Entries from February 2008 ↓

Preamble:
Last week we had a look at some of the facts and figures behind F1 Cars/Races. As promised, here are some more…

F1 Engines
The engine of an F1 Car is the most complex piece of equipment that goes into it. It consists of close to 5000 parts of which around 1500 are moving elements. When all of these are meticulously put together after about 2-weeks of work, it can produce more than 750 hp and reach rpm’s higher than 20,000! At their maximum pace, the current V8 engines consume around 60 litres of petrol for 100km of racing.

While manufacturers could easily continue to develop more powerful engines within the 2006 Regulations, the FIA felt that such unnecessary costs should be avoided and thus ruled a freeze on engines’ basic specs as of the 2007 F1 season. So instead of a yearly 20 to 30 hp gain, the manufacturers cannot develop their engines further and are now imposed with a rev limit of 19,000 rpm.

At the end of 2005, the last season where the regulations allowed 3-litre engines with 10-cylinders, some engines were producing more than 980 hp and running very close to the 1000 hp mark, a figure that was never reached since the ban on turbo engines. It was thus a sign for F1’s governing body to change the Regulations, as top speeds of 370 km/h reached at Monza were deemed hazardous for the drivers as well as the spectators.

Starters for F1 Cars
As per FIA, an electric starter has not been obligatory for several years and teams choose not to fit one in order to prevent an additional source of energy/Battery from causing incidents such as a fire or explosion. They are, however, authorised to use a portable starter in front of their pits and on the starting grid, but if a driver stalls on the circuit during the race, he has to retire, even if the car restarts once the marshals have pushed it away from a dangerous position. Most cars nowadays are, however, fitted with sophisticated electronically controlled anti-stall systems.

Gearboxes on F1 Cars
’Automatic’ gearboxes are prohibited by the FIA. However, all the cars are equipped with semi-automatic gearboxes where to change gear, the driver no longer has to activate the clutch pedal at the same time as the gear lever. He simply presses a button on the side of his steering wheel. There is a button on each side: one for changing up, the other for changing down. He, therefore, no longer has to take his hand off the steering wheel also and such a electro-hydraulic device allows the driver to change gear in one or two hundredths of a second, which is unquestionably faster than with a conventional system.

Number of Gears on F1 Cars
The rapid changes possible with semi-automatic gearboxes mean that transmissions with a greater number of ratios (six or seven) can be installed. On circuits with a large number of bends, the drivers only use four or five ratios. Reverse gear is obligatory, but must not be used in the pit-lane.

Brakes of F1 Cars
The brakes on stock cars these days are derived from the ‘disc brakes’ which were first used in racing. All F1 cars nowadays are equipped with brakes with calipers made from light alloys while the discs and pads tend to be made from synthetic materials, i.e. carbon/carbon, as their resistance to heat is much greater than that of stock car brakes and they weigh significantly less. Which is why under certain conditions, the insides of the F1 wheels appear completely incandescent!

The braking power of an F1 Car is uncommonly high. At the end of a ‘straight’, at speeds around 340 kph, an F1 car can brake in less than 100 meters in order to take a slow corner. Naturally, carbon/carbon is expensive. It takes six months to produce a disc, at temperatures of between 900 and 2000°C. The same material is now used to produce clutch discs.

Next week we’ll talk about the fuel they use, refuelling during a race, no. of tyre changes allowed, their speed and weight limits etc.

Preamble:
A couple of weeks ago, we had a look at the philosophy behind F1 vs Stock Cars Tyre designs. Thereafter, it occurred to me that most of you could be interested in knowing some facts and figures behind ‘F1 Cars and Racing’. So let’s have a look…

How did it start
There was no ‘formula’ for motor racing during the years 1894, when the first ‘organised’ motor race took place from Paris to Rouen, until 1900. The then existing vehicles were simply raced. However, a differentiation was made between those cars on the basis of their method of propulsion (petrol or steam), and their number of seats.

During that time, cars always had at least two seats and it was not until the end of 1920 that single-seater cars were used for racing. The ‘invention’ of the rear-view mirror made an important contribution to this development, since one of the mechanic’s tasks in the 2-seaters was to warn the driver that someone was trying to overtake him!

When the first F1 race took place
The ‘FIA Formula-One’ World Championship was created early in 1950 and its first even was held on 13th May 1950 at ‘Silverstone’ Tracks in the U.K., which continues to be one of the most sought after ones even these days.

Participation Criteria for a ‘Constructor’
A prospective ‘Constructor’ must submit his entry to the FIA, providing evidence that he is both the ‘Designer’ AND ‘Constructor’ of the ‘Chassis’ of his car. He also has to substantiate sufficient technical and financial resources to take part in the Championship. A ‘Constructor’ need not be its engine manufacturer also and the name of the chassis manufacturer is always given before that of the engine manufacturer. In the event of winning a Championship, the title is awarded to the Constructor/Chassis manufacturer.

Drivers of F1 Championships
To qualify to participate, a Driver must hold a ‘Super Licence’, which is awarded on the basis of his past record in junior formulae races and of his having a valid contract with an F1 team which has entered the Championship.

How long does an F1 Race last
The distance is the least number of ‘laps’ which exceeds 305 km, and no race may last for more than two hours. On certain slower circuits (such as Monaco), in the event of rain, the Clerk of the Course is sometimes obliged to stop the race after two hours.

The Race continues whether rain or shine
An F1 event takes place in all weather conditions and tyre manufacturers have developed treaded tyres, which help to avoid the risk of aquaplaning. Nevertheless, the Race Director has the power to stop the event, if this becomes necessary for safety reasons as apart from track-grip, the greatest problem during rain is visibility, which is significantly reduced due to the spray thrown up by the cars’ tyres. In order to counteract this problem, the cars are equipped with a red light at the rear, which must be switched on if it starts to rain.

How Powerful are F1 Engines
Present F1 Regulations peg their engine capacities to 3.0 Lrs/19,000 Rpm. Turbo or Super Charging is not allowed. Even though the Constructors refuse to divulge details of their engine power, it is rumoured that nowadays their maximum powers exceed 800 Hp. Manufacturers of engines with eight or ten cylinders opine that maximum power is not always the most important factor. The ‘shape’ of its ‘power curve’ also matters, which in their case is better at a low engine speeds. Having ‘adequate’ power at lower engine speeds is of equal importance, especially on slow circuits.

Speeds F1 Cars can reach
The highest average speed of 242.615 kph achieved in Italy during 1971, that was won by Peter Gethin. Recent computer simulations suggested that current F1 cars can achieve an average speed of well over 300 kph. David Coulthard set the highest ‘straight line’ speed at 356.5 kph, recorded during the 1998 season.

Preamble:
Having had a look earlier at the philosophy behind F1 vs Stock Cars Tyre designs, we had a glimpse last week behind reasons for constant need to maintain one’s tyre pressures ‘correctly’.

Contrary to what I said last week, I’ve just realised that I’ve already written about the importance of Wheel Balancing AND Alignment during the month of August ’07 itself. For those who tuned in later, please browse thro’ www.indiaautomobile.com/articles/archives/August.

So this week, let’s talk about other related issues, such as ‘Steering Wobbles’ and ‘Steering Rattles’…

Steering Wobbles

These are basically a) those occurring at cruising speeds and b) ones that occur at slower speeds, such as at take off and braking. While the former can largely be attributed to ‘dynamically-unbalanced’ wheels and to a lesser degree to ‘wheel-alignment’, the latter are caused by different reasons, such as – i) Unevenly worn front Tyres, ii) Out of true Wheel Rims, iii) Internally Damaged Radial Tyre Casing, iv) Worn-out Steering/Track Linkages/Suspension Bushes/Members, v) Damaged ‘Knuckle’ Joint, vi) Damaged Wheel End Axle Assy, vii) ‘Out of true’ Front Disc Brake Rotors, vii) Faulty/Worn out Caliper Assys OR sticky Hydraulic Piston/Rings thereof and viii) Defective Engine/GB Foundations, etc.

Steering Rattles

The real crunch here lies in identifying the source of such rattles as more often than not, with wear and tear setting in, a steering rattle gets sort of ‘progressive’ i.e. it can ‘shake’ other members of the ‘system’ into rattling which on their own may not! Such rattles can originate from one or more parts of the steering system as a whole.

Here’s how one can systematically analyse them, as those caused by – i) Premature wear of Tie-rod end/Rack ball joint: These can set in by ignoring the need to have all the five Wheels in good ‘dynamic balance’ all the time. This can be checked out by hoisting the vehicle on a 2-post lift and ‘yawing’ each front wheel horizontally - to ‘feel’ if there’s any slack around them; ii) Rack and/or Pinion wear: This again is a consequence of neglecting to keep one’s wheels in good balance all the times. These can be checked out by – a) parking the vehicle with wheels ‘st-ahead’ on a level ground and b) standing out side the driver side, gently rocking the steering wheel to the left/right. If there’s no slack per (i) above, then a slight steering wheel motion will reflect in front wheels’ motion also. If it doesn’t, it’s an indication of excessive slack between the rack and pinion. If it cannot be rectified by suitably tightening the rack ‘damper-bush’, the only remedy is to replace both with genuine parts at one go; iii) Rack ‘Bush’ Rattles: These are ‘softer-sounding’ in nature and can be pinned down by – a) parking the car on a level ground with engine off and b) ‘rocking’ the stg wheel gently. If one can hear soft thuds from the LHS end of the car even while sitting in the driver seat, the rack bush is the culprit and the only way to get rid of it is to replace with a genuine spare part; iv) St Column Rattles: These are relatively easier to identify as their origin is close by and one can hear them as ‘metallic’ in nature – may be extending upto the pinion. Since most Cars’ steering columns these days have ball bearings at its both ends, the main culprit of such noises is invariably the one or more of the ‘universal joints’ deployed between the steering column and the rack-pinion. This can be set right by getting the stg column suitably ‘tensioned’ at a skilled Garage.

With the foregoing trouble-shoot, most steering rattles can be overcome with lasting success. If not, one is left with no choice but to have one’s steering system suitably overhauled, including replacement of ‘all’ the wear prone parts at one go.

Cutting corners here is not advisable since a half-worn part which was otherwise ‘silent’ will now start rattling due to greater thrusts on it from the replaced/new parts!

Preamble:
Last week we had a glimpse into the philosophy behind the design of Tyres for F1 Racing Machines vs a Stock Car.

Considering the fact that your tyres are the only means of your communication with the road you drive on, they can either save you or kill you – depending upon what care you take in choosing AND maintaining them.

Here’s some more on how to look after your tyres…

Tyre Pressures – Do they Matter?

YES - they more than do! Here’re some basic facts:

1. The Tyres that come with your Car are the best suited for the purpose it’s intended for.
2. There’s an uncalled for mania in our Country to run down such OE Tyre specs, especially on the 80Bhp+ Cars.
3. When I say uncalled for, check out multitude of street cars in developed countries where none dare ‘up grading’ OE tyres coz then their Insurance Policies will become invalid and a crash out there, whether coz of tyres or not, can set one back by thousands in hard cash – assuming no life is lost!
4. Every ‘chosen’ Tyre has a ‘safe’ load bearing capacity - say 1/4th the ‘weight’ of a Car.
5. The Weight of a Car varies - from ‘Kerb’ to ‘fully loaded’ - for understandable reasons. This difference can be as much as 500 kgs!
6. The ‘ideal foot-print’ of a Tyre is a function of its inflation pressure when ‘cold’, AS WELL AS the load on it.
7. While in motion even a ‘correctly’ inflated tyre ‘warms-up’, coz of internal heat generation due it’s inevitable ‘flexing’ AND friction with the road surface. Consequently, the ‘cold’ pressures go up by as much as 15% on a high-speed cruise after some time.
8. All this is taken care of when carmakers stipulate ‘cold’ inflation pressures. They, however, take a medium route - by specifying cold pressures for ‘part load’, which is usually the case, and strike a compromise between fuel consumption - higher the cold pressures the better - and ride quality - lower the better.
9. Therefore, when going on a long trip, ‘fully loaded’ as is usually the case, inflation by +10% over the recommended cold pressures is highly recommended. The ‘effects’ of various degrees of ‘inflation’ are illustrated in the sketches below:
   
10. It’s obvious that one has to aim at correct pressures to give the best ‘foot-print’ between the tyre and the road.
11. Looking at above sketches, it may be noted that ‘under-inflated’ tyres will wear out faster from their outer edges and over-inflated ones from the middle. Only properly inflated ones can ensure even tread wear.

So how do we go about it!

Actually, it’s not that difficult, considering ‘Cold’ means when the tyres are at ‘Ambient’ temperature – ideally the first thing in the morning before one rolls off. Now that’s where crux of the problem lies. To overcome it, this is what you can do:

1. Ideally, you need a Tyre Pump and a reliable TP Gauge of your own - as most at the roadside are out of ‘synch’. If you find a foot pump bit of a bother, there are Battery operated ones available for ~ Rs: 500/-, which plug into the cigarette lighter socket.
2. Similarly, a good ‘dial type’ TPG can be had for ~ Rs: 100/- and a digital/self-calibrating type around Rs: 300/-. It’s strongly recommend that you buy your own tyre pressure gauge. Armed with this, you could also fill-up air at any pump, using your TPG.
3. What one can do and it works fine is that you get your Pressures corrected to, say (+) 10% per your Gauge’. Next morning before rolling off, check again with your TPG and let off excess pressure, if any.

Remember that Tyres under-inflated by as little as 4 psi can raise your fuel consumption by as much as 6% - besides seriously jeopardising their lives and thus your safety!

Next week we’ll discuss the importance of ‘Wheel Balancing’ and the need for their ‘alignment’.