rear wings have been significantly changed in size and height to reduce the aerodynamic effect on cars following each other. Many of the aerodynamic 'extras' added by teams last season around the side pods will be banned and after 11 years of grooved tires slicks will make a return. The aerodynamic changes include a first in F1, driver adjustable front wing flaps, but the rule changes we're most interested in are those concerning the introduction of the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) that will eventually make every future Formula One race car a hybrid. Read More
Brawn buys Honda F1 team … is this a fairytale in the making?
By Mike Hanlon
22:07 March 22, 2009 PDT
March 23, 2009 The first cars were unloaded onto the pit apron at Albert Park yesterday in preparation for next weekend's first Formula One Grand Prix of the 2009 season. It already shapes up as the most intriguing F1 season ever. Technologically, despite a raft of changes this year, the wild card not yet fathomable is the implementation of the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), a fancy name for regenerative braking, and a technology that will ultimately force all F1 cars to use hybrid power sources, most likely during 2009, but not necessarily. Only a few teams will arrive in Melbourne ready to race with electronic KERS systems that offer approximately 80 bhp extra for six seconds a lap, but we're not even sure which teams they will yet be. The biggest intrigue of the weekend though, will be the performance of the newborn Brawn F1 team. Everyone always knew Ross Brawn was a special talent, but no-one saw this one coming. Brawn is poised to deliver one of the greatest motorsport fairy tales ever. Read More
Lifestyles of the rich, famous and incredibly fast: the Ascari Race Resort
By Loz Blain
00:19 September 22, 2008 PDT
The Ascari Race Resort seems to have been transplanted from a motorsport enthusiast's wildest playboy fantasies into a rolling valley among southern Spain's magnificent Andalusian mountains. An immaculate, 5.425km, FAI-compliant private racetrack awaits its wealthy patrons with 25 demanding and technical turns per lap, some designed to replicate famous turns from F1 tracks around the world. A fleet of hire cars that ranges from a "beginner" race-prepped Lotus Elise up to ex-Formula One machinery sits growling in the pits beside a full-time pit crew, tempting the anointed and the unworthy alike. And in a world first, Ascari's seven-star hotel complex includes serious entertainment, luxury and recreation to keep the whole family occupied as you exorcise your speed demons on the tarmac. As Fernando Alonso described it: "Unusual, exciting, beautiful." Read More
Free Spirit: the world’s lightest wheelchair
By Emily Clark
23:43 May 12, 2008 PDT
May 13, 2008 Drawing on a background that ranges from experience as an aerospace technician to a stint in research and development on the Williams F1 team, Marcus Cunnington has designed and built the 6.3kg (around 13.9 pounds) Free Spirit - a carbon fiber composite design that claims the mantle of the world's lightest manual rigid wheelchair. Read More
Gearing up for Goodwood
23:41 April 16, 2008 PDT
The wheels are in motion for this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed which will be held between 11-13 July under the theme ‘Hawthorn to Hamilton – Britain’s Love Affair with World Motor Sport’. Read More
MotoGP night race testing begins
By Mike Hanlon
20:19 February 27, 2008 PST
February 28, 2008 For all the thrill of attending a Formula One (F1) or MotoGP event, the majority of the live spectators view the races on TV, and the majority of both sports’ income comes from television rights. F1 and MotoGP are both broadcast to more than 200 countries with Formula One attracting television fees of around US$380 million annually for a cumulative season audience of around 580 million unique viewers. In order to “optimize” television rights revenues, both sports are now moving to night Grands Prix in some time zones so the races can be broadcast live in prime time in the key European markets. The first night “test” begins today in Qatar and presents some interesting logistical problems for the teams. Read More
Details confirmed for first-ever Formula One night race
18:24 January 31, 2008 PST
February 1, 2008 The timetable has been set for September's Formula 1(TM) Singapore Grand Prix, the first ever Grand Prix to be held at night. Read More
Factor 001: BERU f1systems previews high-tech carbon chassis bicycle
19:57 December 17, 2007 PST
Performance engineering specialist BERU f1systems has provided a glimpse of its intriguing new project - the Factor 001 bicycle. Best known for its involvement in Formula 1 racing and as a supplier for supercars like the Bugatti Veyron, the company's latest innovation rolls advanced electronics into a high-tech package that includes carbon chassis, ceramic brakes and bespoke drivetrain. Marked by square, clean lines and its completely metallic finish, the prototype is designed primarily as an advanced training tool, with stored biometric data such as heart and respiration rate available for downloaded for post-training analysis. Read More
F1 shock: no more engine development allowed for 10 years
By Loz Blain
00:30 December 10, 2007 PST
December 10, 2007 Last Friday, at the World Motor Sport Council in Monaco, the FIA, which governs Formula One racing, made a decision to immediately freeze engine development for the next 10 years. Unbelievably, the engine each F1 team presents and homologates by the end of next March will be the engine that team races until 2017 – and the billions of Euros normally spent on engine development will be channeled into peripheral systems. The FIA sees development outside the engine, such as with Kinetic Energy Recovery, as a far more valuable contribution to road car development than spending money on squeezing another 1000rpm and 30 horsepower out of an engine that's already spinning three times as fast as the one in your family sedan. Read More
dariusvons
- February 10, 2010 @ 00:56 UTC
