How F1 cars got so heavy and why it's only getting worse
How F1 cars got so heavy and why it's only getting worse
When the 2022 F1 season kicks off the cars on the grid will be 99kg heavier than the first cars of the hybrid era were in 2014. In this video Scott Mitchell explains that incredible rise in weight, especially given how much heavier the 2014 cars were than the V10 and V8-era cars that came before them. We also look at how the extra weight has caused problems for F1, and why there is little sign of the trend being reversed any time soon.
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https://the-race.com/formula-1/the-consequences-of-f1s-unstoppable-hybrid-era-weight-rise/
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Tbh I don’t like the new rims
I don’t care about them getting bigger as long as they don’t get slower, and in actual fact they’re getting quicker, which is what we all want
Turning them into NASCAR. Worst thing F1 ever did was put KERS on these cars.
|Yeah this bothers
F1 is lazy, your funny
Educate youself
the example you used was a bit bullshit. Alonso’s renault had extreme turning characteristics even for the era.
You are just a dreaming. All formula 1 car never can be smaller. The perfect form of formula 1 is this one..You don’t know about it, you better to shut up.
The formula 1 car you see now is like the old one, it is not big you say.. standard size lang yan. dati at ngayon ay walang pinagbago. Naninira Lang yata kayo riyan. You say is libel
I just wish the 2022 redesign used Solid-state batteries and overall reduced the length of the car. Both of which would of significantly reduced the weight.
I was trying to concentrate on what was being said so that I could learn something but I was forced to dance throughout the video by the music!!! music as loud as the words …………..why put music on if someone is trying to communicate ? is it possible to use one ear to listen to the music and the other ear to listen to the words?
This is the problem when the Technical Working Group members are allowed to make the rules for their own convenience. There’s no law of nature that says the minimum weight specified in the sporting regs has to be achievable. The FIA could just reduce it and let the teams work out how to make the cars lighter. It’s not the FIA’s problem if people can’t get down to the minimum weight – they’re free to run heavier.
If the ability to shed weight becomes a performance differentiator, rest assured the cars will get lighter.
If they do that they might need to protect the drivers by introducing a minimum weight limit specifically for the driver, with any underweight drivers forced to carry compensatory ballast at or above the car’s centre of gravity.
I think the 80kg weight minimum is silly, the point is the best driver wins and if that means you have genetic where you can be lighter and still have good strength, that should be part of your advantage.
If it makes any difference to how you perceive this I weigh a little above average 14 stone and a bit, so it wouldn’t benefit me either way, as if I’d ever be good enough to be in F1
so basically the heaviest part of modern f1 cars are their hybrid engines. funny when you consider that much heavier cars with hybrid systems probably burn much more fuel than cars with much lighter ice only tech…
It’s really noticeable at Monico. Especially the hair pin turn. They should just can the Monico race, F1 cars are to big for it.
Oh so the "Bring back the V10s (or V8s)!" crew kind of had a correct answer, just for the wrong reasons. Hmmm….interesting. I sure would love lighter, smaller, more nimbly cars again but safety can’t be sacrificed, so yeah…guess its either drop the current engines or we’re stuck with thicc F1 cars.
Also is it true the engine changes came about due to environmental concern? Bc I am all for that BUT still…there’s flying around the world, I assume trucking stuff around the world, (in pre covid days) tons of people driving their cars in to watch. IDK I’d kind of love to go back to the old engines (for sound and now weight!) while taking other steps to reduce emissions. Like use their mountain of $ to invest in more fuel efficient planes, trucks, even physical buildings etc
It is an irreversible trend. Also regular cars are on the same path (compare Golf GTI MK1 and current model and you’ll find a +60% weight). Adrian Newey complained about it as well, but it is what it is. Very nice video, by the way.
Just remove the driver, instant weight loss! Plus no more need for a halo. Instead, add an fpv camera so that the drive can control the f1 remotely.
Gotta go back to pre-hybrid ! It was so much more fun !
I don’t think F1 has ever been in a worse place
f1 is the fastest motorsport for now,when it’ll become slower than redbull soap boxes fans will go away causing a lack of income,so formula 1 will have to bring some fun through mechanical innovations and over the top cars,it’just a matter of time.these 6 years will be a torture of f1 straying further from its own purpose untill it scratches the bottom and comes back up
The smaller cars from the late 80s like the BT52 or MP4/4 or any other of the time looks and feels the best in my opinion
Modern F1 cars aren’t the fastest cars ever. The V10 cars were faster. Race lap times are worse than they were in the early 2000s, qualifying lap times are better but that’s mostly because back in 2004 cars had to qualify with full race fuel and with treaded tires while modern F1 cars qualify with almost no fuel and slick tires. Get the 2004 cars down to low fuel and slap on racing slicks and they’d be faster in qualifying too.
2020 Monza Fastest Lap- 1:22.7 2004 Monza Fastest Lap- 1:21.0. The 2004 cars were almost 2 seconds a lap faster than the 2020 cars around Monza ! And that’s with treaded tires ! Imagine how much faster they’d be with slicks !
Maybe if the U.S. gets a few of it’s cars off the road maybe we can go ahead and splurge on some nice V12s or V8s with good conscience.
I heard rumors that Red Bull are planning on adding a wacky races styled pool to the back of their cars from 2024 so they can celebrate Monaco style all around the world. They say the weight gain will be negligible. Does anyone know of this rumour has any truth to it?
ig no more record lap times
I kinda think this is the most weight we will see added in a while, with battery technology getting better, and the power unit being pretty much set( I don’t think the v6 engines will be changed) I honestly see weight being reduced. Safety measures maybe might add weight.
Put the v10 back in🤯
well, I would love smaller and lighter cars. they are now approaching the weight of my daily driver (1020kg fully fueled without a driver) which is concerning.
downsizing the engine to a V4 and downsizing the hybrid tech but still keeping it would make the cars signifficantly lighter and I the same as I understand you, think that a lighter car will produce better racing. also working towards making them more nimble again could make it better but i’m not so shure about this one.
so I personally think that a smaller powertrain but the same dimensions is what would produce the best racing, along with the new aero changes for 2022
I hate the "safety is paramount" idea that is just used to shut down any discussion. If you *ACTUALLY* believed in being safe no matter what, you would try to get racing outlawed.
Reintroduce refuling, that would shave off some waight, minimum start fuel waight 40kg, that would make for some interesting pit strat.
You want to jail you
And as Hamilton said, if this tendency keeps going circuits like Monaco are outdated for these huge heavy cars. Makes no sense to do a race there anymore with a procession of car just following each other for 70 laps
Perhaps bring refueling back? That would cut weight significantly without reducing electrification or crash safety. The additional race strategy options are a bonus. Regarding safety of pit crew, perhaps F1 reinvesting into a safe refueling solution would bring new safety improvements with both motorsports and non motorsports applications.
*Bruuh even Formula E has better and Balance size that F1 limousin*
None of this concerns me. Weight is overrated…weight matters most when there is nothing else to improve, but personally nothing in F1 is relevant to automotive tech anymore. FE is way more relevant running on street legal tires and using EV power trains. It’s only a matter of time before F1 needs to be fully electric, and since they are not nothing they are doing will contribute to automotive tech, and the bans on driver’s aids means nothing cutting edge is happening on the software side either.
F1 needs major major overhauls that I don’t think will happen in order to be anything besides the most expensive motorsport which exists purely for itself. The last time F1 contributed tech that would trickle down to other cars was already several generations ago.
The new cars look great, apart from those wheel caps, they look hideous. Nice big alloy wheels like current F2 would look so much better…..
I am sick of the road relevance crap.
2010s cars are ugly ._. honestly I rather just ditch the v6 hybrid. Sure its faster and relevant to road cars, but the fans don’t care about that we want to see wheel to wheel fast paced action. And hear that v12/v10 scream not the lawn mowers we have today.
Heavier with less power booooo
With the introduction of a cost cap on development, I would love to see the minimum weight getting lowered again. Then it is up to the teams to save weight and pass safety tests as well.
The simple fix is for the FIA to mandate a spending cap and safety rules and leave the rest of the engineering up to the individual teams.
wider and bigger cars aesthetically look way better. Actually they never looked this good ever before.
I’m fine with heavier cars in F1. I would love to see another form of racing emerge and maybe focus on this aspect to bring back racing of old.
Some of these crashes lately could have potentially been fatal in lighter cars and would you want them racing in Saudi and nearly every race now becoming a street race.
Maybe Formula Light on proper racing tracks with huge run off areas.
The cars need solar panels on the front and rear wings, small wind turbines along the body and why not just pull a trailer for the battery packs.
The cars are so dull these days, they just look so cumbersome. 2000 to 2008 was the sweet spot chassis wise. The supposed pinnacle of racing and they look as graceful as the trucks at Brands Hatch
F1 is getting shittier and shittier as time goes
why cant we have screaming v8s or v10s again? speed, strategy, tyre management, drs systems and hybrid batteries is imo nothing compared to a screaming engine. im all for enviromental changes in our every day lifes such as electric vehicles and sustainable energy but this is a sport, it doesnt need this virtue signaling!
please bring back the soul of racing
Ferrar 312T had 2560mm wheelbase (It looks like a go kart!) and even more crazy, Porsche 917 had 2300mm wheelbase, a 400km/h car!
Nowadays F1 cars have like 3700mm, and the prototypes have it around 2800mm.
Rubbish to believe these cars are ‘faster’ than the peak V10 era. Laughable really.
What would be good to see is making the cars narrower again. The hybrid system fit in the 2014-2016 cars, so 1.8m should be no real problem.