Innholdsfortegnelse for July 2019 i Racecar Engineering

When you like films, enjoy the story telling, good acting, pace and having a keen eye for the details, you will progress to enjoying films so bad they are unmissable. In the same vein, bad cars, by showing their flaws, make us understand the deeper complexity of crafting good ones. The 1989 Eurobrun F1 could be an example. Let us examine it. In part, the team were ex-Alfa Romeo Racing, and results in 1988 were reasonable. Eleventh in the Hungarian GP, on the grid several times. But when part of the team left in 1988 and the budget was cut, they were in trouble. Its best result during the 1989 season was not qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix. I say best as for the rest of the season the…

In our previous article, we discussed how braking aggression can be used to understand if a driver is performing at their limit. We discussed how to correlate brake lock-up to brake aggression, and help conclude if the driver needs to change their driving technique, or the engineer needs to make a set-up adjustment. To expand on what the braking aggression is telling us, we can consider the brake application point for each corner to determine when the driver is braking. In this article, we will discuss how to create a trigger to find the brake application point, how to create a radar plot to track how the relative brake application point is changing in each corner and how to gauge which corners have the greatest effect on the overall vehicle…

Despite the progress made in computational methods in the past decade, there is still a level of compromise required by the CFD engineer in determining how best to model the real world. While the aerospace industry has developed highly specific and efficient models for its streamlined bodies, the automotive industry has almost entirely transitioned to a physically accurate, but more expensive option of resolving large-scale turbulence in both time and space. Due to the influence of large areas of turbulent flow on the forces of ground vehicles, these models are seen as necessary to move development forward. The CFD used in IndyCar’s traffic study uses such a turbulence model in its detached eddy simulation (DES), but the older approximations from aerospace that solve the simpler Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations are…

‘To start selling racing tyres, we need to think about the balance between tyre performance and cost’ These days it’s tough to be a tyre supplier in motorsport. For the sake of the show you will be asked to make rubber that degrades more than it needs to, is perhaps not as sticky or fast as you would like it to be, and then you will get the most publicity of all when things go wrong. But then all that simply comes with the territory when you have a control tyre deal with a major series. Yet there are other ways to showcase, and indeed develop, tyres in motor racing, including setting up a team and then running cars fitted with your rubber at the most challenging arena of them…

Renault has reorganised the senior engineering management in its Formula 1 engine and chassis departments, with the aim of helping its technical chiefs focus on increasing the performance of its 2019 RS19 contender. As part of this management restructure, Christophe Mary is to start work at Viry – Renault’s engine development base – as director of engineering, the role starting at the beginning of August. He will report to the team’s engine boss, Remy Taffin. Mary, who held a senior post with Ferrari’s power unit team from 1994 until 2007 and also worked at Mercedes for four years, was most recently employed at PSA, where he was chief systems and powertrain engineer in the French manufacturer’s motorsport division. Stephane Rodriguez, a longtime Renault employee, has been appointed to the all-new…

Maybe I’m being too kind, but I think some of the criticism regarding the Baku F1 first practice farce, in particular Kimi Räikkönen’s pop at the FIA – ‘Formula 1 was made to look amateur’ – was a tad harsh, especially bearing in mind the recent sudden loss of the very capable Charlie Whiting, previously responsible for overseeing track safety. Anyway, it wasn’t only the FIA’s responsibility. The circuit organisation was at fault, as evidenced by its commitment to rightly compensate Williams for the serious damage to its FW42. Yes, it was a very embarrassing couple of gaffes, potentially very dangerous, and they should never have happened and must never be repeated. However, it does illustrate just how amazingly well organised and run grands prix are. Especially given the complexity…

Class GT300 (JAF GT300 subset) Chassis Tubular steel frame with some structural production chassis parts Engine Toyota 2UR-G 5.4-litre normally aspirated V8, tuned by TRD Hybrid system Toyota production car electric motor and PCU, prototype capacitor-based energy store Transmission Hewland six-speed sequential, Ogura multi-plate clutch Suspension Double wishbone all round with inboard, pushrod-actuated dampers and coil springs Wheels Rays, 13J x 18in all round Weight 1,250kg Dimensions Length: 4,650mm Width: 1,950mm Height: 1,130mm Wheelbase: 2,750mm…

Our subject car’s owner, Piers Reid, previously raced his 3.2-litre BMW M3 E46 in the UK’s Kumho BMW Championship and the CSCC New Millennium series. However, after sampling a Britcar Sprint race late in 2018, he has now moved into that series, where longer race durations are popular with drivers. We shine the MIRA full-scale wind tunnel spotlight on this Britcar BMW. Our target downforce balance range was in the upper 40s to 50 per cent front As its principal downforce-inducing components, the BMW featured a decent sized splitter integrated with a nicely designed underside incorporating wide front diffusers. At the rear, a high downforce, single-element wing was installed at roof height, with some overhang over the boot spoiler. Other lift-reducing details were to be found in the front end,…

McLaren Racing has appointed NFL executive, Mark Waller, to the role of managing director, sales and marketing. Waller has 25 years’ experience in global businesses and is currently executive vice president of International at NFL, driving the growth of the American football league outside of the US. Waller will oversee all aspects of the company’s commercial and marketing activity and will report directly to McLaren Racing CEO, Zak Brown. Former NASCAR Truck Series team owner, Mike Mittler, has died at the age of 67 after a battle with cancer. His team, MB Motorsports, fielded trucks in over 300 races from the very first season for the popular third-tier NASCAR series in 1995 until last year. While the team never won a race, it did run many drivers who would go…

As I was recently researching themes for the MIA Business Growth Conference, supported by Racecar Engineering, on July 11 at Racing Point Team HQ, Silverstone, I noticed double the number of delegates have already booked (see www.the-mia.com). I was curious to know the reason behind the hunger of motorsport-based engineering companies for more business ideas. Clearly shrugging off the effects of Brexit, these companies are growing. Despite depressing business news in recent months, the Motorsport Valley business community is creating a bright future by exploiting motorsport-based engineering capabilities to deliver mobility and other prototypes to many sectors. I’m often asked to explain the value to companies of being part of the Motorsport Valley business cluster. Primarily, I say, it’s the name. Being globally recognised and promoted, it attracts investment and…

Q This question is about circle track racing of a Late Model. At the speedway where I race a Late Model (Dominion Raceway and Entertainment, Thornburg, VA) the rules require we have a minimum of 1,450lb chassis weight on the right-hand side and a total weight, with fuel, of at least 3,100lb. When I asked how the track arrived at the 1,450lb weight requirement, no one could provide the rationale, simply saying, ‘Because we said so.’ At other tracks where I’ve raced, the right-hand weight requirement was different. May you please explain how and why these tracks arrive at their right-hand weight numbers since it impacts the chassis set up? Ideally, at a circle track I’d like as much weight as possible on the left-hand side, provided it is in…

You can use several methods to display the data clearly, and so others can easily understand it. For example, you can filter the data to show smooth values, rather than all the bumps or high-frequency vibration the sensor may log. Be aware electrical interference, which can come from power lines, or other sensor wires running in parallel in loom. Figure 6 is an example of a lateral g force trace, unfiltered. Figure 7 is the same trace but with the smoothed line also shown in red. Figure 8 shows a section of trace in greater magnification. You can see the peak values are clipped, so it tells the same story but in a simplified fashion. Beware the use of filters though. If used with care they are a useful tool,…

Motor racing legend, Niki Lauda, has died at the age of 70. The three-time world champion driver and, more recently, non-executive chairman of the Mercedes F1 team, had been suffering with severe health problems since last year and had recently undergone a lung transplant, but there had been talk of him returning to the paddock this season. Lauda’s first two world championships were won with Ferrari in 1975 and 1977, but in the intervening season he suffered horrendous burns after a crash at the Nürburgring. He returned to the track at Monza just six weeks after his accident in Germany, after having been extremely close to death, and then lost the 1976 title to James Hunt by just one point. He went on to win his third championship at McLaren…

I have written before about the failure of series organisers to provide teams with a return on investment that allows them to spend on innovation, but the problem now seems to be getting even worse. Formula 1 is looking at its new rule-set for 2021 and seeking to drive manufacturers to a single supplier for seemingly inconsequential items such as brake calipers. That is not to say that those creating brake calipers are inconsequential, but these are not the most expensive part of a racecar, and development is also limited in scope. If Formula 1 is looking to cut costs and improve racing, brake calipers are not the right place to be looking. In the meantime, the brake industry employs staff, trains young engineers with vivid imagination, can bring about…