Technical chiefs voted to reject a move by governing body the FIA to bring back 'ground-effect' underbody aerodynamics.
The FIA commissioned respected engineers Patrick Head, director of engineering at Williams, & Rory Byrne, former chief designer of Ferrari, to come up with a new set of automobile regulations.
The FIA has until the finish of June to pick whether to force through its designs against the teams' wishes.
The aims were to help reduce fuel consumption by 35% in tandem with a switch from the current two.4-litre V8s to one.6-litre turbo engines with 'green' expertise & for the cars to be more challenging to drive while being no over seconds slower per lap.
The preliminary plan was to reintroduce formed underfloors as a more efficient way of reducing drag while retaining high levels of aerodynamic down force.
In lieu, a variety of detailed aerodynamic restrictions will be introduced to reduce drag, but the current design of the underside of the automobile, with a stepped but flat floor, would be retained.
These changes, it is felt, will accomplish the same targets as those set by the FIA, but the cars won't be as aerodynamically efficient as had initially been hoped.
The so-called Fota rules - which were drafted by Byrne - were agreed at a gathering at the Turkish Grand Prix & then approved last week by F1's technical working group, which comprises top engineers from the teams & the FIA's race director Charlie Whiting.
The changes agreed will include:
* a front wing of reduced width, down from 1800mm to 1650mm
* a much shallower rear wing, similar to those used at the high-speed Monza track
* Significantly lower noses on the cars to improve safety, although the exact maximum height has still to be determined
* the retention of the moveable rear wing - or drag-reduction technique (DRS) - that was introduced this season to make overtaking a little simpler
* a restriction on all the additional pieces of bodywork that have sprouted in front of the sidepods of the cars
* a restriction on the design of front-wing endplates, to limit the intricate designs seen today
* a plan to increase wheel diameter from 13 inches to 18 inches has been delayed until at least 2014
In theory, the agreement at the sport's Technical Working Group (TWG) means these are the rules that will be adopted after they go through the various stages of F1's regulatory system.
He's been determined to make F1 much more sustainable & efficient with rules changes from 2013.
But it remains to be seen whether FIA president Jean Todt will need to accept the Fota rules.
If the Fota rules are adopted, the cars will be less efficient - with a higher drag - than if F1 plumped for formed underfloors.
The cars' drag co-efficient will reduce from existing levels of 0.9Cd to about 0.7Cd, while the FIA's preliminary hope had been to cut it to 0.5Cd.
But if Todt wishes to make a statement about sustainability, he may feel that he would prefer the teams to be using more efficient cars with less drag.
The teams think they can still accomplish the FIA's objectives at a much lower expense with the revised rules - & the FIA is already introducing a fuel restriction for 2013, so can control consumption that way.
Todt has usually taken a consensual approach to F1 since becoming FIA president in October 2009.
However, he said at the Turkish GP that he was determined to push through the adoption of the new engines despite growing opposition from the manufacturers, including powerful Ferrari.
The FIA, which can impose rules for 2013 without the teams' agreement if it acts before the finish of June, was unavailable for comment.
Todt is expected to have discussions on the subject with key figures at this weekend's French Grand Prix.
Williams’s technical director Sam Michael said the teams had been reluctant to go down the route of a formed floor because it involved lots of work & expense & there were uncertainties over the result.
"The only point of contention between Fota & the FIA has been on the tunneled floor, having a formed undertray," Michael said.
"Everything else is much the FIA proposal, or close to it with some tweaks.
"The largest concern was that it is a large amount of investment for the teams. It is a large departure.
"If you were going to go down that route & have a different set of drag & lift coefficients that you could not accomplish with the current rules, fine, that is different.
"But the teams saw it as a large amount of investment & work for something they don't understand.
"We're not frightened of that but in case you do spend all that money, why do that & not something you can get to quickly & cheaply with the current floor. The FIA understood that in the finish.
"There's the budget effect of doing the tunneled floor, a formed undertray, but there is also the fact that it is unknown.
The inclusion of the DRS in the 2013 rules reflects a feeling that the tool has been successful since its introduction this season.
"So you could predict the downforce you'll get from it, but you could basically accomplish double. Where’s if they stay with the current floor, you can be controlled where the downforce & drag are going to be."
"If all the teams decided later it wasn't useful, they could basically get rid of it. It is not a essential design, whereas something like the bowed floor is."
Michael said: "We think it is been effective. & if they pick not to continue, it is simple to return on it.
Post a Comment