Leading-Edge Motorsport Technology Since 1990

February 2019 • Vol 29 No 2 • www.racecar-engineering.com • UK £5.95 • US $14.50

Mercedes W09
In-depth analysis of
an F1 champion

Formula 3 2019 Crash investigation LMP1 2020

What the all-new International How and why racing learns The hypercar formula that
category will mean for F3 from every big accident could transform Le Mans
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CONTENTS – FEBRUARY 2019 – Volume 29 Number 2

COVER STORY TECHNICAL

8 Mercedes W09 49 The Consultant
How the serial F1 championship-winning team tamed Pondering the true nature of a roll centre
the Diva of 2017 to triumph yet again last season 53 Aerobytes
Part two of our Formula Student wind tunnel study
COLUMNS 56 NASCAR R&D
5 Ricardo Divila How tech development is improving America’s favourite racing
Reflections on the use of mirrors in racecars 66 Hydrogen fuel cells
7 Mike Blanchet The science behind motorsport’s fuel of the future
Why Pirelli has the toughest of tasks in Formula 1 78 Turbochargers in focus
Latest trends in top-line turbo technology
FEATURES 85 Danny Nowlan
How to get the very best from driver in the loop simulators
18 Mercedes M09 F1 PU
Is this still the best power unit in Formula 1?
BUSINESS & PEOPLE
26 LMP1 regulations
Detailed examination of the 2020 hypercar rules 92 Business people
34 Formula 3 2019 A chat with the CEO of the new women-only W Series
Lifting the lid on the new International F3 car 97 Chris Aylett
40 Crash scene investigation The MIA boss explains why ICE still has a future in the sport
How the FIA learns from tragic accidents 98 Bump stop

The motorsport year has now started

in earnest with the Dakar. Pictured is
the X-raid Mini JCWs testing for this
gruelling event at the end of 2018

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FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 3

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STRAIGHT TALK – RICARDO DIVILA
Don’t look back in anger
Why do racecars still use such old fashioned technology to provide a rear view?
R
ay Harroun, an engineer born in 1879
who was nicknamed the ‘Little Professor’,
maintained he only really raced so as to
observe his designs being tested in the field.
In 1911, for the inaugural Indianapolis 500-mile
race, of the entire 40-car field his yellow Marmon
– AKA the Wasp – was the only car to have just
one person on board. All the others had a riding
mechanic, a bit of a tradition from the previous
years of racing on open roads where the early
racing machinery, pretty much all prototypes, were
prone to mechanical failure or punctures a long
way from any assistance. Incidentally,
in 1912 the riding mechanics were
required by the rules and were then
mandatory until 1922, and then
returned again in 1930 until 1937.
Time to reflect
For that first Indy 500 the Wasp also
featured a rear-view mirror, one of
the first times such a device had
been used – this was inspired by
a solution to traffic management
Harroun had seen on a horse-drawn
taxi some years earlier when he had
worked as a chauffeur in Chicago.
In winning that first Indianapolis
XPB
500, Harroun actually had a secret,
which he related over 50 years later, The trick mirrors on the 2018 Ferrari were as hi-tech as these parts can be,
in 1967. His innovative mirror had but should reflective glass really have a place on a modern Formula 1 car?
reassured his rivals that the racing
would still be safe, despite him being alone in
the car. But the race track at the speedway was
a jarring, bumpy ride; it was, after all, made of
bricks. ‘To tell you the truth, on the brick surface, I
couldn’t see a damn thing in it,’ Harroun said of the
mirror. ‘And no one knew it but me.’
This is actually similar to what we still have
today. Some rear view mirrors vibrate so much
that the driver can only see something moving
behind him, but not very clearly. And then there
is night racing and the problems that that can
present. The ultimate was Audi’s new laser lights
with an estimated zillion candlepower fitted to the
R18. It was so bright that drivers being overtaken
were complaining about being blinded. They lost
perception of the depth of field, their cockpits
filled with such light from the frantically flashing
following Audis. Even the trackside marshals were
getting suntanned in the night stints!
When these days we can have cameras guiding us into parking slots, why
not have the same sort of thing instead of mirrors on racecars?
The knee-jerk reaction from the organisers was
to specify that the LMP2s had to have moveable
mirrors to shift the focus from the overtaking and
blinding LMP1s, but it only made things worse; the
vibration moved on to new heights of blur. Okay,
part of it was inadequate mountings to damp or
restrain the housings, plus they were mandated to
be bigger; so more aero turbulence and drag.
Despite changing the mounts, shapes and
actuating mechanisms after the test day they still
vibrated, so they eventually solved the problem
laterally by presenting the cars at scrutineering,
then siliconing the mirrors in for practice and the
race. No more adjustable mirrors but no more
vibration either, or at least back to the usual.
Now, over a century after Harroun’s innovation,
we still use mirrors to see behind racing cars. Why?
Mirror finish
In 1998 I was involved in running a Nissan GT500
car in Japan, and one of the corollaries of having a
firewall blocking off the 100 litre fuel tanks behind
the driver was having a small Perspex aperture
for the central mirror that didn’t give us a wide
enough field of view out the back of the car.
The solution was to fit a rear view camera
to replace the mirror, and a screen on the dash,
easily done as one of the team sponsors, which
was a Nissan subsidiary, was a pioneer in the
manufacture of rear cameras for parking, now a
standard fixture on medium range cars.
It proved so useful and practical that it turned
into a no-brainer for all racecars built by Nismo
since then. The added bonus was the auto-dim
feature for the Suzuka 1000km race, which ended
in darkness. Audi brought its version out to much
fanfare in 2012, much to my amusement, as we
had used that solution for 14 years by then.
It was also a primary item on the Deltawing for
Le Mans in 2012, a clean, mirror-less design with a
camera mounted high on the rear fin relaying an
unobstructed rear view to the cockpit screens. We
were definitely annoyed when not only did the
ACO insist on having the old style
mirrors but, adding insult to injury,
demanded that the car run LMP2
size mirrors even when running in
the Garage 56, with supposedly
unlimited rules. This added eight
per cent more drag, considerably
slowing the car in a straight line.
Looking ahead
There is now software that has
motion sensors that can put a
coloured arrow pointing to the side
of the car an opponent is coming
up to pass. It flashes faster if the
overtaker is closing up fast and
changes colour from green to red. It
wouldn’t pick up vampires, for as we
all know, they cast no reflection, even
electronic, but all else is signalled.
So, when these days we can have cameras
guiding us into our parking slot, why not have
the same sensing and warning about traffic and
dispense entirely with 1911 technology; those
draggy, vibrating, limited mirrors?
Or why not go the whole hog and throw away
the dodgy mirrors and affix a full width OLED
screen to the Halo, electronically enhanced to
highlight approaching racecars. It can even solve
arguments when cars clash, just by recording all
that is seen on the screens.
If you don’t like the Halos there’s another
alternative, go further and have the view projected
directly on the driver’s retina from a projector
on the helmet. Or what about having enough
cheap smartphone derived cameras and having a
360-degree view around the racecar?
We have the technology, software and
hardware. But maybe not the will.
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 5
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SIDETRACK – MIKE BLANCHET
KISS it better
Why the FIA’s list of requirements for F1 tyres is a masterpiece of over-complication
K
ISS – Keep It Simple, Stupid – is a useful
acronym. It is seldom applied, however,
in F1. The FIA’s 2020 through 2023 F1
tyre supply tender document is as far away from
that desire for simplicity as one could imagine.
It comprises 19 pages, of which only six and
a bit cover contractual matters. The new tyre
requirements that comprise the remainder appear
as if some analytical geek in a darkened room,
hunched over an array of books and downloads
on every aspect of tyre design, materials, chemical
properties and molecular structures, drew these up.
With no relevance to real-world racing.
Of course, this is surely not true. I
have no doubt that the FIA has gone to
great pains to ensure that input from
race tyre manufacturers and teams
combined with loads of its own data
has played a large part in drawing
up the specifications mandated. It is
certainly long overdue that F1 has
the tyres it deserves, to do justice to
the qualities of the chassis, PUs, drivers
and engineers now involved. Running
at six seconds/lap below qualifying
pace in the early stages of a race to
protect the rubber, even allowing for
XPB
fuel load, is hardly proper racing.
Pirelli, of course, has again won the Pirelli has retained its Formula 1 tyre contract but its race rubber will
supply contract. This is a near 150-year- have to meet a long list of performance criteria to keep the FIA happy
old company with an illustrious tyre
manufacturing and competition record, supporting
many different forms of contemporary racing. In
the early 1950s it was dominant in grands prix,
and has been sporadically successful since. It
currently produces superb high-performance road
products and is among the top five in the industry
worldwide – which makes it a global giant.
Under pressure
At face value then, it’s surprising that Pirelli has
struggled so much since its re-entry to F1 in 2011.
Early issues with chunking, overheating and
delamination, fragility over kerbs and wheel-to-
wheel contact etc caused much controversy and
led to the introduction of regulations concerning
minimum tyre pressures. Pirelli had a fair argument
for some of this when pointing out that teams were
acting recklessly in applying low pressures to gain
a performance advantage and drivers were over-
abusing the track limits (as they are, unfathomably,
I don’t see how all these characteristics can be reliably and
regularly met, let alone how this can be accurately measured
still permitted to do). The heaviness of the hybrid-
engined cars and the torque being produced,
plus the increasing downforce also added to their
problems. However, similar issues confront other
tyre manufacturers in IndyCar and especially LMP1
and such problems have not been evident.
Slick and tyred
Being the one-make supplier, one would think that
Pirelli’s job should be a little easier, but its approach micro roughness; glass transition temperature;
– not always with a free hand, it has to be said – has
varied dramatically. Ranging from tyres that ‘fell
off the cliff’ partway through the race (early days)
or barely managed one flat-out lap in qualifying,
to over-hard compounds described by drivers as
giving ‘no grip’. Perhaps being Chinese part-owned,
managed by Italians, with race tyres made in Turkey
could be something to do with this?
But I mentioned lack of a free hand above.
Certainly Pirelli’s task has been complicated
by confusing calls from Bernie Ecclestone,
subsequently the FIA, concerning what was needed
to enhance the show. Pretty unfair pressure, really,
from people who don’t fully understand what is
involved in meeting these demands. But it does
appear to me that the Italian supplier hasn’t (a)
resisted such knee-jerk actions more strongly and
(b) is lacking in its simulation tools and skills.
The latter shortcomings, combined with the
near-disasters at Silverstone and Spa in 2013,
have doubtless spooked the company and it has
been over-conservative since. To insist that teams
increase tyre pressures, virtually on the grid of the
2018 US GP, given the effect this has on today’s
ultra-sensitive F1 cars, is really unacceptable.
Coming back to the geek in the darkened
room, the FIA’s tender document was littered
with extraordinarily precise requirements such
as peak cornering force per degrees of slip angle
for different types of corner; tyre stiffness versus
temperature working range; deviation of grip
under a particular condition of surface macro and
degradation to 10ths/sec at 10, 18 and 22 per cent
of race distance; cross linking of the compound
polymers, and much more. Pity there wasn’t one
that decreed attainment of much greater
slip angles without losing forward speed.
And then what amounts to a twitch of
steering correction in qualifying would
not always be irritatingly described by
commentators as a mistake, and Fernando
Alonso’s last grand prix lurid opposite-lock
corner exits could delight us all.
Tread carefully
Realistically, I don’t see how all these
characteristics can be reliably and regularly
met, let alone how this can be accurately
measured. Which are to be the benchmark
cars and drivers, for example? The fastest,
or the slowest? Maybe this could be one of
the reasons, apart from money and politics,
why Michelin and Bridgestone apparently
didn’t bid for the contract? Even in the 2018
season, with all the experience and knowledge of
the previous seven years, Pirelli frequently failed
to deliver tyres that provided the key elements in
race strategy and tactics that were wanted. It’s very
difficult therefore to see how it will meet these
stringent new demands. Most likely, it will result in
a fudge. Should the tyres not be delivering during
2020, whichever way this is judged, it won’t be
possible to change supplier quickly anyway.
Being bolt-on items, tyres are the quickest and
easiest go-faster solutions, thus their importance.
They are also capable of contributing hugely to
an exciting race, or to a boring one. Therefore,
it is correct to make stipulations as to their
performance. The question is whether these are
practicable and measurable and also if Pirelli can
deliver. It is to be hoped so, because as already
mentioned it is a great company and should be
doing better. F1 needs Pirelli to up its game.
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 7
FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG W09

Tamed by the
shrewd
How Mercedes took the wild streak out of its 2017
F1 racer to produce the sublime W09, a car good
enough to claim both titles – for the fifth year in a row
– against much stiffer opposition in 2018
By SAM COLLINS

8 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

W
ith both worth championships, 11 race wins
and 13 pole positions, the Mercedes-AMG
W09 EQ Power+ could be seen as a hugely
dominant design. Indeed, the ninth in the
current line of Silver Arrows was the car to beat for almost
all of the 2018 Formula 1 season. But it did not have things
all its own way. Both Ferrari and Red Bull ran the German-
branded British-built car close throughout the year.
Yet while the fight was tougher in 2018, this was a car that
was ready for it, largely thanks to the knowledge from 2017,
when the W08 proved to be a difficult racecar on occasion, so
difficult in fact that the team nicknamed it ‘the Diva’. It had a
very narrow operational window, proved to be hard to set up,
unpredictable and, in the eyes of its competition, beatable.
So when the W09 rolled out for the first time ahead of
winter testing at Silverstone, many were surprised to see that
much of the W08’s concept had carried over, and journalists
asked openly if the Diva had returned. But the truth was that
while the two Mercedes Formula 1 cars looked quite similar,
they actually had very different temperaments.
‘Our overall concept was to keep a lot of continuity of
the platform year on year, so we knew that what we were
building into 2017 in the late season would be inherited in
2018,’ technical director James Allison says. ‘It was an unusual
year as there were no big rule changes, just the [banning
of] T wings and the [introduction of] Halo. The Halo is not
a small deal, but in terms of performance it is not a huge
thing, just weight. The aerodynamic regulations were almost
unchanged and as we were in a hard championship we
wanted to push development quite late with the 2017 car to
ensure the title, but there was a certain amount of comfort
in doing that as we knew that a chunk of that work would go
into 2018, as the regulations were staying the same.’
Dealing with the Diva
But this approach of carrying a lot of the 2017 concepts over
to 2018 meant that there was a real risk of the W09 inheriting
the Diva tendencies of the W08. It was something that the
engineers at the factory in Brackley worked hard to prevent.
And the first step was to understand the underlying causes
of these tendencies. However, some of the W08’s assets and
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 9
FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG W09
Front suspension arms were raised, while blended lower A arm was not as extreme as in 2017
A rare glimpse of the front upright on the W09. Brakes are by Carbone Industrie, with Brembo calipers
weaknesses remain a closely guarded secret. ‘It
is fair to say that the 2017 car was not an easy
car,’ Allison says. ‘This sport is annoying as it
is so much fun being inside it, and there are
so many lovely stories to tell, but you can’t
tell all of them. Changing that characteristic
was quite a significant intellectual triumph
in terms of understanding the 2017 car and
applying that understanding to the design and
subsequent development of the 2018 car. But
that knowledge is just too precious to reveal
what we did. There are other teams suffering
the same woes, perhaps not as badly as we did,
and perhaps not our direct competition, but
nevertheless it is too revealing of the things that
really count to be able to reveal it.’
Problem solving
Yet while the cause of the issues suffered in
2017 is not open knowledge some of the
steps Mercedes took to resolve them can be
discussed, though clearly it is not a simple
While the 2017 and 2018 Mercedes Formula 1 cars do look
quite similar, they actually had very different temperaments
10 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
The front suspension on the W09 features pushrod-actuated torsion bars
mechanical fix or mild redesign of an area of the
car. ‘It’s not just a case of adjusting a component
or changing a stiffness, it is deeper than that,’
Allison says. ‘It is about understanding as best
we can how the forces on the car transmit
themselves down through the tyres on to the
ground, and getting the front and rear axles to
work well together through the speed range,
through the corners, from braking to apex
to exit across a wide range of surfaces. That
does involve a really intimate understanding
of the physics behind a racing car. I think I
really have to doff my cap to the guys in our
vehicle performance areas, Loic Serra under the
guidance and leadership of Mark Ellis did a great
job. The way they worked so beautifully with
our aero guys and our chief designer to bring
together the work of lots of different parts of the
company to attack this problem was brilliant.’
Looking over the car it is possible to see
areas that did not play a part in changing this
characteristic; the wheelbase, for example,
TECH SPEC: Mercedes-AMG W09
Chassis
Moulded carbon fibre and honeycomb composite structure.
Bodywork
Carbon fibre composite including engine cover, sidepods, floor,
nose, front wing and rear wing.
Safety structures
Cockpit survival cell incorporating impact-resistant construction
and penetration panels, front impact structure, prescribed side
impact structures, integrated rear impact structure, front and rear roll
structures, and the Halo cockpit protection device.
Power unit
See page 18.
Front and rear suspension
Carbon fibre wishbone and pushrod-activated
torsion springs and rockers.
Transmission
Gearbox; 8-speed forward, one reverse, unit with carbon fibre
maincase; sequential, semi-automatic, hydraulic activation.
Carbon plate clutch.
Brakes
Carbone Industrie carbon/carbon discs and pads with rear brake-by-
wire. Brembo brake calipers.
Steering
Power-assisted rack and pinion.
Electronics
FIA standard ECU and FIA homologated electronic and electrical
system. Instrumentation by McLaren Electronic Systems.
Fuel system
ATL Kevlar-reinforced rubber bladder.
Wheels and tyres
OZ forged magnesium rims; Pirelli tyres.
Dimensions
Overall Length: over 5000mm; overall width, 2000mm;
overall height, 950mm.
Overall weight
733kg.
remains the same as the W08, and also remains one of
the longest in Formula 1. ‘It’s true that we do have a long
wheelbase, and it is nothing to do with the Diva issues,’
Allison says. ‘The reason we have such a long wheelbase is
that you get more area facing the ground, and that is where a
lot of the efficient downforce comes from.’
Running such a comparatively long car means that at
some circuits, such as Monaco, the car in some senses is at
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FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG W09

a disadvantage from a pure vehicle dynamics

point of view, but this is not a great cause of ‘A long wheelbase means more area facing
concern for the Mercedes engineers. ‘Our car
has not tended to lack in terms of aerodynamic the ground, and that is actually where a
efficiency, and that long wheelbase is helpful
for that,’ Allison says. ‘If you talk to some guys on lot of the efficient downforce comes from’
the race team or in vehicle dynamics they can
actually quantify circuit by circuit what the long
wheelbase costs us as a result of having a bigger
car, with the bigger polar moment of inertia that
comes with it. It asks a little more of the tyres
than a smaller car might, but that effect is teeny,
in the 100ths of a second range. Ordinarily the
deficit is swamped by the downforce gain.’

Suspension changes
At the launch of the W09 one of the team’s
drivers let it slip that the car did differ to the
W08 in one crucial area, the suspension. Both
front and rear layouts had been changed, and
according to this driver these changes were
all about saving weight, especially at the rear.
‘The suspension is different, but not massively,’
Allison says. ‘Everything has moved around a
little bit as we have found a better compromise The W09 uses a composite-cased transmission. Inside of this reside the hydraulic and gas rear suspension components
of stiffness vs downforce.’
Mercedes uses a largely hydraulic and gas But Allison adds that this approach has them pretty similar. What would be different
suspension at the rear, mounted inside its been taken to improve packaging rather than would be how neatly packaged they were, how
composite transmission, with few of the bars or enhancing the performance of the suspension small and stiff and light, but the actual degrees
springs found on other F1 cars. ‘On the internal system. ‘You could do anything we do currently of freedom are pretty well established.’
parts the main springing elements and working with conventional parts,’ he says. ‘My guess
stuff is all gas springs and hydraulic columns would be that if we were to put the Ferrari, Red Mounting points
rather than metallic springs,’ Allison says. ‘It’s Bull and Mercedes systems on a bench and look The front suspension of the W09 is visibly
been that way for a while here, it’s a really neat at the performance characteristics of each, different to that of the W08, with the inboard
way of packaging a spring as you get a lot of what functions they deliver and what scope wishbone mounting points sitting higher
spring for the volume doing it with gas.’ for tuning they have, I think you would find than those on the 2017 car. The design of the

Working the wheels

M
ercedes caused a minor controversy late in the 2018 season when
it introduced a new design of rear wheel rim. The rim featured a
number of small drillings around the hub, and this was felt by at least
one of its rivals to be an unfair advantage and so it considered protesting the
design under Article 3.8 of the technical regulations, which bans moveable
aerodynamic devices (other than the DRS system). The suggestion was that the
drillings give some kind of aerodynamic gain around the rear of the car. The
FIA looked into the design of the rims and deemed them legal, and Mercedes
used them in the closing races of the season.
James Allison actually admits that the wheels gave a performance gain, but
insists that it was not an aerodynamic gain in the traditional sense. ‘The front
wheel needs to have options which allow it to be cooled at some tracks, and
heated at others to try to keep the tyres in the right window,’ he says. ‘There
are very few circuits where you need to heat the rears, most of the time you are
trying to keep the heat out, and that is what this is about.
‘Everyone is using the flow that comes in to cool the brakes, and aspects Mercedes says the drilled holes within the rear wheels are primarily to aid cooling
of that are used to put layers of air where otherwise there would be heat
transfer to the rim, and in turn the tyre,’ Allison adds. ‘The area which has been ‘Article 3.8 is a very powerful article and it says that any device which has an
controversial in the minds of our competitors was our rear rim.They took aerodynamic effect has to be rigidly secured etc,’ Allison says. ‘The only bit that
exception to a design we had, which aimed to reduce heat transfer between is exempt is the brake duct itself, so the brake discs are not exempt, axles are
the axle and the rim, the idea being if we could get a layer of insulation not exempt, wheels, suspension. If you take that regulation literally you are not
between the axle and the rim then less heat goes into the spokes. It is nothing allowed ventilated discs, cooling is an aerodynamic function. I think when the
to do with downforce and drag, but look at everyone’s brake drums at the FIA look at things like this they ask what is the primary purpose of this device,
front, you can see the exits, so you can’t say it has nothing to do with aero, in this case it is clearly for cooling. If it were for downforce it would be a much
but it is nothing to do with seeking downforce. It’s about the heat transfer. larger device and it would be obvious. So they have to take a pragmatic view,
Our rear wheels are no different in concept to that. because otherwise none of the cars would be legal.’

12 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

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 FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG W09

‘It would be wrong to say the design is entirely defined by the

aerodynamic demands, it’s never as one-dimensional as that’

The W09 is not fitted with the Ferrari-style short

sidepods seen on many other Formula 1 cars

wishbones too has been changed notably with

the blended lower A-arm not as extreme as it
was on the W08. The distinctive outboard upper
wishbone mounting point has conceptually
carried over from the 2017 car, while the front
torsion bars remain pushrod actuated.
Leg work
‘We lifted the lower leg a little and the top leg
moved up with it,’ Allison says. ‘The lower leg
is what you move for aerodynamic benefits,
the top leg moves not because it is better
for the aerodynamics but because the closer
together you have the wishbones the bigger the
forces get, so you have to keep the wishbone
spacing at an acceptable level. It would be
wrong to say the design is entirely defined
by the aerodynamic demands, it’s never as
one-dimensional as that, if it was only for
aerodynamics it would not look like it looks.
It has to be stiff as well. That’s the challenge,
it is not so much: can we make it stiff enough,
can we position it like that and still get decent
kinematics? That is what you can calculate. It
is more about can we do it at an acceptable
weight and can we fit enough design iterations
The radiator package followed the same concept throughout the 2018 season; note the upper side impact structure position
Rather than pursue the short sidepod concept
introduced by Ferrari and adopted by more
than half of the 2018 Formula 1 field, Mercedes
decided to stick with a conventional layout. It
felt that relocating the side impact structure was
too much of a risk, especially if the team could
not get the design to work on track, something
that its customer Williams suffered with in 2018.
But that is not to say that the team did not
revise the cooling layout. It did, and that placed
a significant demand on the group of engineers
working on the power unit at Mercedes HPP.
‘The 2017 season was a big regulation
change, but 2018 was a chance for John Owen
and the folk who work in the performance
design area to tighten up and exploit the
An electric future for F1?
regulations to their fullest,’ Allison says. ‘Andy
Cowell and his folk (see page 18) bent over
backwards to redesign the power unit so we
could include a much more efficient layout of
radiators and the bodywork in that area which
came with a good amount of downforce with it.’
Keeping cool
Throughout the season the sidepod design was
tightened up, but the short sidepod concept
was never adopted as it would require a brand
new chassis. Indeed, aside from the first few
races of the season the W09’s cooling concept
remained the same through the year. ‘All the
change on the sidepods was more downforce,
the underlying layout of the cores remained the

in terms of structural analysis and mechanical
modifications in the time-scale that we have?
‘It is about these loops of making a change
to the geometry, calculating what the new
stiffness and deflection is going to be and
working out if that is going to give you any
handling difficulty and then going back round
the loop,’ Allison adds. ‘Each time you go
around that loop you can save a little bit of
weight and the more times you can do that
the lighter it will end up. The question is, how
many times can you go round that loop before
someone has to stick a fork in it and say we are
done, otherwise we are not going racing. That
is really the key to the suspension, it’s what we
are up to our necks in with the 2019 car, how
late do we dare run those loops?’
Another area where the W09 appeared
similar to the W08 was with its cooling system.
W
ith Formula E entering its fifth season and the automotive industry increasingly looking toward
mass market electrification many are asking if the future of F1 is also electric. FIA president Jean
Todt has rubbished this suggestion, but engineers like James Allison think differently. ‘I think F1 will
go all electric,’ he says. ‘Put yourself forward 20 years and there will be no internal combustion engines on the
road, so it is inconceivable to think that we will be banging away with pistons, sparks and petrol in Formula 1.
By then it will be possible to make ridiculously fast cars which are just electric. It’s going to be inevitable that
F1 goes that way, and it will be fun and exciting, but it’s a question of what is the road map to getting there.
‘Right now we have hybrid power units and the internal combustion engines we use are just a miracle of
efficiency,’ Allison adds. ‘We are certainly going to end up all electric it’s just a question of how long. I suspect
that the current generation of
fans who have grown up with
this sport who love the noise will
be replaced by younger people
who don’t associate cars with
noise and for whom it won’t be
an issue that these things are
screaming around the track
quietly. As an engineer it’s
going to be brilliant fun.’ Mercedes is now in Formula E with HWA. Could F1 go all-electric in the future?

14 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

 Exhibiting at:
Exhibiting at:
FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG W09
‘The most difficult thing by far with a Formula 1 car is making
sure that you find the happy place for the front and rear tyres’
same, even for the big update which came in
Austria,’ Allison says. ‘At the start of the year there
was a little bit of shuffling around to adjust the
balance of cooling between the various fluids,
but the overall concept has remained with us
pretty much from the start.’
Indeed, at the start of the season the W09
had an excess of cooling capacity, though this
was a deliberate move by the designers at
Mercedes HPP in Brixworth to accommodate
anticipated power unit developments. ‘At the
start of the year we agreed a budget with
Brixworth in terms of heat rejection,’ Allison
says. ‘That meant that they knew what they
could use up during the season without having
to have long discussions with us about the
trade off between aerodynamics and
horsepower, because we had built in a bit of
Return of the fan car?
I
n 2019 new regulations will be introduced
into Formula 1 in an effort to increase
overtaking, and further steps in this
direction are set to come in 2021, but James
Allison believes that a radical solution,
harking back to banned cars of the past,
could be the way forward.
‘I would like to see moveable
aerodynamic devices return to Formula 1,’
Allison says. ‘You may remember the
Brabham fan car, well I’d quite like to see
that concept come back. I think it would be
the solution to something which people care
a lot about. The sport is marred by a lack of
overtaking, caused by dirty air when two
cars are close together. The main issue there
is that the leading car steals all the air from
the following car, much in the same way
a sailing ship can do the same to another
sailing ship. If you could have fans in the
car you could put back the energy that was
missing from being behind someone. If you
designed the car properly, and specified the
rules correctly, you could do that in a way
that was not at all contrived.
‘All the cars have got batteries and
motors in them so you could allow the
following car to capture the advantage it has
on a straight from having less drag. It could
do that by not needing to drive the MGU-K
as hard and it could store more energy
in the battery, and when the car is in the
corner that energy could be used to drive
the fan and give more downforce. If you got
the sizing right you could have a car that
was completely agnostic to whether it was
behind or in front, so cars could follow very
close through the corners, and I think that
would make a great spectacle.’
16 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
a margin in anticipation of their gains. So we
started the year with a bit more cooling than
we needed because we knew that later in the
year they would gobble it up.’
Despite the bodywork being run with
additional openings such as a cooling exit on
the spine of the engine cover at hotter races,
there seemed to be few issues with cooling
during the season. ‘We got a bit toasty on
the plenums in Mexico because everything is
working so hard due to the altitude, but it was
all within limits, albeit at the upper end,’ Allison
says. ‘It was a good year from that perspective.
The 2017 car was a bit of a nuisance in terms of
cooling, we needed to run it quite open, but this
car has been very well behaved.’
Mexican dip
Being well behaved seems to be the overriding
characteristic of the W09, though on just one
occasion it did show a slight Diva tendency, in
Mexico. History records that this grand prix
was the one where Lewis Hamilton clinched his
fifth drivers’ championship crown, but according
to Allison there was not much jubilation in the
immediate aftermath of the race.
‘The car sucked, Lewis wanted to know
why’, Allison says. ‘Whenever we have a bit
of a tricky event like we did in Mexico it is
because you have not got the tyres working at
a temperature which is correct for that circuit
and that compound. You see that with lots of
teams where they have an event where they are
way out of kilter with their normal performance.
You saw it with Red Bull in Baku. They had been
looking pretty fierce in free practice, not that
bad in qualifying, but they were completely
nowhere in the race. If I were to guess that
Naked W09. Note the ducting that feeds from the roll hoop. Long wheelbase which is a feature of the car is also clear here
would be for the same reasons that we
struggled in Mexico. We did not have our front
tyres at the right temperature. It is something
you can control, you have set-up options
around the front axle which let you look after
that, but we didn’t see the risk coming and as a
result did not have the right set-up for the race.
Those sort of problems do not rear their head
on a single lap in qualifying.’
User friendly
Fortunately for Mercedes, and unfortunately for
its rivals, this was just a one-off. The overriding
highlight of the 2018 season for Allison was the
reaction of the drivers after getting behind the
the W09’s wheel. ‘Its a pretty good car,’ he says.
‘The most difficult thing by far is making sure
that you find the happy place for the front and
rear tyres. They are tender, and it’s not easy to
do that. But when you see the way the drivers
get out of the car after a qualifying session you
are reminded that it is a pretty good car. They
look like happy little schoolboys who have just
had Christmas because the performance in
qualifying is absolutely amazing and no driver
ever has felt the things our drivers [felt] this year.
When this car is pumped out and pepped and
asked to do the best it can do it is incredible.’
The W09 was the second and last in a line of
a two-car concept, which began with the Diva
W08. In 2019 a new concept will be introduced
as a result of the new aerodynamic regulations,
which are aimed at improving the quality of
the racing in Formula 1. But it still seems likely
that the lessons learned from turning the W08
into the W09 will carry through to the 2019
season, something which may well leave
Mercedes’ rivals feeling downhearted.
FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG M09 PU
Staying power
With just three power units per driver for the entire Formula 1 season
2018 was as much about extending the life of the parts within the
Mercedes M09 PU as it was about improving its legendary efficiency.
Racecar spoke to HPP boss Andy Cowell to find out more
By SAM COLLINS
M
ercedes achieved something
that no other manufacturer did
during the 2018 season. At the
Azerbaijan Grand Prix its power
unit propelled two different chassis designs to a
podium finish. In a season as competitive as the
one just gone, that was quite an achievement.
As was the M09 engine propelling the W09
chassis to its fifth championship victory in a row.
The Mercedes-AMG F1 M09 EQ Power +, to
give it its full name, was once again a 1.6-litre
turbo V6 featuring direct injection, mated to
a motor generator unit used as both anti-lag
and to recover exhaust energy (the MGU-H),
and another larger MGU used to recover kinetic
energy under braking and offer a power and
torque boost under acceleration (the MGU-K).
The M09 is visually quite similar to the M08
of 2017, with the split turbo layout retained for
the fifth season running – the turbine mounted
at the rear of the block and the compressor at
the front with the MGU-H mounted between
the two on a common shaft in the V of the
engine. But under the many heat shields and
ancillary sub-systems this is a power unit which,
while conceptually similar to its predecessor, is
actually quite different in a number of areas.
Built to last
As well as the never ending quest to increase
performance (efficiency has risen from around
30 per cent to over 50 per cent since 2014), there
has also been a focus to increase the mileage of
the M09. When the regulations were introduced
in 2014 each driver could use five complete
power units per season, but every manufacturer
struggled to meet this requirement and many
penalties were incurred up and down the grid.
Despite this the regulatory requirement on
‘We focussed on trying to increase
the life of the hardware of the power
unit without losing performance’
18 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
power unit life has been continually reduced up
to 2018, when the life expectancy of the units
was increased to its highest level yet.
‘The change on the power unit for this year
is quite considerable and driven by a number
of requirements,’ Mercedes-AMG High
Performance Powertrains (HPP) managing
director Andy Cowell explained at the launch
of the 2018 car. ‘The biggest challenge we’ve
got is lifting our durability limit with the
challenge of racing just three engines per driver
per championship, and two ERS systems. That’s
a 40 per cent increase in the life of the hardware
this year compared with last. We focussed
on trying to increase the life of the hardware
without losing performance.’
Balance of power
As the technical regulations relating to the
power unit have remained largely unchanged
since 2014 few stones have remained unturned
in terms of development, making extending
the life of the unit and not losing performance
a very tough task indeed, and rather more
nuanced than Cowell initially explained at the
launch. ‘The objectives were more than just
ensuring that we could do the season with
three engines and two ERSs without losing peak
performance,’ he says. ‘Actually we set ourselves
a target to gain peak performance and not lose
any race performance. During the race everyone
runs slightly different performance modes, but
the challenge for the power unit department
was to ensure that there was a sufficient number
of high performance modes to ensure that the
driver is always able to attack. Those were the
prime objectives for 2018.’
From the outset of the current regulations all
four power unit manufacturers have put great
effort into the combustion process of the V6
engine, something which has seen compression
ratios rise to as high as 18:1 and pre-chamber
ignition systems introduced. It might then be
expected that this area would also have a key
role in extending the life of the engine, but
Cowell suggests that this is not the case.
‘In terms of the combustion process there
is no real change in terms of life, unless the
components associated with combustion
start to wear or degrade,’ Cowell says.
‘Sometimes you end up with combustion
deposits either on the cylinder head, valves or
piston crown, and you can find deposits around
the injector or sparking plug, so that can have
an impact on the combustion efficiency with
life. With the change for 2018, though, going
from five to seven races, that was not the big
difference. What was a big difference was
high cycle fatigue. To overcome that we had
to have smarter designs that use the material
more effectively, as well as introducing new
materials and new finishing processes. That
was the key area of technology development
to get the required life.’
Material benefits
For years the engineers at Mercedes have
optimised the design of every single
component of the PU (of which there are over
5000), trying to increase life and performance
constantly, but in some areas the original
materials used were no longer able to cope with
the demands placed on them. However, the
‘new’ materials are usually like the designs that
use them, refinements of what already exist.
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 19
‘You may find new alloys that give you a
10 to 15 per cent improvement but with that
you need to understand the nuances of a new
material,’ Cowell says. ‘It is rare that everything
is good, typically there is a good parameter
you want that it offers but there is also a
parameter which is not so good and you need
to be aware of. It could be that the fracture
toughness is slightly worse or the machinability
is slightly worse, so it’s gathering data and
understanding the material so that when you
go racing you don’t have surprises.
‘In the last five years we have introduced
a handful of new alloys, but probably three of
those are changes in composition or changes in
grade, while the other two are cleaner versions
of the previous grade,’ Cowell adds. ‘So you play
those two development avenues with equal
FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG M09 PU

M09 in the W09. This

TECH SPEC: Mercedes-AMG
potent combination had
F1 M09 EQ Power + an impressive season
Engine in 2018 in terms of both
Capacity: 1600cc maximum (the exact capacity has pace and reliability
not been disclosed).
Cylinders: six.
Bank angle: 90 degrees.
Valves: 24, pneumatically actuated.
Max speed: 15,000rpm.
Fuel injection: direct, one injector per
cylinder, max 500bar.
Turbocharger: split single stage compressor and
exhaust turbine on a common shaft, 125,000rpm
max exhaust turbine speed.
Fluids: Petronas (bespoke).
Weight: 145kg.
Hybrid system
Energy store: Lithium-ion cells in composite Rear face of the M09
casing, minimum 20kg weight. showing turbine
Energy storage per lap: 4MJ (max). position (shrouded)
MGU-K: Max speed 50,000rpm, max power and plenum shape. The
120kW, 2MJ max recovery per lap, 33.3s clutch can also be seen
average deployment per lap.
MGU-H: mounted on common shaft with
turbocharger, max speed 125,000rpm, unlimited
recovery and deployment.

enthusiasm. Every material has a variability in

its properties, and across the three axis of how
the material is formed. So you work to optimise
the properties of the load case, and that is not
a change in the actual alloy, it’s often a change
in the cleanliness of starting alloy, and the
processing, with the amount of cold work and
heat treatment that is done. This is all part of
the intricacy and elegance of the design and
the exact achievement of that design through
precise manufacturing methods.’
Weight and see
Even with new or optimised materials, some
components of the power unit simply had to
get heavier to meet the demands of the higher
life requirements, but the increase in weight
of these parts did not mean that the overall
weight of the power unit increased. ‘Yes the
odd component has become heavier, but the
neighbouring components could be lighter,’
Cowell says. ‘After a lot of hard work you have
what you might call in footballing terms a score
draw in terms of weight. This is what really
absorbs a lot of engineering resource. Every
single one of the engineering organisations in
Formula 1 thrives on not trading off one aspect
with another, so not trading off life with weight.
They thrive on extending the life, extending the
load for the same weight. That is done through
innovative engineering, be it materials, design,
manufacture or even assembly technique. That
is the spectrum of engineering involved to make
a component go even further with a higher load
for the same or reduced weight.’
Understanding how the power units dealt
with the increased life requirements during 2018
is an ongoing process at the Mercedes-AMG
‘After a lot of hard work you have what you call in
footballing terms a score draw in terms of weight’
HPP facility in Brixworth, and that information
is being fed into the development for 2019 and
beyond. Of the six cars using the M09 in 2018
five achieved the required life and did not incur
any penalties (a record matched by Ferrari)
and the sixth had to change a power unit as a
hydraulic failure on the car had caused a unit to
overheat. Three different specifications of M09
were raced through the season, each better
than the last, though Cowell is unwilling to
disclose the exact differences.
‘In terms of the three specifications of
engines through the season there was no big
difference in terms of degradation,’ Cowell says.
‘We did put a lot of effort into understanding
last year’s race pool and from that you
progressively build up a pool of knowledge.
After the 2018 [season-closing] Abu Dhabi
Grand Prix there was a big project to look at all
of the engines to work out which of them will
be degradation tested and which will be fault
tested. That process over the last four years
has helped us understand what systems, and
components, in the power unit are the main
causes of performance changes. Then that
goes on to the performance ideas list; if we
could maintain the performance of a part from
first to last lap then you get a performance
gain across the season.
‘That process is as much part of the
performance process as is gaining a certain
improvement in power on the first pass-off, or
extending the life to make sure we can do
seven races,’ Cowell adds.
Japan issues
The only other times during the year that the
M09 seemed to have a reliability issue was late
in the season, when Lewis Hamilton started to
feel something strange in the performance
of his engine during the Japanese Grand
Prix. On the radio he repeatedly reported
fluctuations in the power level, something
which sounded like an impending failure.
‘In Japan it was just the way we were
running the engine at that point in the race,’

20 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG M09 PU

Right side of PU showing exhaust layout, cylinder head and exhaust collector. MGU-K is on the opposite side Exhaust exit is clear here (large red bung) as are wastegate exits

The engineers at
Brackley wanted
the packaging of
the unit to be a lot
more compact than
originally planned
Cowell says. ‘The nature of Sector 1 at Suzuka
means that the car is particularly sensitive to
any torque variation on the rear axle, and the
particular mode we were running in was not
precise enough in its torque delivery. Lewis was
picking that up, and the position he was in at
that point in the race with tyre management
amplified that. You could see it in the data and
we have done work to understand it. We are
very lucky to have two drivers who give At short notice the M09 was redesigned to be more compact, so that the W09 racecar could have a better radiator position
outstanding feedback on issues like this.’
However, no lasting damage was done, and ‘It was pretty early in a chassis guy’s mind, but
Heat exhaustion the unit was used again in the final race of the from a power unit point of view we asked for
The power fluctuation issue was fixed but then season, where it took an easy victory. it when it was only just physically possible.
a more serious issue with the same power unit Extending the life and maintaining The Brixworth guys decided that they would
manifested itself at the Brazilian Grand Prix, just performance was not the only objective that have a go to deliver it and actually they moved
as Mercedes was trying to seal the constructors’ the engineers developing the M09 were set. heaven and earth in a short space of time to
championship. ‘I got a message on the radio Another major design target was imposed on achieve it. It was a considerable risk.’
saying that the exhaust was just about to fail, them very late in the project, a target set not
and that it was overshooting all the temperature by Cowell and the senior staff at Brixworth, but Works effort
limits,’ Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said after rather by those working on the W09 chassis Mercedes is one of three manufacturers on
the race. ‘They started to fix it by turning the in Brackley. The engineers there wanted the the grid which builds both the chassis and the
whole thing down. The temperatures went packaging of the unit to be a lot more compact power unit (along with Ferrari and Renault),
down to below 1000, to 980 degrees. But it was than was originally planned, and this led to a something which allows it to develop both of
still too high. That was truly horrible.’ major project to adapt the design. these aspects around one another, and try to
The car managed to finish the race at a ‘With the particular changes we asked for, find a performance advantage along the way.
slightly reduced pace but Mercedes later on the W09 we asked for them very late,’ James And while Mercedes customers Williams and
claimed that it was one lap away from failure. Allison, technical director at the race team says. Force India (for the time being now known as

22 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

FORMULA 1 – MERCEDES-AMG M09 PU
Of the six cars using the M09 throughout the 2018 season five
achieved the required life and did not incur any penalties
Racing Point) do get to feed into the process, the
main focus is always on the works team.
‘The difficult thing when any chassis person
sits down with an engine person is that anything
that the engine guy does casts a really long
shadow if they make a mistake,’ Allison says.
‘With power unit development the parts are
complex, they are really expensive, and you
have to make and test quite a lot of them before
you are convinced that the change did not hurt
reliability wise. The power unit is loaded much
more to within an inch of its life than the chassis
side, where there is a lot more reserve. They
need to be much more circumspect, and they
have to be convinced of something, they have
to start a lot earlier than the chassis side does.
‘They need to then prove it all on the
dyno,’ Allison adds. ‘On the chassis side you
only do one car a year, yes you modify it, but
the fundamentals remain the same, you don’t
have a dyno, and you only really find out in
winter testing if all your in-house work was
good enough. But if you want a power unit
person to help you then you have to ask them
early enough to build it into their programme
alongside the other stuff like making more
horsepower and other PU-ly goodness. And
we only just managed that.’
Stiffer test
The result was an effective car and PU. But
Mercedes was pushed harder than at any point
since 2014, particularly by Ferrari. Indeed,
during the summer months Toto Wolff claimed
Force India is one of the Mercedes customer operations, along with Williams. These teams do have some input into the PU’s design, but nowhere near as much as the works outfit
24 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
more than once that the Ferrari power unit
was potentially better than the M09. Ferrari
was then embroiled in a controversy about
its battery design and the way it deployed its
power on track, to the point that the FIA felt the
need to install additional sensors on the Italian
power unit to ensure legality, but ultimately the
Mercedes proved to be the better package.
Mind the gap
Cowell was not surprised by the narrowing or
complete removal of the gap to its competitors.
‘We are striving continuously to improve but I
think the key thing we have had over the last
five years is stability of the core regulations,’ he
says. ‘While the life has increased the key aspects
have not changed, we have kept to 100kg/h
fuel flow rate and we have kept to a 1.6-litre
engine. Those aspects of the regulations have
stayed the same and rules stability does bring
the competition closer and closer together.
Throughout this year we have seen a huge
closing up, from best to worst across the pack,
of the four power units. Honda has improved
tremendously both in terms of reliability and
especially in terms of performance. Renault
and Ferrari have come up too.’
For the 2017 season the FIA introduced
a number of new restrictions on a selection
of components in order to accelerate the
performance convergence of the power units.
Compression ratio was capped, the pistons,
conrods and crankshaft all had weight limits
applied, and the MGUs also had weight limits
introduced. These new rules were introduced
as a temporary measure, but despite the
performance convergence being clear the
restrictions remain in place.
‘Those measures all remain in the technical
regulations, and my understanding is that they
will remain for the life of the regulations and
I think that is a healthy thing,’ Cowell says. ‘If
we go all the way back to 2011 when we were
scripting these regulations, the engineering
decision-making was very quick and easy to
do with regard to having the fuel flow rate as
the primary way of achieving the mission of
improving the efficiency of the power unit
as the way to win. In the subsequent many
meetings we agreed many of the things that
would be standardised like crankshaft centreline
height and bore size. To have a fixed bore size,
for example, was quite a bold decision. It was
all done to constrain the development platform
and constrain the amount of money in that
development process and eventually bring
about performance convergence as well. I think
all the way along the technical and sporting
regulations have led to convergence.’
Powering on
That process to bring about convergence has
all started once again with the somewhat
controversial and overdue 2021 power unit
regulations. Whether Mercedes will be able to
maintain its advantage into the new Formula
remains to be seen, but it would be a surprise
not to see it fighting for wins in 2019.
High Tech
ch | High Speed | High Qualit
Quality

Pankl Systems Austria GmbH

Engine Systems

A-8600 Bruck/Mur, Kaltschmidstraße 2-6

Phone: +43(0)3862 33 999 0
Fax: +43(0)3862 33 999 290
e-mail: engine@pankl.com www.pankl.com
LMP1 – 2020 REGULATIONS

Future perfect?
The ACO and FIA have pulled together a set of hypercar-based
regulations in record time in a bid to attract new manufacturers
to Le Mans by 2020, but will it work? Racecar investigates
By ANDREW COTTON

Toyota unveiled its hypercar concept mid-2018

and the Japanese manufacturer is believed to
have been working on a power unit design that
would fit the final 2020 LMP1 regulations

26 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019


All the cars will be hybrid,
they will also be mapped
aerodynamically and
will resemble road cars
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 27
T
he FIA WEC was, for two glorious
years, in rude health, with Porsche,
Audi and Toyota engaged in a
wonderful battle in LMP1. The
regulations were well thought through, with the
Appendix B coping with the different amounts
of hybrid energy and different fuels, while the
manufacturers were able to develop their own
hybrid systems, engines and aerodynamics.
However, the party soon came to a crashing
end. Nissan, which entered only Le Mans in
2015, did not have a budget large enough,
or development time, to challenge the front
runners, leading FIA WEC promoter Gerard
Neveu to suggest that a manufacturer should
not turn up with a budget of less than €70m, or
they would not be competitive. Nissan only took
part in that single race, and never re-appeared.
Dieselgate followed shortly afterwards,
and that cost the series Audi and Porsche. With
only Toyota remaining, the WEC went into a
default setting, trying to make privateer cars
competitive against the highly developed
hybrid. To date, the only victory for a privateer
has come when the two Toyotas were
disqualified at Silverstone, and it is clear there is
a big performance gap between the established
manufacturer and the brand-new private cars.
2020 vision
It was clear that a new set of regulations
had to be created in order to attract new
manufacturers, and that work started in
earnest following the Le Mans 24 hours 2018.
At Le Mans, the road map was laid out. All
cars will be hybrid, they will also be mapped
aerodynamically, and will resemble road cars.
The new regulations will obsolete the privateer
cars from BR Engineering and ORECA, and those
teams are awaiting a decision on whether or not
their racecars will be grandfathered for a year.
Minimum weight for the cars has been
raised from 980kg to 1040kg since the outline
regulations were released at Le Mans, with
weight distribution fixed at 48.5 per cent front.
In June, the target of 520kW from the rear
powertrain and 200kW from the front MGU-K
was also fixed. The rear unit has reduced to
508kW, the front remains at 200kW in the new
regulations. Target lap time has risen to 3m22s
at Le Mans, which released the manufacturers
from unfeasible 3m14s targets. Moveable aero
Target lap time at
Le Mans is now
3m22s, releasing
the manufacturers
from an unfeasible
3m14s mark
LMP1 – 2020 REGULATIONS
The last attempt to run production-based cars produced very different Porsches in 1997 and 1998 as development costs soared. Top image is the ’97 GT1, bottom the ’98 version
devices were also announced, and made it
to the final set of regulations. Indeed, there is
much that was announced in June that remains
in place, but the regulations have now been
defined and, with the proviso of any loopholes
coming to light, they are in place for 2020.
Looking into this in detail, there are a
few loopholes to exploit. The performance
parameters are all measured, including
power (ICE and MGU-K), aero (downforce and
drag), weight, tyres, BSFC (brake specific fuel
consumption), weight distribution, suspension
as it relates to attitude and aero and control
systems. Wiggle room is at a minimum, which
means that costs will be kept under control, but
some wonder what happened to the concept of
innovation. The only likely loopholes are in the
measurement process, or the systems.
The headline points for the new regulations
surrounded the phrase ‘of the make’. A power
unit, including the MGU-K, that is designed and
built by an OEM must be put into a low-volume
28 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
hypercar, and 25 must be built by the end of
the first year. That rises to 100 by the end of the
second year, and there are fewer restrictions
around these engines compared to a bespoke
unit from a specialist company.
Limiting development
However, an OEM may have its engine designed
and built by an external supplier, leading to
certain packaging and weight advantages,
although the FIA is confident that it has closed
off this loophole. ‘In the regulations, the first
point is that we limited the performance
window, and fixed the other elements of the
car by templates, and in fact, we tried to limit
the effect of research into performance by the
limiting of targets for aero and the performance
of the powertrain,’ says Pascal Giroud, head of
Technical Matters, Sportscars, Touring Cars and
Formula E at the FIA. ‘The strategy was to fix
the performance and control, as well as limit
the effect of development for performance.
You can work on the aerodynamics, but the
result is [you will only gain] 0.1s by lap, so there
will be no interest to work on it.’
The problem is, this was where GT3 racing
was supposed to go, but that soon changed as
manufacturers designed evo cars. The constant
bid for evolution will certainly lead the regs into
unintended areas, but the FIA’s confident that it
has enough restrictions to halt development.
‘The level of performance that is fixed by
the regulations is relatively easy to achieve, so
some manufacturers will of course continue
to develop and fine-tune the aero effects, but
there will be a limitation for all manufacturers
which we will grant [so as] to have the same
level of performance for different cars,’
says Marek Narawecki, who is the head of
administration, categories, at the FIA.
Engine weight is limited at 180kg, and the
BSFC is set artificially high in order to make the
specifications easy to achieve for a production
engine; at 235g/kWh, and then dropping to
Extract from 2020 regulations: major power unit points
Engine
Four-stroke gasoline engines permitted.
The engine of the make must be based on an original engine. An engine
may be used as an original engine on the following conditions:
• At least 25 identical engines identical to the ones destined
for the series production car homologated for road use
equipped with this engine must have been produced.
• One complete engine is deposited with the FIA/ACO.
• At least 25 identical series production car homologated
for road use equipped with this engine are produced
by the end of the year of the first season this engine is
competing in.
• At least 100 identical series production car homologated
for road use equipped with this engine are produced by
the end of the year of the second season this engine is
competing in.
• The original engine is homologated with FIA/ACO.
Engine
5.4.1 Engine is free except following restrictions:
• Engine cubic capacity is free
• Engine must not have more than two inlet and two
exhaust valves per cylinder.
- Only reciprocating poppet valves with axial
displacement are permitted.
- The sealing interface between the moving valve
component and the stationary engine component
must be circular.
- Electromagnetic and hydraulic valve actuation
systems are forbidden.
• Variable geometry devices are not allowed except for
the engine of the make for parts that remain exactly as
homologated for the original engine.
MGU-K
The MGU-K of the make is a series production MGU-K that meets
the following conditions:
• At least 25 identical MGU-Ks identical to the ones destined for the
series production car homologated for road use equipped with this
MGU-K must have been produced.
• One complete MGU-K is deposited with the FIA/ACO.
• At least 25 identical series production car homologated for road use
equipped with this exact same MGU-K are produced by the end of the
year of the first season this engine is competing in.
• At least 100 identical series production car homologated for road use
equipped with this exact same MGU-K are produced by the end of the
year of the second season this exact same MGU-K is competing in.
• The original MGU-K is homologated with FIA/ACO.
5.4.2 Exceptions
The use of two MGU-K of the make connected each to one side of the front
drivetrain is authorised. The rotational speed of the MGU-K of the make is free.
5.5 MGU-K
The MGU-K must be solely and permanently mechanically linked to a mechanical
differential linked to the front wheels of the car. This mechanical link must be of
fixed speed ratio to the front wheels.
The mechanical differential must have a unique and homologated ramp. The
rotational speed of the MGU-K may not exceed 25,000rpm.
The electrical DC power of the MGU-K may not exceed 200kW.
Electrical DC measurements will be used to monitor the maximum MGU-K power.
The electrical DC energy released by the ERS system on the circuit of Le Mans may not
exceed per lap E (MJ) = [0.36 x track length (km)].
The electrical DC energy released by the ERS system on the other circuits may not
exceed per lap E (MJ) = [0.50 x track length (km)].
Electrical DC measurements will be used to monitor the maximum ERS energy
released. The laminate thickness of the MGU-K may not be less than 0.1mm.

5.4.2 The rear power train performance must be declared and
homologated according to the procedure detailed in Article
22.1 of these regulations.
The rear power train power must not exceed 508kW.
For the 2020-2021 and the 2021-202 seasons, the rear power train BSFC
must stay above 235g/kWh. From the 2022-2023 championship season
onwards, the rear power train BSFC must stay above 225g/kWh.
5.4.1 Only four release front driven wheels torque demand maps f(pedal, speed)
are allowed and active when the driver activates a switch. These four maps
are homologated during the car homologation.
Only four recovery front driven wheels torque demand
maps f(brake pressure, speed) are allowed and homologated
during the car homologation.

It seems clear that a manufacturer would want to build a specific

race engine, due to the packaging and weight advantages
225g/kWh for the 2022-23 season. But it seems
clear that a manufacturer would build a specific
race engine, due to packaging and weight
advantages. The FIA has tried to mitigate this
with a Formula 1-style weight distribution
limitation of 48.5 per cent front, with a fudge
factor of 1.5 per cent. ‘If you start from a
production engine, you need to make it reach
the level of performance that is capped, so you
may need to work on the efficiency side, and
when you develop a specific engine, this would
be easier to achieve,’ says Narawecki.
The MGU-K also has different parameters
according to whether or not it is production or
race specification. The minimum weight of the
MGU-K, including the inverter and mechanical
diff, may not be less than 50kg, and the total
weight of the ERS must be no more than 70kg.
The generation gain
Shortly before publication of the regs, there was
a change to the size of the MGU-K in order to
make it easier to generate the power and reduce
the costs. The weight is high enough that
companies will not need to invest in expensive
tech and the cost cap also allows teams to know
exactly how much they will have to spend, while
they will have the ability to buy a rival’s system.
A bespoke unit has a speed restriction of
25,000rpm, while an MGU-K from the make of
car is unrestricted. This is a way of preventing
the very lightweight, high revving and
expensive e-motors that have been used in
LMP1 regulations thus far. The increase in size
has had little impact, according to experts, as
inertia increases with the square of the speed,
and therefore the referenced inertia remains
pretty much the same, but it is housed in a
cheaper and more reliable housing.
The FIA has denied that the MGU-K
regulation was based on anything seen
in Formula E, despite the similar size and

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 29

LMP1 – 2020 REGULATIONS
Having a minimum number of cars to produce is nothing new; Porsche built 25 917s in order to
achieve homologation criteria. While the car was a stunner the concept proved to be flawed
weight of the two systems, as well as the very
similar power output (200kW for the Le Mans
regulations, and 220kW for the Formula E
racecar in race conditions).
MGU-Hs have been banned, as has diesel
fuel, and again this is in a bid to reduce costs,
but also to make the technology more relevant.
According to one manufacturer, the MGU-H is
only really effective under full load acceleration,
and not at a cruising speed on the motorway.
Technology has not yet advanced enough that
this is a relevant technology and therefore it
does not appear in these regulations.
Originally the plan was to allow F1
technology in the future LMP1, but this was
quickly dropped. ‘We fixed the level of power
attached to the level of performance that we
wanted to achieve,’ says Giraud. ‘The more
important point is that [the car] comes from
the GT basis [comes from the marque]. We have
no relation [with] Formula 1 or Formula E. It is
performance versus target costs, and this was
the main idea of these regulations.’
FRIC out
As far as the suspension is concerned, there
was a rumour that, along with active aero, there
could be an argument for active suspension,
but the technical chiefs have denied that this
was ever considered. Not only have mass
dampers and inerters been banned, but so too
has the FRIC suspension system developed for
use in the Audi, Porsche and Toyota LMP1 cars.
This linked the front to rear and gave a stable
aero platform to the LMP1 cars, but was difficult
to perfect, and required a lot of development
30 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
The motor and inverter have been regulated to be artificially heavy, with the aim
of attracting the largest number of independent suppliers. The MGU-K spec is
close to that of Formula E but the FIA denies that any information is shared
MGU-Hs have been banned, as has diesel fuel,
and again this is in a bid to reduce the costs
(see the feature of Porsche’s system in the
January issue of Racecar, V29N1).
With just one bodykit for the season, to
take into account Le Mans as well as other
circuits, the FIA and ACO has allowed the use
of moveable aerodynamic devices, two at
the front and two at the rear of the racecar. It
remains to be seen just how effective these will
be, particularly on the road-course Le Mans
circuit where frequently the track is littered with
everyday debris, which could get jammed in the
mechanisms of these devices.
There will be no restrictions on where the
moveable aero will be able to be used; there
won’t be DRS zones, which means that the
device could be left open throughout the entire
lap. It will have just two positions, open and
closed, and its default setting is closed. ‘Starting
from the point that there will be only one aero
kit, the bodyshell, it was clear that the easiest
way to achieve the performance is to allow
moveable aero with limited diversity of the
positions,’ says Narawecki. ‘So, for that reason it
was decided to have only two front and two rear
devices, with only two positions, which gives
us a single definition for the aero on all circuits
including Le Mans. It will be not limited to the
use on specific areas of the circuit.’
Traction control on the front axle has been
banned, while brake by wire is only allowed on
the front axle, with no pre-settings.
The size of the cockpit has changed to be
wider than before, and frontal area is increased
to 1.8m², which is the reason why the current
LMP1 cars will be obsolete. Cockpit size has
changed too, with the passenger compartment
having to be at least 90 per cent of the size of
the driver’s side of the car. This is to increase
the image of the cars as genuine two seaters, a
throwback to the old GT1 days of the mid-1990s.
Ready or not
There is no set date for the homologation period
to start, meaning that a manufacturer or team
that does not have its car ready in time for the
start of the 2020/21 season may enter the series
later in the season. ‘We don’t put a restriction
on the start of the homologation period,’ says
Narawecki. ‘If someone [has] to homologate a
car during the season, then it would be possible,
as obviously it would be difficult to expect
everyone to be ready at the same time.’
The pit stop regulations will go back to
refuelling and changing tyres at different times,
which has allowed the regulatory bodies to run
with leg tunnels in the cockpit, similar to F1,
something that slows down the driver changes.
The basis for the chassis is a prototype,
and Narawecki denies that there was ever a
plan in place to upgrade GTE cars, without the
ballast or the air restrictors. As Toyota stated
earlier in 2018, it is possible to run such a
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LMP1 – 2020 REGULATIONS
Ferrari shows off its LaFerrari hybrid-equipped hypercar. The Italian sportscar manufacturer has attended the meetings to formulate the regulations, as has McLaren and Ford
chassis without the front KERS, should IMSA
decide to adopt the same regulations.
Talking of IMSA, the Americans have been
involved in the formulation of the regulations,
but have consistently stated that they will
wait until the final set has been released
before presenting it to their teams and partner
manufacturers. Should they choose to adopt the
regulations, there would be a hallowed global
formula that is sought after by many of the
manufacturers looking to race at Le Mans and
the major endurance races in the US.
The bottom line
But what will all this cost? While the target of
€20m was set for a manufacturer, there were
a lot of questions surrounding how this could
be possible. Budget caps are not known for
working well in racing, but a leaked document
in October demonstrated the way in which
the FIA and ACO are looking to do it. There are
two types of budget; the first is for a customer
team which is not developing its own car
and using external companies, including
the full powertrain, while the second is for a
manufacturer team which develops its own car.
Limitations are different for the two
categories; team personnel wages, depreciation,
parts, logistics and freight, electronics and travel
are all cheaper for the customer team, while
tyres and other consumables, pit and paddock
As for the cost for the teams, the two budgets come out at
€16m for a privateer and just over €20m for a manufacturer
32 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
equipment, entry fees and insurances are all the
same for either category. The privateer will also
have to pay for ERS leasing and services, as well
as ICE depreciation or leasing services.
The two figures come out at €16m
for a privateer, and just over €20m for a
manufacturer. Cars are homologated for five
years, and a team may homologate another car
within that time-frame. Additionally, there are
five jokers that a manufacturer may use within
that homologation period, and these may be
invoked for performance or reliability.
From season one four engines, including a
spare in case of an accident, and two ERS are
permitted per season, and there is the same
limitation on the battery.
Interested parties
These regulations have been set in such a way
as to be final, but there are loopholes that
need to be filled. Those sitting around the
table will have enough to take back to their
decision makers, and sign off on projects. Thus
far it seems that one manufacturer, Toyota,
has already scoped out the aerodynamic and
cooling needs for its engine, and is now working
hard on producing a powerplant.
Aston Martin is also believed to have started
work on its engine and a decision was expected
after Racecar went to press. Others interested
are Glickenhaus, which has campaigned GT-
based cars in the VLN series and harbours a
desire to go to Le Mans, while Swedish supercar
maker Koenigsegg is also known to be keen
to start a full race programme.
However, the FIA is also searching for
volume manufacturers, and is known to have a
number sitting around the table during these
negotiations. Alongside Toyota and Aston
Martin, McLaren is also known to have been
sitting in on the meetings, as has Ferrari and
Ford, all with rich Le Mans pedigrees. These
manufacturers will be evaluating the final set
of regulations, and will be looking at IMSA, too,
to see which way it will jump.
In this set of regulations there are two
classes of potential OEMs: those whose
products are only hypercars or supercars, and
those whose products are normal road cars.
Of the former, who can afford to spend £50m
in developing and racing a new car to market
just 100 cars (thereby increasing the cost of
those cars by 25 per cent)? Of the latter, who
is interested in racing such cars as a marketing
tool? Only one will win, which makes the
marketing costs risky. The big OEMs are putting
everything into EVs, and what’s left over into
SUV hybrids. Who will be able to stomach the
investment in a hypercar remains to be seen,
but these regulations are the result of many
meetings with many car makers. There must
have been some interest, mustn’t there?
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FORMULA 3 – DALLARA F3 2019

It’s all-change for top level

Formula 3 in 2019 with a
new GP3-based Dallara
one-make series taking on
the F3 moniker – but has
the Italian manufacturer
produced a car that’s
worthy of this famous
and historic name?
By ANDREW COTTON

Three
enterprise
34 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

Below: The new F3 packs the same Mecachrome 6-cylinder 3.4-litre 380bhp engine as the GP3 car. The Hewland-designed 6-speed longitudinal gearbox is also carried over
Dallara has worked hard to reduce the aerodynamic impact
of the leading racecar on the front wing of the following car
T
he Abu Dhabi Grand Prix saw the
FIA launch its new International
Formula 3 car, designed by Dallara
and built on the platform of the GP3
car that it replaces. The target of this car is to
be faster than the GP3 racecar, and also for it
to provide better racing with more overtaking,
thanks to its aerodynamic design.
The introduction of the new F3 car means
that the FIA’s pyramid is now complete, with a
clear path to Formula 1 for aspiring drivers. The
series will race on the same circuits as F1, which
the FIA hopes will allow Formula 1 teams to see
the up-and-coming drivers in action.
Just 10 teams have been nominated to run
these cars, controversially eliminating some of
the established F3 operations, the idea being
to limit numbers in a bid to make the series
more robust. Long homologation periods and a
limitation on places has been controversial, but
is a policy to which the FIA has resolutely stuck.
Strong grid
The car will race from the 2019 season and is
homologated for three seasons to 2021. Despite
the limitations there should still be 30 cars,
without doubt a bigger field than many of the
national F3 grids, and also better than GP3.
Teams will receive their cars in January, after
which a shakedown will be organised.
The new car carries over the engine,
electronics and gearbox from the GP3 car, and
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 35
Caption
The new F3 car bears a resemblance
to the GP3 car it replaces, the most
obvious difference being the Halo
features the Halo, as is common with all the
new single seat cars that are FIA homologated.
However, the company has mitigated the extra
13.5kg (installed) weight that this entails.
‘It’s made to the latest FIA crash protection
as in F1,’ says Dallara’s David Beck, who is
responsible for the commercial development of
F2 and F3. ‘It’ll have the Halo, and Zylon panels
all the way down each side, the whole length of
the chassis. [The GP3 car] did have Zylon panels
but they were shorter. It’s a different look, more
of an F2 style low nose and it has a lower chassis.’
One of the controversial elements of the
design is the suspension. While the car features
double wishbone suspension, the FIA insisted
that Dallara design the car with traditional
FORMULA 3 – DALLARA F3 2019

The FIA insisted that Dallara design the TECH SPEC: Dallara F3 International

racecar with traditional dampers and Chassis

springs rather than with torsion bars
dampers and springs rather than torsion bars on
the basis of driving down the cost. The system
sits on top of the chassis, much to the chagrin of
the designers. ‘Packaging wise, the torsion bars
are obviously where we were going,’ says Beck.
‘This car has traditional springs on top of the
chassis because the FIA specified it.’
Wake up call
One of the key elements to the aero design is a
bid to increase overtaking. Using wake studies,
Dallara has worked hard to reduce the impact of
the leading car on the front wing by changing
the shape of the wake and making it narrow and
high, rather than low and wide. ‘It’s something
that we’ve managed to do quite well on the F2
car, the GP2 car, and the IRL [IndyCar] car,’ says
Beck. ‘It seems to work quite well. It takes quite
a lot of work in the wind tunnel to measure and
work it out. This particular car has had a fairly
limited aero development process in the wind
tunnel, but we’re quite confident that we have
made some progress on that side.’
But the real emphasis has been on cost
control, and Dallara says that it is happy with the
result. Along with carrying over major parts such
as the rear wing, with modifications to the end
plates and main plane, the materials used in the
bodywork and chassis are the same as before.
‘We’re always trying to make the cars cheaper
and safer and the two don’t go together very
well,’ says Beck. ‘They are not aligned.’
Dallara has also looked at saving weight in
the bodywork and chassis, as these were the
only parts that it could realistically control. The
company tells us that it does not know how
much the car weighs in total at the time of
writing, as the wiring and other ancillaries
were still to be confirmed but Dallara expects
it to be in the region of 650kg.
‘We have the same size brakes [as the
previous car], the idea of that is to keep costs
down for the teams and they can use carry over
parts as well,’ says Beck. ‘They’ve obviously all
got their own spare parts as well so they don’t
have to replace too much of their spare parts.
Rear wishbones are the same but the front are
not because of the difference in the chassis.’
When launching the new Formula 3 car
in Abu Dhabi Formula 2 CEO Bruno Michel
said of it. ‘Our focus was to provide a safe and
challenging car which will enable close racing
Dallara-produced carbon monocoque complying to
FIA F3 2019 safety standards; Halo fitted.
Engine
Bespoke Mecachrome 6-cylinder 3.4-litre naturally aspirated;
380bhp at 8000rpm. Fly by wire throttle system.
Transmission
Hewland-designed 6-speed longitudinal gearbox; Magneti Marelli
electro-hydraulic command via paddleshift from steering wheel.
Suspension
Double wishbone front and rear; dampers and springs.
Aerodynamics
Optimised to facilitate overtaking. Very low ride height sensitivity and
wide range of suspension set up possibilities; DRS; front and rear
wing made out of carbon composite material.
Electronics
All in one ECU-GCU; high speed data acquisition system but no
telemetry. Electronics supplied by Motorsport Ltd.
Tyres
Pirelli, with three specific compounds originally developed for GP3.
and encourage overtaking. When designing this
car, we also kept in mind cost effectiveness in
order to limit operational costs for the teams,
but also deliver an attractive package.
‘I am very confident that this car, which
matches the FIA Formula 3 2019 safety
standards, will deliver great racing and provide
the fans with high-quality entertainment,’
Michel added. ‘It is the perfect tool for young
drivers to make their way up the motorsport
ladder with the goal to graduate to F2 and
ultimately, hopefully, race in F1.’

China crisis

T
he burning question at Macau in
November, scene of one of the last of
the international single seater events
that bring together the best race drivers and
teams from around the world, was what car
would the FIA World Cup feature in 2019? It
is widely thought that the new International
Formula 3 car will be too quick for the narrow
street circuit, but it is difficult to imagine the
World Cup without the latest international car.
However, with just 30 International cars
and no involvement from the Asian region,
this does not seem to fit with the philosophy
of the Macau Grand Prix. The existing F3 cars F3 at Macau. What
are still eligible for one more year, so the will become of this
question is not yet urgent, but there is no classic event now
doubt that the new formula has broken the that the top-level
global philosophy of the Formula 3 category Formula 3 car is likely
and no longer highlights the top drivers from to be too fast for the
other regions in the same machinery. This street circuit?
XPB

is what Dallara is hoping to achieve with its

proposed new car (see page 39), bringing
together drivers and teams in cars faster than the Regional Formula 3.
‘For 2019 there is the option to run these cars as they are,’ says Dallara’s
F3 project leader Jos Claes. ‘They are homologated as FIA Formula 3 cars, so
for one more year they could run these cars, or another option is to bring the
International cars and modify a few things on the circuit.
‘I don’t want to predict anything, but [our proposed new formula] is
position-wise slightly below what an International F3 car will be, but far above
what a Regional Formula car will be,’ Claes adds. ‘It is up to Macau Grand Prix
to decide what they want. If they want to keep people in the press rooms,
that is a result of many years of very important drivers, you will keep that
quality of drivers with the International car. But if you bring the Asian regional
championship or something, it is fine for me, but it will not attract the same
attention. And as a grand prix, having the right to use the grand prix title
without Formula 1 cars, you have to take care not to bring it too far down.’

36 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

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FORMULA 3 – DALLARA

Three’s a crowd
Why Dallara might be about to create an all-new F3 category
By ANDREW COTTON

T
he world of Formula 3 used to be something to them, and we will propose we don’t have to change everything all the
simple and easily understood with something. We will not propose this to the FIA. time. When you don’t change everything, the
a global set of chassis and engine Indy [IndyCar] do not have the cars that respect teams in this case have their drawers filled with
regulations. However, the new set any safety regulations of the FIA, they have your spare parts, and they want to use them.
of regulations has effectively done away with their own set of safety and technical regulations Going to a new car is always hefty for the teams
the global formula, and instead split it into … We are faced with this new situation, but we financially so if we can lower the pain a bit then
International Formula 3 (page 34) and Regional cannot be asked to tell our customers to go to of course everyone has to make an effort to
Formula 3, while Dallara has now also proposed the others. They say that they don’t want to, help the market survive the difficult period.’
another version of the same category that will they want us to propose something.’
probably not be sanctioned by the FIA. Market forces
Further muddying the waters is another The issue for Dallara is that the Regional
Formula 3 category, Formel 3 Vermarktungs,
which has moved to extend the life of the ‘Everyone has to Formula 3 car already looks to be a flooded
market with multiple chassis suppliers active
outgoing Dallara F312 Formula 3 cars on the
DTM support bill, while Euroformula Open make a bit of an in it, while International Formula 3 will have
space for only 30 cars, and therefore just 30
promoter GT Sport, which also uses the older drivers. ‘There are other championships that
Formula 3 cars, may allow Mercedes and VW effort to help the will carry on with the remaining drivers that
engines to compete against its Toyota engines will not do F3 International,’ Claes says. ‘There
next year too. Meanwhile, all this has unsettled market survive the is this market there. We cannot pretend the
the Japanese market, which traditionally promoters [do] not [have] the liberty anymore
followed the FIA regulations. So it seems that difficult period’ to choose the things themselves.
what was a global formula has now turned into ‘We have to listen to our customers. We do
multiple conflicting series. for Japan the Super Formula car, which is not
Dallara’s latest plan is to investigate the an FIA F2 car, but the safety standard is from
Supply and demand possibility of taking a 2018 Formula 3 car and Formula 1. The IndyCar is even further away,
With the above in mind it might seem an updating it, in order that the teams don’t have and has nothing to do with FIA standard,’ Claes
odd time for Dallara, official supplier for the to obsolete their spare parts. ‘The kind of car adds. ‘In motor racing there are more institutes
International F3 car, to be looking for an that we are thinking of, to propose to certain than just Geneva, and as much as it is very
alternative solution, but its F3 project leader customers, is still a study project,’ says Claes. good news in motor racing to have a neutral
Jos Claes says this is driven by its existing ‘We will try to carry over some things from one sanctioning body of that importance, obviously
customers rather than by regulatory bodies, and or the other car. It makes sense to carry over, such a sport needs it, but I see that they do not
he believes it is the company’s responsibility to and we did too little of that in the past. We can control everything and there are areas in the
give the customer what they want. reduce the cost, things that are strong and safe, world that do things without them.’
‘We don’t like to lose these customers,’
Claes says. ‘If we can offer them an alternative,
we will do it. We have postponed the decision
quite a few times now to do the Regional car,
and maybe it was wrong from us that we didn’t
do the car a year ago.’ This is a reference to the
fact that the Regional F3 rules were announced
and supposed to be introduced for the 2019
season, but cars are already running in national
championships, including in the US.
‘We had the rules as well, but it was always
meant to be a 2019 generation of cars, [but]
there were two championships introduced
in 2018,’ Claes adds. ‘The regulations were 97
per cent done well in time, that was fine. The
concept was decided, but they changed the
procedures, and that is their right. We accept it.
But if we don’t see the market, even if we accept
[it], we are not obliged to do it, and we for sure
are not about to invest money to lose money.
‘It is very likely that we won’t build a
XPB

[Regional] car, but we will still try to keep

our customers happy that ask us to propose The 2018 spec car will be able to race on in some series in 2019, but Dallara is thinking about extending its life even further

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 39

INSIGHT – ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS
Crash
course
The only good thing that can come out
of a tragic accident is the knowledge that
can be gained by analysing it. Racecar’s
technical consultant, a veteran of many
FIA and F1 team crash investigations,
talks us through the process
By PETER WRIGHT
W
ithout accident investigations
safety would not evolve,
whether it be in civil aviation,
nuclear power generation,
the healthcare services, road accidents or
motorsport. From these in-depth investigations,
the causes and consequences are learned and
improvements to organisation, technology,
and human interfaces are made, while a better
understanding of humans themselves is gained.
I was first asked to do an, admittedly fairly
limited, investigation into the Lotus 78 in which
Ronnie Peterson crashed at Monza in 1978 (I
was then working at Lotus). Team boss Colin
Chapman tasked me with compiling a report
into how the car’s aluminium/honeycomb
structure had stood up to the impact in which
Peterson’s legs were so badly smashed by
intrusion. For its day, the 78 did its job as well as
could be expected, but it was other aspects of
this tragic accident that had a long-term impact
on motorsport safety – I was not involved in
these, but we will return to them later.
The most recent and hopefully the last
accident investigation I have been involved in
was the very detailed study into Jules Bianchi’s
accident at Suzuka in 2014. This resulted in a
396-page report, detailing all aspects of race
procedures, track, marshalling, car construction,
car control software, rescue, medical, driver
psychology, and anything else that could shed
light on the accident and its outcome.
The prime purpose is to gather evidence and establish
the causes of an accident and its consequences
40 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
Whether humans are injured in an accident
is often down to a matter of luck, and should not
determine whether an accident is investigated.
The prime purpose is to gather evidence
and establish the causes of an accident and
its consequences in order that changes to
organisation, culture, procedures, and rules and
regulations can be made to try and prevent
similar incidents happening again.
But its purpose is not to apportion blame –
that is for the lawyers. While the investigators
may have knowledge and experience of the
law, the issues of jurisdiction, negligence,
liability etc are far too complex to take on at
the same time as the technical aspects. The
evidence produced by the investigation may
well, however, end up in court.
Studying accidents Marcus Ericsson was able to survive this huge practice shunt at
Before undertaking an accident investigation, Monza largely as a result of lessons learnt from other accidents
it can be useful to understand the structure
of an accident, and in particular those aspects has authored several definitive books on
that make a motorsport accident different risk, human error, and the management of
from accidents in other spheres. Fortunately, a organisational accidents, and has consulted
number of highly qualified people have devoted widely both on the prevention of accidents
their lives to the in depth study of accidents, and in their investigations. He defines the
and have generated a number of theories and main components of an accident in the simple
models, which can be adapted to form the basis diagram (Figure 1) in Organizational Accidents
of a motorsport accident investigation and form Revisited, which shows how organisations,
a template to guide investigators. the workplace, and humans make up the
James Reason, professor emeritus of ingredients that combine to enable humans
psychology at the University of Manchester, and their assets to come into contact with
 harm. The organisation puts in place defences
as multiple barriers to prevent this happening,
Organization Workplace Person Defences
but all defences have holes in them, perhaps
Management Error- no more than fissures, and when these line up
decisions producing the defensive barriers can be penetrated. The
Errors
conditions barriers take the form of rules and regulations,
Organizational
and processes and procedures in the workplace
processes Violation-
producing where humans work with the organisation’s
Corporate Violations
conditions assets. Errors and violations create the active
culture, etc
part or direct cause of an accident, and usually
receive a full measure of the blame, but the
conditions whereby errors and violations can
Latent failure pathway occur are the responsibility of the organisation.
They are largely dependent on its internal
safety culture, and how it maintains, applies
and improves the barriers to an accident. It is
Figure 1: The stages involved in an organisational accident. This is taken from James Reason’s Organizational Accidents within these ‘latent failure pathways’ that the
Revisited. Reason argues that it is a mixture of the organisation, the workplace and humans that causes most accidents fundamental causes of accidents usually occur.

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 41

INSIGHT – ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS

Ayrton Senna’s fatal crash at Imola in 1994, along with other

accidents that year, led to the introduction of wheel tethers and
also improvements to the crash helmets used by F1 drivers

Motorsport is a bit different from other
hazardous environments, the nearest equivalent
being war. The workplace is such that errors
and violations are inevitable, if not encouraged.
The race track is somewhere where the activity
takes place at the limits of both human control
and technical design, and the skilled individuals
necessary to conduct this activity are highly
competitive, and their whole objective is to
beat everyone else. That governments allow
this activity to occur without the imposition of
health and safety rules and regulations, and/
or the licensing of everyone involved, as occurs
in the aviation, nuclear and health industries,
is pretty extraordinary. This is only because
motorsport’s governing bodies – the FIA and
the ASNs (the national authorities) – have taken
on the task of sanctioning motorsport and
running it to a standard generally accepted
by governments. It is no coincidence that the
incidence of fatal accidents, per event, is by far
the highest in non-sanctioned motorsport.
But nothing is perfectly safe. We accept
a certain standard of safety in everything
we do or allow to be done to us, defined by
the rules and regulations that govern that
activity. In motorsport these are the sporting
and technical regulations for the particular
class of competition, from F1 to karting. They
are administered and policed by race control,
scrutineers, marshals and doctors. When
infringed, the judiciary – the stewards and the
appeal courts – determine innocence or guilt,
and the penalties. An accident investigation
should examine all aspects of this system except
the judiciary, in order to determine whether it
can be improved to prevent a particular set of
circumstances happening again.
As soon as an accident occurs, the job of
collecting evidence to allow the determination
of what the actual sequence of events was
starts. The impact (if this is what the ‘event’ was)
may last for as little as 100 milliseconds and
only video and car data can reliably capture it.
Witness observations are notoriously unreliable
and accuracy deteriorates with time. Video,
if available, provides the first indication of
the events leading up to an accident and the
aftermath. Sources include on-car, trackside
CCTV, broadcaster output, and amateur video.
In Formula 1 all these are available; in the
dispersed world of rallying and in club events
often only a spectator’s video is available.
In F1 and other top series, a mass of car
data is available including GPS, inertial data
(accelerations and rotational rates), driver
inputs, powertrain response, suspension forces
and deflections etc, usually time-stamped to
allow synchronisation with video and data from
the other cars that may have been involved in

The race track is somewhere where the activity takes place

at the limits of both human control and technical design
42 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

the accident. Elsewhere the variety and quality
of data tends to rely on what the team has
recorded and may be zero.
More and more series are equipped with
accident data recorders (ADR) which collect data
during the 100 milliseconds or so of the actual
impact, and this is critical to the analysis of
injuries and the way the structure of the car has
withstood the impact. This data is gathered at
1000 samples per second (1kHz) or more.
The original FIA ADRs, initially fitted to F1
cars following Ayrton Senna’s accident at Imola
in 1994, collected car and inertial data at two
rates: around 20Hz for the accident lap and the
preceding lap, to allow analysis of the causes,
and 1kHz for the impact itself. This allowed, over
several years, the performance of run-off areas
to be researched, and led to tarmac run-offs.
Black box
Today the ADR is linked to the racecar’s CAN
system and so is time-synchronised to the car’s
own data system, the two systems together
forming something like an aircraft’s black box –
so essential in aviation accident investigations.
All this evidence
must be collected
as soon as possible,
while it is still fresh
and before all those
involved move on to
the next event
Senna’s wrecked Williams FW16. As a result of this
tragedy accident data recorders were fitted to F1
cars and today they are linked to the CAN system
Over the days following an accident that is
subject to an investigation, reports from race
control and circuit management, marshals,
rescue services, and medical are collected.
Transcripts of voice communications of race
control-to-teams, and teams-to-drivers are
obtained if available, again time-stamped.
Driver and other witness statements are taken,
if required, but the usual caveats that they
are only ever opinions, applies. The car, safety
equipment, and any other hardware involved
in the accident are collected for subsequent
inspection. The seat and its mountings, harness
and anchor points, headrests, racing nets etc,
are inspected and the damage suffered by them
is noted, to be correlated to injuries.
Medical reports usually take time to
acquire, as it may be a while before the full
consequences and injuries become apparent
and scans are available. Medical reports are,
of course, subject to personal data protection
laws, which may vary from country-to-country,
and this can influence what information is
available to an accident investigation. But the
motorsport medical fraternity is large, well
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 43
networked worldwide, and is experienced in
dealing with issues such as these.
If a car failure is involved, then teams or car
manufacturers will hopefully report on their
own internal investigations into the causes.
All this evidence must be collected as
soon as possible, while it is still fresh and
before all those involved move on to the next
event, or even the next accident. Fortunately,
motorsport takes safety extremely seriously, and
all involved have an interest in working with
validated evidence. Cases of falsified evidence or
statements are extremely rare.
If a member of the public is injured in an
accident or if there is a fatality, the police will
become involved. The effect of this happening
varies from country to country. In the most
enlightened, the police will rely on the specialist
motorsport investigation of an accident for
its own report. In the least enlightened, a
special prosecutor may be appointed, and
inexperienced experts and investigators will get
involved. This latter approach brings no benefits
to the advancement of safety.
Losing control
The first level of analysis is generally to put
together, millisecond by millisecond, the
sequence from loss of control (LOC) to when the
dust settles after the last impact. LOC may be a
simple error by the driver of the car, or indeed
by the driver of another car, which may have no
further influence or suffer any consequences
in the accident. Either or both drivers may
have simply made an error of judgement in
controlling the car and exceeded its limits on
the track at that particular moment. That is the
nature of motor racing and not much time is
spent analysing this too deeply. Alternatively,
either driver may have violated a regulation, in
which case deeper analysis is required. There is
currently much controversy among drivers and
others over the driving standards regulations
and the penalties handed out by the stewards
when they are violated. However, when they
cause an accident they must be reviewed
carefully by the regulation drafting and approval
structure, and revised as necessary.
From loss of control to impact is generally
analysed in conjunction with the actual impact
event, as the former has such a bearing on the
latter in terms of velocity, location, and the
way the vehicle is presented to the impacted
object – another racecar, barrier, tree, or
whatever. Unfortunately, in rallying, this can
sometimes be another human.
Tracing cars
Today GPS and on-car and trackside video
makes analysis to determine the trajectory and
velocity of the car from LOC to first impact fairly
straightforward. Without them, car inertial data,
marks on the road and observer reports are
resorted to. GPS data, when the car is on the
circuit, is much more accurate than the plus/
INSIGHT – ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS
minus 5m generally available with civilian GPS.
Because the position of the car is restrained to
the track and it passes certain known points,
for example the start-finish line and sector
interfaces, correction can be calculated and
applied in the same way satnavs in road cars
know that you must be on an actual road.
The impact point with a fixed object is also
known, and the trajectory, calculated backwards
from that point, can be plotted on to the circuit
or stage map, and the velocity at any point
established. Orientation of the car in three axes
can be calculated if rate sensors are fitted. Video
helps confirm the conclusions.
At the point of impact, inertial navigation
using accelerometer and rate sensor data
from the high sample frequency ADR, or
lower frequency car system, takes over and
acceleration (and hence forces), velocities, and
car position and orientation can be computed
every millisecond, to a high degree of accuracy,
through to when the car comes to rest. When
data systems are not fitted or they fail in an
impact, this information is lost and the job of
the forensic engineer becomes much harder.
Forensic inspection
Armed with this detailed analysis of the
sequence of events, the forensic engineer
or engineers will go and inspect the vehicle
involved, usually at either the team’s premises or
the manufacturer’s facility. They will also inspect
the driver’s safety equipment and may order
tests or scans of individual components.
By looking at the damage, distortions,
and failures of the car’s structure and the
mandatory energy absorbing parts – frontal,
rear and side impact structures, roll cages, Halo,
It has been said that if you are going to
suffer an injury, then the very best place
to do so is at a motorsport event
Felipe Massa’s accident in 2009. Initial treatment should be received within the ‘golden hour’ after the injury
44 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
Colin Chapman blamed a shortage of Lotus 79s (above) for Ronnie Peterson’s death, but the truth was far more complex
etc – and consulting the FIA test data of these
components along with the car manufacturer’s
FEA and test data, the forensic engineers will
attempt to correlate the forces involved with the
deceleration data, and the damage to barriers
that were involved in the impact.
Using deceleration data, in-car video, and
marks on the car and driver equipment, they
will try to establish all points of impact between
driver and car, to be correlated with the
injuries incurred. Any interactions with safety
equipment – helmet, FHR (HANS), harness and
its mountings, seat and mountings, headrest,
racing nets, etc – and the damage suffered by
them are noted, again to correlate with injuries.
The introduction of ear accelerometers into
F1 – carried in the earpieces of each driver –
generates another level of data relating to head
impacts, as they detect head movement. Also,
the helmet may be CT scanned to reveal the
compression of the foam liner, and FHR tethers
and attachments to the helmet can reveal the
forces they have been subjected to.
Action replay
In cases where there is sufficient data,
particularly a crash pulse, or a specific injury that
may be prevalent such as basilar skull fractures
(before the introduction of FHRs, headrests,
and closed car seats with head and shoulders
support) the impact may be reconstructed on
either a component rig or with a mocked up
cockpit environment on a high g sled. Tests
will be carried out on an instrumented dummy
until the impact damage between cockpit and
the driver’s equipment is reproduced. The data
from the dummy can then be correlated with
biomechanical injury criteria.
Recently, FEA models of the human body
have been used to simulate impact events and
generate considerably more data, from more
test runs than are feasible using a test sled and a
dummy. The FIA’s cooperation with Toyota, using
its THUMS model to investigate spinal injuries, is
a typical example of this approach.
The final phase of an accident that has a
major effect on the outcome is the rescue,
extrication, and medical treatment, both
trackside and in the medical centre, and finally
transport to hospital where the involved
country’s own health system takes over. The
procedures set down in the training and the
expertise employed have been improved
steadily over the last 40 years and are superb.
It has been said that if you’re going to suffer an
injury or even be ill, the best place to do so is
at a motorsport event. However, there are still
things that can be learned from an accident, and
the problem with extricating Billy Monger from
his F4 car in 2017 is a recent example.
Once all the facts are known, and this may
take months, the most challenging phase can
get underway: to answer the question, ‘why?’ It is
far too easy to lay the blame at the feet of those
at the sharp end of an accident, particularly the
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 INSIGHT – ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS
Jules Bianchi at Suzuka in 2014; the investigation into his accident led to the introduction of the virtual safety car
driver(s) or the team(s). Of far more relevance,
and in the interests of preventing future
similar accidents, it is essential to establish the
reasons for the particular errors or violations
that triggered the accident. Motorsport people
are generally highly professional and it’s in no
one’s interest when someone is hurt or killed.
Accidents may be an accepted part of the sport,
but serious injuries and deaths are not.
Zig or zag?
Charles Perrow, author of Living with High-Risk
Technologies and Normal Accidents noted that 60
to 80 per cent of system accidents are blamed
on operator error. He went on to state: ‘As we
shall see time and time again, the operator
is confronted by unexpected and usually
mysterious interactions among failures, saying
that he or she should have zigged instead of
zagged is only possible after the fact. Before the
accident no one could know what was going on
and what should have been done.’
Motorsport events are large and technically
complex, and relying on the operator at the
sharp end to zig when required and not zag
is not going to achieve the level of safety
required. Ronnie Peterson’s accident at Monza
contains many elements that led to his death,
and subsequently initiated some of the most
significant changes in the name of safety in
motorsport. Yet Ricardo Patrese was blamed and
punished for causing the accident.
Peterson was driving a Lotus 78 at Monza,
while his teammate, Mario Andretti, was in a
Lotus 79. They had just come from a one-two
finish in 79s at Zandvoort, but Lotus was unable
to field two 79s at Monza. Andretti qualified first,
Peterson fifth. As a result, at the start of the race
Peterson was involved in a multi-car pile up, as
sometimes happens in racing, and his car hit
the Armco barrier, the front end collapsing and
crushing his legs resulting in multiple fractures
to both of them. The car was also on fire, his
fellow drivers being left to rescue him.
Professor Sid Watkins had been appointed
by Bernie Ecclestone that very year to head up
F1’s medical facilities at the circuits. By the time
46 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
he arrived at the accident he was barred from
approaching the crash site by the Italian police.
It took nearly 20 minutes for an ambulance
to arrive. Peterson’s legs were splinted at the
medical centre and his condition was stabilised
before being moved to a nearby hospital.
That evening, Peterson was sitting up in bed,
chatting to Colin Chapman. At 4am he suffered
a fat embolism from the fractured bones, which
blocked blood circulation through the lungs,
and he was clinically brain dead.
Chapman did not like fabricators. They were
a traditional, skilled trade, and prone to working
to their own rules. He held it against the Team
Lotus fabricators that they had not constructed
enough 79 monocoques that Peterson could
qualify and race one at Monza, so that he had
had to resort to a 78 instead.
Accidents may be
an accepted part
of motorsport, but
serious injuries and
deaths are not
It is questionable whether the 79 would
have stood up any better to the impact (hence
my investigation task), but he would have
probably been on the front row of the grid
and avoided being caught up in the first lap
accident. The fire that ensued might also have
been avoided, as the 79 pioneered the supreme
safety feature of carrying all its fuel in a single
central tank between driver and engine, while
the 78 had side-mounted tanks alongside the
driver. Within two years Lotus had developed
a CFRP monocoque, which debuted in the 88
in 1981, pioneering, along with McLaren, the
structural improvement that has protected so
many drivers in so many classes since.
The medical disaster that led to Peterson’s
death set in motion a complete overhaul of
CAUSE AND EFFECT:
Major accidents and the responses
Ronnie Peterson (Monza 1978): CFRP monocoques; energy
absorbing structures and medical services.
Ayrton Senna, Roland Ratzenberger (Imola 1994) and Karl
Wendlinger (Monaco 1994): Wheel tethers; helmet; ADR.
Mika Hakkinen (Adelaide 1995): HANS; high cockpit sides.
Soames Langton (Nogaro 1996): roll cage padding.
Michael Schumacher (Silverstone 1999) and Carlos Sainz
(Sochi 2015): high-speed barriers.
Marco Campos (Magny-Cours 1995) and Mark Webber
(Valencia 2010): open-wheel anti-launch.
Alex Zanardi (Lausitzring 2001): single seater anti-intrusion panels.
Michele Alboreto (Lausitzring 2001): LMP anti-launch aerodynamics.
Felipe Massa (Hungaroring 2009): visor/helmet.
Felipe Massa (Hungaroring 2009) and Henry Surtees
(Brands Hatch 2009): the Halo.
Michael Park (WRC, Rally GB 2005): Closed car seat;
rally side impact package.
Ashley Cooper (Adelaide 2008) and Allan Simonsen
(Le Mans 2013): racing nets.
Jules Bianchi (Suzuka 2014): virtual safety car.
Billy Monger (Donington 2017): single seater monocoque
anti-intrusion panel.
medical practices in Formula 1. Sid Watkins,
backed forcibly by Ecclestone, laid down
procedures and protocols for rescue and
medical intervention at the circuit, based on his
‘Golden Hour’ philosophy: if the driver receives
the right care in the hour following injury he has
the best chance of survival.
He also introduced the medical car to
follow the cars during the first lap and ensure
speedy access to the scene of an accident. He
set up inspection and approval of the receiving
hospital, too, to ensure the injured driver
would receive appropriate care and resources
following transfer by helicopter or ambulance.
Through an FIA Medical Commission,
set up in the following months, the medical
side of motorsport came under Watkins’
authority, answering to the World Motor Sport
Council. Steady improvement to all aspects of
motorsport medical services have continued
ever since. This one accident, the true causes
of which were correctly identified, led to better
structural protection for drivers and the superb
medical services we have today.
The payback
Only by critical analysis of all the elements of
an accident, and the avoidance of taking the
easy course of assuming the cause lies simply
with the human at the front end, can other
latent conditions within the organisation
and operation of motorsport events become
apparent and then be rectified.
Each tragic accident can contribute to
the development of safety, provided it is
investigated fully. Major improvements in
safety can often be traced to a particular
accident, and some examples of these are
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 TECHNOLOGY – THE CONSULTANT

Roll of honour: when the

maths takes centre stage
Our examination into the true nature of roll centres continues

I
would like to start out with a correction. In
the December 2018 issue (V28N12) I said
that the planks in Bob Bolles’ experimental
roll simulation rig were bowed slightly.
They do look that way in the picture, but I will
confess that I didn’t notice it on the day the
picture was taken, and Bolles insists that this
is to do with the camera lens. He sent me a
picture showing a taut string stretched atop
one of the boards, showing it was straight. I
accept that proof, and I stand corrected.
Also, I wrote then: ‘It is true that only the
height of the roll centre matters, but taking the
force line intersection (the so-called kinematic
roll centre) as the roll centre is not correct and
there are many situations where using the
height of the force line intersection for this
value dramatically fails to predict geometric
roll moment. There are also cases where the
force lines are parallel and consequently
there is no force line intersection.
‘I will go into this in more detail next
time, and also present a formal proof that
the resolution line method of roll centre
assignment does assign a roll centre height
that agrees with roll moment calculation from
individual wheel jacking forces and track width.’
Roll with it
With the above in mind, Figure 1 is the
picture of the roll simulation rig from the
December issue, with lines and labels overlaid
which illustrate what the resolution line roll
centre (RLRC) is, identify what the related
terms denote, and also show the kinematic
roll centre (KRC). This example depicts a case
where the system clearly has net anti-roll, yet
the KRC is below ground, which would imply
net pro-roll. The RLRC, in contrast, is above
ground. Its height is such that the lateral force
acting through the suspension linkage, times
the RLRC height, equals the geometric anti-
roll moment. In the illustration, the resolution
line is 75 per cent of the track width from the
right contact patch, which would be correct
for a situation where the right wheel makes
75 per cent of the cornering force. The RLRC is
the point on the resolution line that is midway
between the resolution line intercepts of the
right and left wheel force lines.
The system clearly has net anti-roll
because the right wheel has strong anti-roll
geometry and will make more than half the
ground plane force, while the left wheel
has weak pro-roll and less than half the
ground plane force. The left suspension
will therefore jack up a little in response to
leftward ground plane force, and the right
suspension will jack up more. This will tend
to roll the car to the left, countering the
rightward roll that happens in a left turn.
What is a roll centre?
Perhaps I should clarify just what I conceive
a roll centre to be, and what I consider its
purpose is. If the geometric roll moment can
be calculated from the ground plane forces,
the jacking coefficients, and the track width,
why bother even talking about a roll centre?

It clearly has net anti-roll, and yet the kinematic roll centre is below ground
Resolution line
Resolution line
roll centre

Ground line

Force lines

Figure 1: Roll simulation rig in action. The

lines, the resolution line roll centre and the Kinematic
kinematic roll centre have been added here roll centre

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 49

TECHNOLOGY – THE CONSULTANT

It is convenient for
Figure 2: The terms
us to have a concise, for the formal proof of
the method outlined
shorthand, way (see Equations)

of describing the
system’s geometric
anti-roll properties
First of all, some people think visually
and like to solve problems graphically. And
almost all of us work visually or graphically
when designing – when doing synthesis of a
system that does not yet exist, as opposed to
doing an analysis of a system that has been
designed and/or built already.
It is possible to attempt a design by taking T = track width θi = inside wheel force line angle = tan-1 (Fzi/Fyi)
a stab in the dark, analysing the outcome, Fyo = lateral ground plane force at outside wheel contact patch A = inside wheel force line/resolution line intercept
and then iteratively tweaking that. But that’s a Fzo = jacking force induced in outside wheel suspension C = outside wheel force line/resolution line intercept
bit like groping in the dark, guessing at where θo = outside wheel force line angle = tan-1 (Fzo/Fyo) B = resolution line roll centre height = average of A and C
you are going, stopping and turning on the Fyi = lateral ground plane force at inside wheel contact patch Mx (see Equations) = geometric anti-roll moment
lights to see where you’ve ended up, and Fzi = jacking force induced in inside wheel suspension induced in the above system
then turning off the lights and groping
some more. It is convenient to have a more
expeditious way to get from a desired set of
geometric properties to a design. roll moment; a way to mentally reduce an pounds-feet or pounds-inches per pound,
independent suspension to the simplicity or Newton-metres or Newton-millimetres
A roll to play of a notional axle with a notional horizontal per Newton. The force units cancel, leaving
The second reason we talk about a roll centre Panhard bar or roller in a vertical slot. us with the length units.
is that it is also convenient to have a concise What units would such a coefficient have? Figure 2 is a formal proof that the
‘shorthand’ way of describing a system’s Would it be unit-less? No, it would have resolution line method of assigning roll centre
geometric anti-roll properties. That is, to units of length. In imperial units, the total height produces geometric anti-roll moment
reduce the whole ball of wax to one simple ground plane force is expressed in pounds. predictions equivalent to those calculated
The Mark OrtizInAutomotive
coefficient: a single number that expresses SI units, it’s Newtons. The anti-roll moment from jacking coefficients, ground plane forces,
the relationship between the total The Mark Ortizis Automotive
ground in pounds-feet or pounds-inches, or it’s and track width. The meanings of the lines
plane force (necessarily, at a known right/ in Newton-metres or Newton-millimetres.
PRESENTED FREE OF CHARGE
are the same as in Figure 1, but the system
left distribution) and the geometric anti- AS A SERVICE
TheTOratio
THE between the two then has units of shown has anti-roll on both wheels.
PRESENTED FREE OF CHARGE
MOTORSPORTS COMMUNITY
AS A SERVICE TO THE
MOTORSPORTS COMMUNITY

EQUATIONS Summing up
To be proven: the product of total ground
plane force and height of resolution line roll
From jacking coefficients (Fz/Fy), ground plane forces (Fy), and track width (T): centre is equal to the product of half the track
width and the sum of the jacking forces, taking
M = (F + F ) T/2 ziθ θ
Mx x= (Fzozo+ Fzi) T/2 as positive a jacking force producing anti-roll,
= ( F
= (Fyo(tan
yo (tan θ ) + F
θo)o+ Fyi(tan
yi (tan θi))T/2
θi)) T/2 i.e. upward on the outside wheel or downward
on the inside wheel – see Equations.
From product of resolution roll centre height (B) and total ground plane force (Fyo + Fyi):
CONTACT
AA= =Fyi
Fyi(tan
(tanθi)θi)T(Fyi
T(Fyi/ (Fyo
/ (Fyo++Fyi))
Fyi)) Mark Ortiz Automotive is a chassis
CC= =Fyo
F (tan
(tanθo)
θ ) T(Fyo
T(F / /(Fyo
(F ++ Fyi))
F )) consultancy service primarily serving oval
yo o yo yo yi
θ track and road racers. Here Mark answers
B=
B(C=+(C
A) /+2 A) / 2 your chassis set-up and handling queries.
(
= T(Fyo / (Fyo + Fyi)) (tan θo) + T(Fyi / (Fyo + Fyi)) (tan θi) /2 ) If you have a question for him, please don’t
hesitate to get in touch:
θ θ
Mx = B (Fyo + Fyi) E: markortizauto@windstream.net
T: +1 704-933-8876
= ((T(F / (Fyo + Fyi)) tan θo + T(Fyi / (Fyo + Fyi)) tan θi /2
yo ) ) (F yo + Fyi) A: Mark Ortiz
θ θ
(
= T Fyo tan θo + T Fyi tan θi /2 ) 155 Wankel Drive, Kannapolis
NC 28083-8200, USA
= (Fyo(tan θo)θ+ Fyi(tan θi)) T/2
θ
θ θ

50 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

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 TECHNOLOGY – AEROBYTES

Lecture notes: ride and

rake in Formula Student
Our Formula Student aerodynamic examination continues
with a focus on the CFD-derived Oxford Brookes OBR18

The old-fashioned
smoke plume can
validate CFD flow
The Oxford Brookes car in preparation for its session in the MIRA full-scale wind tunnel visualisations

T
his month we will examine further
aerodynamic aspects of Oxford Brookes
University’s 2018 Formula Student
entry. The team was the highest placed UK
finisher in the Silverstone-based competition
in July, 2018, and its car, the OBR18, features an
intricate aerodynamics package that had been
developed with extensive use of CFD.
In last month’s issue we saw how the
baseline wind tunnel-derived data on OBR18
placed it in pole position among the Formula
Student cars we have tested in the MIRA
full-scale facility for our Aerobytes column. By
way of a recap, the data on OBR18 are shown
in Table 1 along with the numbers from the
University of Hertfordshire’s 2013 car (UH15)
and Bath University’s 2014 car (TBR14).
Despite somewhat restrictive rule changes
that had taken place since 2014, OBR18
managed a slightly higher -CL.A (downforce)
value than TRB14 but at a significantly lower
drag level, giving rise to a 32.5 per cent higher
–L/D (efficiency) value. The composite (in
every sense) wing packages plus the profiled
sidepods and central rear diffuser clearly all
added up to an effective package on OBR18.
And keep in mind that with the wind tunnel’s
stationary floor the actual downforce levels on
track will be rather higher than this. We also
saw that the ‘Vceiling value’, that is, the velocity
at which the car could be driven upside down
across the ceiling (assuming it could get there)
worked out at an impressively low 86mph
(note that coefficients multiplied by frontal
area, A, are shown in Table 1 to make direct
comparison more meaningful).
Ups and downs
One of the priorities for the Oxford Brookes
team during our session was to evaluate some
ride height and rake changes. The adjustments
were made by changing spacer blocks in the
suspension pushrods, which took longer than
a more conventional pushrod rotation to
accomplish, so there wasn’t time to do a full ride
Table 1: Oxford Brookes OBR18 data compared to other Formula
Student cars previously tested by Racecar Engineering
CD.A -CL.A -CLfront.A
UH15 1.249 1.959
Variable spacers in the pushrods were used to adjust ride height
height sweep. Nevertheless, the options chosen
gave some interesting insights.
The first change was raising the front ride
height by 15mm. Changes or delta (∆) values
to the coefficients are shown in Table 2 in
counts, where one count is a coefficient change
of 0.001. The major effects of raising front ride
height were to increase drag (by 2.8 per cent)
and decrease front downforce (by 16.8 per
cent). The knock-on effects were an increase in
rear downforce (of 6.9 per cent) and a shift in
balance off the front by 6.2 per cent in absolute
-CLrear.A %front -L/D
1.150 0.809 58.7% 1.568

Raising front ride TBR14

OBR18
1.597
1.240
2.708
2.787
1.116
1.313
1.592
1.474
41.2%
47.1%
1.696
2.248

height increased Table 2: The effects of raising front ride height by 15mm
drag and decreased FRH +15mm
∆CD.A
+34
∆-CL.A
-102
∆-CLfront.A
-195
∆-CLrear.A
+93
∆%front*
-6.2
∆-L/D
-136
front downforce * Changes in %front are absolute, not relative.

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 53

 TECHNOLOGY – AEROBYTES

Adjusting the rear for low ride height run. The car was also tested at minimum pitch angle The underbody downforce was significant thanks in part to the central rear diffuser

terms to 40.2 per cent. The predominant cause Table 3: The effects of reducing front ride height by 35mm
of these changes was likely to be that raising
∆CD.A ∆-CL.A ∆-CLfront.A ∆-CLrear.A ∆%front* ∆-L/D
the front wing reduced ground effect under it
and hence reduced its downforce; the reduced FRH -35mm -37 -106 -89 -16 -1.7 -24
mechanical leverage from the front wing ahead
of the front wheels then saw more download Table 4: The results of the low ride height run
felt at the rear wheels. The modest drag increase ∆CD.A ∆-CL.A ∆-CLfront.A ∆-CLrear.A ∆%front* ∆-L/D
was probably the effect of more mass flow
FRH -35mm -69 -193 -103 -90 -0.6 -45
passing under the car and interaction with it. RRH -20mm

Going low
Next, the front ride height was dropped to
its minimum, 35mm below baseline, and the
results are shown in Table 3, again as changes
relative to the baseline run. The responses
were rather different. Drag decreased by
around three per cent, most simply explained
by a reduction in mass flow under the car, the
opposite of the above change. However, total
downforce reduced by a similar amount to that
seen with the front ride height increase above,
with the reduction at the front end (-7.7 per
cent) accounting for most of this along with a
small reduction at the rear.
So what was going on here? Well, during
this run the front wing was oscillating quite
markedly. Add this to the decrease in measured
front downforce and the obvious conclusion is
that the front wing was stalling at this low ride
height and creating unsteady flow, essentially
a mild example of ‘aerodynamic flutter’. This
type of stall is the result of the wing being close
enough to the ground that mass flow under it
reduced sufficiently for flow attachment on the
crucial underside surfaces to be compromised.
In this case the stationary ground plane of
This could be the
Table 5: The effects of applying minimum pitch angle
∆CD.A ∆-CL.A
FRH +35mm +8 -209
RRH -20mm
the fixed floor wind tunnel may have been
exacerbating the effect too.
The following run, designated the ‘low ride
height run’, saw the rear ride height reduced
by 20mm with the low front ride height from
above retained. The changes relative to the
baseline are shown in Table 4. Drag reduced
by roughly double the amount seen in the
previous run, and it seems reasonable to think
that this is once again down to a reduction
in mass flow under the car. Total downforce
reduced by almost double the amount seen
in the last run too, with the front wing still in
its oscillatory, probably stalled, condition, but
now the rear of the car had lost downforce too.
This could again be the result of the mass flow
reduction under the whole car.
Pitch perfect?
Lastly the car was set to ‘minimum pitch’
condition, where the rear ride height was left
at -20mm but the front ride height was raised
to +35mm. The coefficient changes relative
∆-CLfront.A ∆-CLrear.A ∆%front ∆-L/D
-373 +175 -12.0 -183
to the highest level seen. We may conclude
that some of this came from mass flow benefits
in the rear underbody since at this minimum
pitch angle there was no increase in wing or
underbody angle that might otherwise explain
or contribute to such a response. There would
also have been the effect seen in the first front
ride height increase where reduced leverage
from the front wing ahead of the front wheels
saw more download on the rear axle.
In our final instalment on Formula Student
aero next month we’ll look at the skid pad
condition, including yaw and steer angle, and
also the effects of fitting smaller wheels.
CONTACT
Simon McBeath offers aerodynamic
advisory services under his own brand of
SM Aerotechniques –
www.sm-aerotechniques.co.uk.
In these pages he uses data from MIRA
to discuss common aerodynamic issues
faced by racecar engineers

result of mass flow to baseline are given in Table 5. This time the
change in drag was very small but the reduction
Produced in association with MIRA Ltd

reduction under in total downforce was significant and in front

downforce was very high, minus 8.4 per cent
overall and minus 32.1 per cent from the front. Tel: +44 (0) 24-7635 5000
the whole car However, at 12.3 per cent higher than the Email: enquiries@horiba-mira.com
baseline configuration, rear downforce climbed Website: www.horiba-mira.com

54 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

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TECHNOLOGY – NASCAR R&D

Taking
stock

56 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019


NASCAR’s director of
aerodynamics reviews
what was an exciting 2018
for technology at all levels
of the US stock car racing
franchise – while also
telling us what we can
look forward to in 2019
By ERIC JACUZZI
I
t’s that magical time known as the off-
season, a time many in the industry have
looked forward to as the season comes to
a close. But the period of relaxation often
proves fleeting around now, as preparations
for the new season seem to begin earlier and
earlier; yet all the while the rest of the world
gently reminds us to slow down long enough to
finally take that much-needed vacation.
The off-season is also a time for looking
back, and also forward. So here’s a reminder
of the significant events for NASCAR and the
R&D team in each of NASCAR’s series, and a
look forward at what’s on the horizon for the
sport and for R&D in 2019.
In the K&N Pro series NASCAR has been
developing future talent in crews, drivers and
team owners in the short-track focused K&N Pro
Series for years. Furthering this commitment
to short-track, grassroots racing, NASCAR
acquired the ARCA Racing Series earlier this
year. While the two series will remain separate
for 2019, plans are underway to form a unified
competitive framework that will allow each
series to maintain their individual identity
and schedule. One enhancement will be the
opportunity for the elite from each series
to compete in the newly created Stock Car
Invitational Series, drawing on both ARCA and
K&N Series drivers and equipment.
This means that in 2019, work will begin
on ensuring that both series’ racecars can
compete equitably, with each series featuring
different powerplants, minimum weights,
and wheelbases. Working with series director
Brandon Thompson, NASCAR R&D plans to
develop simulation models based on testing
at several proxy tracks this year so that future
engine/weight/power changes can be evaluated
to ensure parity amongst the two series’ cars.
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 57
TECHNOLOGY – NASCAR R&D
In 2018 the Truck Series saw the introduction of a low-cost Ilmor engine option. Meanwhile NASCAR is now looking at introducing composite bodywork into this hugely popular series
Strong correlation between all four simulation avenues allowed
NASCAR to select the appropriate engine calibration for the NT-1
Moving up to trucks, several changes came
about for the NASCAR Camping World Truck
Series in 2018, not the least of which was the
announcement that the name of the series will
become the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck
Series in 2019. On the technical side, the story
of the year was the successful introduction of
a lower cost Ilmor engine option to the series,
dubbed the NT-1. Extensive collaboration with
NASCAR’s OEM partners saw the development
of an engine parity programme that relied
on manufacturer simulation work as well
as NASCAR’s own simulation work using
ChassisSim. Strong correlation between all
four simulation avenues allowed NASCAR to
select the appropriate engine calibration for the
NT-1 to put it on a level playing field with the
manufacturer units. NASCAR performed several
audits of all of the engines this season to ensure
parity was maintained throughout the year and
will continue to do so into 2019.
Looking ahead to this coming season,
Chevrolet has introduced a new Chevrolet
Silverado race truck that will take to the track
for the first time in Daytona. On the R&D side,
58 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
Ilmor technicians analysing one of the NT-1 engines
continued focus on racing quality and cost
reductions for the teams sees the industry in
the early phases of exploring the possibility of a
composite body for the series in the future. It is
anticipated that the truck series will offer more
of the same exciting racing for 2019, with more
competitive teams than ever looking to race.
Xfinity and beyond
The 2018 season also saw the introduction of
the Xfinity Series composite body programme
option at all tracks except for the super-
speedways of Daytona and Talladega. The body
had previously run at a few short-track events in
2017, expanding to nearly all tracks in 2018.
The phased roll out meant that the
lower-budgeted teams could continue to use
their steel-bodied racecars throughout the
course of the season, though with weight
and aerodynamic penalties to foster adoption
of the composite body. The roll-out also
accommodated for the slight differences in
chassis between short-tracks and higher speed
ovals. For 2019 the composite body is the only
permitted option at all race tracks.
Panel show
With quicker build times and higher durability
than the older hand-fabricated steel bodies,
the composite body showed its resilience
during numerous run-ins with the wall or
other cars, preventing damage that in the past
would have resulted in serious problems and
degradation in aerodynamic performance. There
were also several instances of teams who had
practice and qualifying incidents being able to
repair the primary car by replacing a body panel
instead of using a back-up racecar.
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TECHNOLOGY – NASCAR R&D
It’s a new model for Ford in the NASCAR Cup for the 2019
season, with the Mustang replacing the outgoing Ford Fusion
Meanwhile, in the 2018 Monster Energy Cup
Series we saw several significant milestones
from both the technical and race event side
that have had a positive impact. Also, it’s a
new model for Ford in 2019, with the Mustang
making its debut at Daytona to replace the
outgoing Ford Fusion. There are many other
significant changes afoot for the start of
2019, too, including changing engines and
aerodynamics. Here’s a brief recap of 2018’s
big moments in the Cup series, and how it has
informed the upcoming 2019 season.
All-Star testing
The Monster Energy All-Star Race at Charlotte
Motor Speedway has been a NASCAR tradition
since it was first introduced in 1985 with a
simple premise – an exhibition race for $1m.
The race is an invitational format, open to race
winners from the past and current season, as
well as full-time competing series champions.
As an exhibition event, the race has often been
used as a testing ground for new concepts that
have in many cases been adopted into the Cup
Series. In the past these have included double-
file restarts, the concept of stages, and in 2018,
an entirely revised rules package.
In Xfinity the new composite body will be the only option for the teams in 2019. These have better durability than the older steel bodies, while the car-build process is much quicker
60 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
Modelled off of the successful Indianapolis
drafting package from the Xfinity Series,
NASCAR designed the revised rules package to
increase drag and downforce by around 30 per
cent vs the normal 2018 intermediate track rules
package. This was achieved by increasing the
front splitter size along with an increase in rear
spoiler height up to 6in in the centre and 8in
toward the outside. Front aero ducts, as used in
the Xfinity series to enhance the slipstreaming
effect of a trail car, were designed for two of the
three manufacturers involved in the series. The
aero ducts intake air from the brake inlet region
of the facia and then expel it out of the wheel
opening just in front of the tyres to widen the
wake and enhance the slipstream effect.
Since this effect relies on proximity to the
leading vehicle, engine power was capped
at around 400bhp. This power level was
selected since in the 2018 season there were
essentially two engine variants available: the
open configuration of around 735bhp, and
the speedway version used at Daytona and
Talladega at around 435bhp. To prevent the
ability or need to produce another speedway
engine for the exhibition event, NASCAR and
the competitors agreed to use an open engine
configuration with the super-speedway air
restrictor, which cut power to around 400bhp.
The results were an exciting mix of on-track
battles and mayhem, with close finishes in the
qualifying Open race as well as the main event
All-Star, which was won by Kevin Harvick.
Roval office
Charlotte Motor Speedway was also the site of
another of our notable events of 2018, with the
introduction of the Bank of America Roval 400
in October. The hybrid road course and oval
event was the product of two years of work
between NASCAR’s track services team and
speedway owners Speedway Motorsports Inc.
Through the course of several tests between
NASCAR, race teams, and tyre supplier
Goodyear, the final configuration was unveiled
over the summer to replace the oval layout,
along with a change in the race distance from
400 miles to 400 kilometres. Key changes during
the course of testing included revisions to the
back stretch chicane layout, removal of a slower
infield section of turns, and several kerbing
variants to prevent drivers from cutting the
course and to minimise possible damage to the
cars in the event the kerbs were struck.
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TECHNOLOGY – NASCAR R&D

Practice on the Charlotte Roval. There were worries that the NASCAR Cup racecars would not be able to handle the kerbs but in the event this did not prove to be a problem

Both the Xfinity Series and the Cup Series

raced at the event in October. In the Cup race,
a last lap collision between race leader Martin
Truex and second-place Jimmie Johnson
handed the victory to Team Penske driver
Ryan Blaney. The success of the event allayed
concerns that the cars would have difficulty
handling the significant kerbing on the race
track or that the race would devolve into chaos,
what with 40 stock cars attempting to handle
the tight confines of the circuit. It left many
NASCAR fans and industry personnel intrigued
by the possibility of racing on more road and
street-style courses in the future.
Analysis of the
increased power
Feedback from fans indicated that increasing
the speed of the Cup cars was desirable
Drawing on the success of the All-Star race,
NASCAR worked with industry stakeholders to
determine a direction for the 2019 regulations.
Typically, rules are agreed upon and finalised
in October, leaving a short time period after
the race in May to analyse and move forward
on technical tweaks to the package. While they
were pleased with the racing, feedback from
fans indicated that increasing the speed of
the cars was desirable. NASCAR and its OEM
partners engaged in a coordinated effort to
analyse the All-Star package at Charlotte as
a baseline configuration, capturing specific
metrics using the substantial simulation
resources of the manufacturers.
All-Star levels. Configurations were evaluated
in both single racecar and a simulated draft to
assess qualifying vs race speeds at nearly every
race track on the calendar – a monumental
undertaking for all parties involved.
With the engine and aero changes agreed
upon on paper, the next challenge was to
arrive at the 20 per cent increase in the most
practical method possible. Several ideas
were evaluated in CFD but ruled out as being
potentially too costly. These included concepts
such as lowering the floor height of the car by
2in and smoothing its design. Team feedback
from the All-Star race on aerodynamics
behaviour was that a forward shift in aero

level showed Power hike

balance of three to five per cent. Taking this
into consideration, generating a significant

a need for an Adding power to the package was given top

priority. Feedback from the engine builders
amount of front downforce while limiting
increases in ride height and pitch sensitivity

approximate 20 per indicated that a 550bhp engine was desirable

for numerous reasons, not the least of which
became quite challenging tasks.
To accomplish this, the rear of the splitter
was the broad usage of these power levels was extended, and the leading edge of the
cent increase in across the retail and racing environment. splitter was radiused. The radiator pan is
With simulation metrics in hand from the attached to the splitter and acts as a diffuser
total downforce over All-Star race, analysis of the increased power surface. It was extended rearward to 28in in
level showed a need for an approximate 20 length and widened to 37in near the splitter
the All-Star levels per cent increase in total downforce over the and tapering to 33in at the rear. While the length

62 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

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TECHNOLOGY – NASCAR R&D
The one-off All-Star race has often been used as a testing ground for new concepts that have in many cases then been used in the Cup. New aero parts were trialled in 2018
of the pan is not critical beyond a certain length,
it was decided to extend the pan to cover some
more costly chassis and steering components
that had begun to become increasingly
aerodynamically-driven in their designs.
Vertical fences were added to the pan as
well, to further enhance the effectiveness of the
front downforce system. Further widening of the
radiator pan was found to create undesirable
ride height sensitivity, in some cases leading to
a 12 per cent balance shift over one inch of
travel. The 2019 configuration manages to
achieve the desired downforce gain while
avoiding extreme ride height sensitivity.
Spacer racer
On the engine side, the use of restrictor
plates will cease after the first Daytona
race in February. From then on, the engine
configuration will either be 550bhp with a
tapered spacer, or will be a 735bhp open
engine, depending on the track.
Peak RPM targets will be reduced from
9000rpm to 8500rpm with the goal of
supporting multi-race engines. It is anticipated
the evolved engine architecture for the 550bhp
The peak RPM targets are to be reduced from 9000rpm down
to 8500rpm with the goal of supporting multi-race engines
64 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
engine could transfer to the Xfinity and Truck
series in the coming years as economies of scale
allow for reduced engine costs across the board.
With safety always at the forefront of our
minds here are NASCAR R&D, 2018 saw the
introduction of new in-car high-speed cameras.
These cameras, which were introduced in the
latter part of the season, are integrated with
the onboard Incident Data Recorders (IDR) to
record the driver’s body movement during
events that trigger the IDR. It is hoped that the
increased data will aid in recreation of crash
Revised splitter and radiator pan with vertical
fences visible. Pan length was extended to cover
parts that had become aero development areas
events and further enhancements to crash
simulation models in the future.
The R&D team at NASCAR has a busy
schedule heading into 2019, with several tests
to evaluate the rear aerodynamics package and
its effect on tyre wear at targeted tracks on the
calendar, including Daytona, Phoenix, Fontana,
Las Vegas, Indianapolis, and Chicago.
New toys
Of course, we couldn’t accomplish our goals
without adding a few new toys to the mix. After
obtaining larger format 3D printing capabilities
for 2018, R&D will also be investing in a smaller
print volume Markforged 3D printer that is
capable of printing high strength parts using
higher strength plastics, as well as the ability to
reinforce the parts with continuous carbon fibre
and fibreglass during printing.
Meanwhile, on the inspection and quality
control side, there’s now a Hexagon laser
scanning system to aid in R&D projects as well
as post-race competition inspection. Finally,
the addition of Dassault Systemes CATIA is
intended to add full vehicle Class A surfacing
capabilities to the organisation.
TECHNOLOGY – HYDROGEN IN MOTORSPORT

On the gas
In part one of a two part special Racecar explores
the role of hydrogen fuel cells in motorsport,
examining why they are needed, while also taking
a look at some examples of prototype racecars that
have already embraced this exciting technology
By RICARDO DIVILA

H
alf a million years after the first
signs of the use of fire by our
ancestors, energy used for cooking
is responsible for 0.5bn tonnes of
CO2 emissions or 1.38 per cent of our yearly CO2
production. The rest is produced by all the other
uses we have for energy. This is all a result of our
ingenuity and inventiveness, but it also seems
to bring a rather large downside along with it –
damaging emissions and pollution.
On average, each person on the planet
simply going about their normal business
produces the equivalent of five tonnes of CO2 a
year. The cycle of this seems to be increasing
the average temperature of the environment
we live and depend on.
In the 200 years from the start of the coal
age to 1970, 420bn tonnes of greenhouse
gases, mostly CO2 – that’s about 1200 times the
weight of every person living on the planet right
now – was produced through industrial activity,
mostly the burning of fossil fuels. And still we
are pumping CO2 into the air.
In order to limit global warming to less than
2degC, total emissions from global energy use
across industry alone will have to be 50 to 80
per cent lower than they are now by 2050, and
as much as 75 to 90 per cent lower if the rise in
temperatures is to be capped at 1.5degC.

Energy bill
This will not be cheap. The estimate is that
between 2016 and 2035 the annual cost of
keeping the rise in temperature to 1.5degC
would be about $2.4trn, which is roughly 2.5
per cent of world GDP. As a comparison, last
year total energy investment was $1.6trn,
mostly in coal, oil and gas.
Of course, the costs that will be incurred
by us not doing anything about this would be
in an order of magnitude that is much greater,

66 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

 The GreenGT LMPH2G is the
most advanced hydrogen-powered
racecar in the world and the
flagship for the ACO’s H24 initiative

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 67

TECHNOLOGY – HYDROGEN IN MOTORSPORT
Hydrogen’s potential has long been understood but only recently have road cars began to appear. The Riverside Rasa had been developed by former racecar designer Hugo Spowers
and difficult to quantify, as the collapse of the
biosphere will lead us into unknown territory.
The increasingly ominous costs, in both a
wide and narrow sense, of all this have led to a
search for other methods of energy production.
The obvious solution is replacing fossil fuels
with new renewable energies, such as solar,
wind and wave power (direct harvesting), and
also other solutions such as biofuels.
As for the latter, so-called energy crops
compete with the food industry for land, and
their cultivation also produces greenhouse
gases, so it’s not the best answer.
And remember, electricity, which is now
touted as a way forward, will only truly be a
clean solution when the generation of the
electricity itself is clean, and this is certainly not
the case today. Too much of it is still produced
by fossil fuel-fed power stations.
Renewables
Now, though, it is also finally becoming
affordable to harness renewable energies
on a large scale. However, in solving the
environmental issues from fossil fuels with
renewables, new challenges arise.
Investment in renewables has been twice
as much for coal, gas, oil and nuclear combined
last year, while sales of electric vehicles are
increasing rapidly. It took 17 months, from
mid-2014 to 2016, for the global number of
passenger EVs to go from one million to two
million. It took just six months in 2018 for them
to increase from three million to four million.
But decarbonising parts of the economy
where electricity and lithium-ion batteries are
difficult to use – heavy transport, heating and
industry – will be hard. In 2014, these ‘hard-to-
68 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
Electricity will only truly be a clean solution
when the generation of it itself is clean,
and this is certainly not the case today
abate’ sectors produced about 15bn tonnes of
CO2, or 41 per cent of the total, compared with
13.6bn tonnes for the entire power sector. The
biggest industrial emitters of all, by the way,
are cement, steel and chemicals.
Electricity has been a much heralded
replacement for internal combustion engines
(ICE), but it is a matter of transmitting power
supplied by fossil fuels, hydro-power, solar
Post impressions
T
he technology being developed by
GreenGT for the H2 racer was also used
in a parallel project for a utility vehicle
for the Post office in Dole, Jura, in France,
where a truck called Maxity H2 was put into
service for one year, serving as a test for
electric-hydrogen propulsion.
The vehicle was equipped with a 20kW
fuel cell and a lithium-ion battery to power the
engine, and it had a range of about 200km.
Its battery could be recharged in six hours.
The fuel cell installed on the Maxity actually
also used the heat that it released to warm up
the passenger compartment, to avoid using
the energy of the battery, and therefore to
preserve the autonomy of the test.
Commissioned in February 2015, the truck had, a year later, travelled 10,000km in 150 days. The fuel cell
on this vehicle proved that the electric-hydrogen alternative not only gives a much higher efficiency than just
electric, and is emission free, but is also applicable to many applications requiring high-power motors.
panels and nuclear generators. For free roaming
transport it could power electric motors by
induction, but the main form is by battery,
where energy is stored in a chemical process.
The production of electricity itself can
also be a major polluter, as we’ve already
pointed out, but in its present utilisation in
batteries for town electric cars, at least it shifts
pollution away from cities. Solid-state batteries
QUICK SPEC: Maxity H2
Performance
Average autonomy up to 200km (100km from the batteries);
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Motor
Asynchronous electric motor: 400V / 47kW (robotic gearbox)
Batteries
On-board energy: 42kWh lithium-ion technology / iron phosphate
(Valence Technology); four battery packs with a total weight of
400kg. Full recharge time including battery equalisation phase:
seven hours. On-board charger allowing charging on a single
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Hydrogen Fuel cell
On-board energy: 45kWh; hydrogen cell: 20kW. Two 75-litre
hydrogen tanks, allowing storage of 4kg of H2 at 350bar pressure.
Total weight of the hydrogen unit: 300kg
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TECHNOLOGY – HYDROGEN IN MOTORSPORT
Hydrogen is the
most abundant
element, it is 90 per
cent of the mass
of the universe
are likely to be the game changers of future
battery chemistries, as they render 2.5 times
higher density than lithium-ion. In short then,
electricity stored in batteries has an advantage
as a power store, but has a limited range and
slow re-charging, despite the continuous work
being done with this technology.
Traffic report
Right now, in transport at least, the current
consensus is that it will be a hybrid mixture of
all these technologies for some time,
considering the time needed to replace all
the vehicles on the world’s roads today (cars,
trucks and buses), which could rise to 2.8bn
by 2036, on current growth rates, and near
5bn by 2050. To put things in perspective, the
world’s fleet was 342m in 1976, 670m in 1996
and 1.4bn today, effectively doubling every 20
years. China, all by itself, has a fleet of 320m, the
equivalent of the whole world in 1976, and is
growing at the rate of 28m a year.
In comparison, the world’s electric vehicle
fleet is around 4.28m, but that includes full
electric, hybrid and plug in hybrid. From the
1.6m cars sold this year EVs have a market
potential of about 25m units that will be sold by
2025. A long way to go then.
Hydrogen
Hydrogen fuel cells could solve some of
the problems highlighted above (see box
to the right for the basics). When these are
combined with electrical motors it closes
the circle, a hybrid cycle combining the
individual advantages, with a longer range
and easy refuelling. But hydrogen also has to
be produced and transported, which brings
in issues of an infrastructure to be built.
Hydrocarbons have that already, built up over
the last hundred years. Hydrogen will need a
concentrated effort in a short period to do so.
But we are seeing the beginning of it.
Hydrogen is the most abundant element
of all, 90 per cent of the mass of the universe.
Three-quarters of the sun is made of hydrogen.
It is the element with the smallest atom in the
universe. It exists as a gas and has an energy
density higher than hydrocarbons. It could be
the most promising fuel source because it is the
best complement to mass electrification, and
could also be used in heavy transport, heating
and industry. None of the technologies involved
70 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
A fuel cell primer
A
fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that
converts the chemical energy from a fuel
into electricity through the electrochemical
reaction of hydrogen fuel with oxygen. A fuel cell
is different from batteries in that it uses fuel and
oxygen (usually from air) to sustain the chemical
reaction; in a battery the chemical energy comes
from chemicals already present in the battery. So
fuel cells produce electricity continuously when the
fuel and oxygen are supplied.
A working fuel cell was first demonstrated
back in 1839 by Sir William Grove, but the concept
had been postulated in the early 19th Century by
a number of scientists, including Humphry Davy
and Christian Friedrich Schonbein. But it is Grove,
a chemist, physicist and lawyer, who is generally
credited with inventing the fuel cell.
The first truly workable fuel cell was not By converting chemical potential energy directly
developed until 1959. Initially it was used in NASA’s into electrical energy, fuel cells are inherently more
space programme, but then interest waned until efficient than combustion engines, which must first
the 1990s when new research and development convert chemical potential energy into heat, and
then led to better prospects for commercialisation. then into mechanical work. Direct emissions from a
Then the need for renewable energy sparked huge fuel cell vehicle are just water and a little heat. This is
technological progress in the last decade. a huge improvement over the internal combustion
Since then, fuel cells have been used in many engine’s plethora of greenhouse gases.
applications, including primary and back-up power Fuel cells have no moving parts, and are thus
for commercial, industrial and residential buildings also more reliable than traditional combustion
and in remote or inaccessible areas. engines, while hydrogen can be produced in an
Fuel cells are also used to power fuel cell vehicles, environmentally friendly manner.
including forklifts, automobiles, buses, boats, While there are a wide variety of fuel cells what
motorcycles and submarines. they all have in common is an anode, a cathode,
and an electrolyte that allows positively charged
How fuel cells work hydrogen ions (protons) to move between the
A fuel cell converts chemical potential energy two sides of the fuel cell. At the anode, a catalyst
– which is energy stored in molecular bonds – causes the fuel to undergo oxidation reactions that
into electrical energy. A PEM (proton exchange generate protons (positively charged hydrogen ions)
membrane) cell uses hydrogen and oxygen as fuel. and electrons. The protons flow from the anode
Since oxygen is available in the atmosphere, we to the cathode through the electrolyte after the
only need to supply the fuel cell with hydrogen, reaction. At the very same time, electrons are
which can come from an electrolysis process drawn from the anode to the cathode through
(alkaline electrolysis or PEM electrolysis). The an external circuit, producing direct current
products of the reaction in the cell are water, electricity. At the cathode, another catalyst causes
electricity, and heat. This is a big improvement over hydrogen ions, electrons, and oxygen to react,
ICE, coal burning power plants, and nuclear power forming water. And the best thing of all is that
plants, all of which produce harmful by-products. water vapour is then the only emission.
GreenGT built a series of electric cars, including the 200kW, to hone batteries and motors before it developed its fuel cells
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TECHNOLOGY – HYDROGEN IN MOTORSPORT
Battery storage may
feel like a headline
act, but ultimately
it will be playing a
secondary role
to hydrogen
are new and the more they are used the more
their costs fall, which is not the case with fossil
fuels, giving the incentive to use them across as
many industries as possible.
But to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions, global
hydrogen production needs to rise from about
60m tonnes a year now to 500m-700m tonnes
by 2050, an ambitious tenfold increase in 30
years. The interest in hydrogen is growing fast,
though. Membership of the Hydrogen Council,
a forum made up of global chemical, car and
oil companies started in 2017, has quadrupled
in 18 months. Battery storage may feel like a
headline act in the transition, but ultimately it
will play a secondary role to hydrogen.
Racing green
But where does motorsport come in? Well,
a major flaw in motorsport in relation to the
public is that it is mainly visible through F1,
but the image is of a glamorous lifestyle with
hundreds of millions of euros being spent
to field two cars for a year’s campaign in a
profligate waste of resources – a rich man’s sport
burning up the planet’s resources. The people
72 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
Aston Martin has also dabbled with hydrogen tech; this is its bi-fuel (hydrogen and petrol) Rapide at the Nurburgring in 2013
involved in the sport know otherwise, possibly
the fans do also, but the message needs to be
redefined for the sport to avoid being seen on
the wrong side of history by the public.
The consensus on climate change and other
problems related to emissions are increasingly
recognised by the younger population. Rear
guard action by the entrenched industries
and beneficiaries of the status quo are akin
to the dinosaurs, unaware of their impending
extinction, just looking at the short term.
The trend increasingly seen in most forms
of racing is ageing spectators following the
sport that attracted them in their youth, without
the renewal of new cohorts that will be in the
majority in the following decades.
Incorporating KERS in F1 and LMP1 cars
started showcasing the technology, but it
The first hydrogen fuel cell-
motivated racecar was GreenGT’s
H2, an experimental prototype
that was unveiled back in 2012
still needs to be emphasised more and be
more evident. Formula E, despite being still in
its crawling stage, with low-powered cars in
comparison to other categories, has proven
a magnet for manufacturers presenting their
clean image to a younger and new public.
Case study
So maybe this is where hydrogen might step in?
Here’s an example of the work being done by
GreenGT with a fuel cell powered car running
on hydrogen, giving the stages gone through
to arrive at the latest version, presented by the
ACO under the banner of Mission H24.
The project is mainly a presentation via
racing to introduce the concept to the public,
who might have little idea of the basics of
chemistry or energy, and then developing
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TECHNOLOGY – HYDROGEN IN MOTORSPORT
Putting a hydrogen car on the grid gives a direct comparison to the
current tech, while at the same time developing future alternatives
the concept in competition. Putting a car on
the grid gives a direct comparison to what is
the current paradigm, and at the same time
develops the future alternatives.
The car is in its developmental stage, which
is aimed at finding and validating the solutions
and technologies that have to be created to
produce a viable racing car to replace the soon
to be obsolescent ICE paradigm.
Gas guzzler
The performance of the Hydrogen racer is to be
directly compared to a current GT racecar, which
thus sets the size, power and weight parameters
to be achieved. To be able to be competitive
new rules have to be written to accept it and
to take into account the characteristics of the
technology, this is being done by the ACO to
blend in with the current cars, much like the
EOT used for LMP1s running different fuels and
kinetic recovery systems in previous years.
GreenGT has developed the technology
through a series of prototypes, including the
2009 GreenGT 200kW, a carbon chassis with
two linear synchronous 100kW three-phase
motors. The power supply was lithium-Ion packs
charged by Flexcell thin solar panels.
The company was also commissioned to
produce the powertrain for the Citroen Volt 100
per cent electric propulsion concept car in 2010,
with two electric synchronous motors giving
The GreenGT LMPH2G packs an electric-hydrogen four-stack fuel cell with polymer electrolyte membrane which produces a constant 250kW (335bhp) through four electric motors
74 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
a total of 220.5kW (around 300bhp) at the rear
wheels. Energy storage was in two lithium-ion
batteries (140kg each), with 31kWh capacities,
weighing 1150kg all up, and it had a top speed
of 260km/h, zero to 100km/h in under five
seconds and a range of 15 minutes on track.
Powering up
The next step was to increase the power
with the 2011 GreenGT 300kW, which further
developed the electrical powertrain powered
by batteries; it had two synchronous three-
phase motors of 150kW. The battery had a 12
to 17 minutes range at 300kW discharge, 15 to
20 minutes at 250kW, and 18 to 22 minutes at
200kW, depending on the circuit.
Having developed the reliability on the
electric side (motors, batteries, control system)
the fuel cell part was integrated to complete
The technologies
involved are not new
and the more they
are used the more
their costs will fall
the concept. The first hydrogen powered fuel
cell competition car was in 2012, the H2, a car
which featured two experimental three-phase
permanent magnet synchronous Brusa motors.
(two x 200kW, or 544bhp).
The fuel cell was a PEM 18-stack with a linear
power of 340kW and an experimental high
temperature membrane. It also boasted specific
aviation-type lightweight elements; elements
optimised for a minimum target of 500 hours;
the ability to operate the fuel cell without a
buffer battery, and an electronic control system
specially designed for battery-free operation.
Refuelling was a hot-swap concept, where
the two lateral reservoirs were exchanged, all
connections being quick-release dry-breaks.
The hard cell
Development of the fuel cell brought the initial
400kg for 300kW down to 133kg for 250kW
and finally less than 100 for 200kW each. It is an
ongoing process, bringing the performance up
and the weight down, the latest car is 1420kg,
but is targeted to arrive at 1100kg with more
work. Likewise, the motors have evolved from
an initial 140kg down to 107kg over three and a
half years of development. The optimisation of
all items brings synergistic gains overall.
The second iteration of the project produced
a car that would compete on a equivalency
with a GT, the LMPH2G, using a carbon chassis

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TECHNOLOGY – HYDROGEN IN MOTORSPORT
GreenGT LMPH2G
Key to diagram
1. Electric motors
Four electric motors on the rear wheels (two
on each) provide propulsion.
2. Hydrogen reservoirs
The dihydrogen (H2) is stored in three pressurised
(700bar) carbon filament tanks used to fuel the cell.
The first two are placed either side of the cockpit
and the third just behind the driver.
3. Hydrogen fuel cell
Comprises four stacks, at the core of which
molecules of dihydrogen (H2, stored in the
tanks) and oxygen atoms combine to form water
molecules (H2O). This reaction produces heat, and
electricity, which powers the car’s electric motor.
4. The stack
A layered pile of 230 cells, bipolar plates and
hydrogen porous membranes.
5. Air Intake
The ambient air used to produce the reaction
within the stacks enters through this vent. It is
filtered, propelled towards the compressor, then the
humidifier, before entering the stacks.
10
with a rear steel frame, and the classic double
wishbone pushrod suspension and carbon
brakes. The powertrain consists of a GreenGT
electric-hydrogen four-stack fuel cell with
polymer electrolyte membrane producing a
constant 250kW (335bhp) through four electric
motors (two per rear wheel). Maximum output
480kW at 13,000 revs (653bhp) and the 2.4kWh
buffer battery delivers an additional 250kW
for 20 seconds. The hydrogen is stored in three
pressurised tanks (see the operating diagram
above) at 700bar pressure.
The weight of the LMPH2G is 1420kg in
working order (front 39.8 per cent and rear 60.2
per cent). The weight increase when refuelled
Refuelling with pressurised tanks could, in the near future, be
further developed with the use of liquid hydrogen and hoses
76 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
6. Buffer batteries
Excess electricity produced by the hydrogen fuel
cell and by the KERS system (when braking)
feeds into high-performance cells. The driver can
therefore double the car’s acceleration potential
(250 to 480kW, the equivalent of 653bhp).
7. Transmission
A special, clutch-less single-speed gearbox
manages the rear wheels independently and
is designed to reduce grinding.
8. Compressor
This compresses and accelerates the air that enters
via the vent (up to 300g per second). It operates
at up to 100,000 revolutions per minute. The
modulation of the airflow injected in the stacks
alters the reaction and therefore determines the
amount of electric power produced.
8 11
5
6
2
is just 8.6kg, and this is one of the paradigms
that racing will have to digest, being used
to hydrocarbons, where filling a 63-litre tank
increases the all-up weight by 43.6kg.
Safety advances
A good example of the changing constraints in
the design is given by the evolution of safety
by the regulating laws. The previous 2.2 safety
factor for pressurised hydrogen containers (that
is, a 700bar hydrogen container must be rated
at 1540bar pressure) is being re-regulated at
a factor of two, as a result of the knowledge
amassed in operating and manufacturing them.
This allows the container weight to be reduced.
9. Humidifier
Humidified air improves the interaction between
oxygen atoms and dihydrogen molecules. The
humidifier ensures the level of humidity of the air
injected in the stacks remains constant.
10. Radiators and cooling system
11. Exhaust
The only emission produced by the Green GT
LMPH2G is water (H2O). Steam escapes through
four vents (one per stack) to the rear of the car, in
the middle of the aerodynamic diffuser.
1 7
3 10
4
9
The buffer battery kinetic energy recovery
system (KERS) charges a 750V battery of 2.4kWh
capacity. Battery design evolution is another
field where the mass is being constantly
reduced, all of which makes this a more and
more viable option for motorsport.
Refuelling with pressurised tanks could be
further developed by the use of liquid hydrogen
and hoses. As liquid hydrogen storage entails
thermal insulation and high pressures, this is
a later step, but the advantages of using this
fuelling method are extensive. Thus this will be
examined in detail on the next instalment in
this series, in which we will also cover this
second car in much more detail.
Specialists in
Motorsport Hydraulics & Fluid Transfer

Earls Performance
15/16 Silverstone Technology Park
01327 858 221
Silverstone, Northants. sales@earls.co.uk
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TECHNOLOGY THIS HAS EQ
– TURBOCHARGERS
ATIO S, THAT O GO I O ES A ST E, RO A ETTER THAT

WA AS THE MIGHT OO O SO EAR I THE IE E
THIS HAS EQ ATIO S, THAT O GO I O ES A ST E, RO A ETTER THA

WA AS THE MIGHT OO O SO EAR I THE IE E

Taking ’charge

(header) Taking ’charge

(header) Taking ’charge
(standfirst) There’s nothing quite like a turbo to literally boost your engine performance,

but with parts that spin at up to 350,000rpm and problems of heat and lag to overcome
(standfirst) There’s nothing quite like a turbo to There’s literally
nothing boost your engine performan
quite like
they’re far from simple devices to engineer. Racecar spoke to those at the cutting edge of
but with parts that spin at up to 350,000rpm and problems of heat and lag to overcome
turbocharger design to find out more a turbo to – literally – boost
they’re far from simple devices to engineer. Racecar spoke to those at the cutting edge o

turbocharger design to find out more your engine performance,

but with parts that spin at up
y GEMMA HATTO

to 350,000rpm and problems
y GEMMA HATTO
ullquotes
of heat and lag to overcome

ullquotes
they’re far from simple
‘Instead of running a V8 you can run a turbocharged V6, making the same amount of power

with better fuel efficiency’ devices. Racecar spoke
‘Instead of running a V8 you can run a turbocharged V6, making the same amount of pow

with better fuel efficiency’ to those at the cutting
‘We have a dedicated aerodynamics group that uses F to analyse and predict the

performance of the compressor wheel’ edge of turbocharger
‘We have a dedicated aerodynamics group that uses F to analyse and predict the

performance of the compressor wheel’ design to find out more
Turbochargers can increase engine intake air temperature by as much as 50deg
By GEMMA HATTON

Turbochargers can increase engine intake air temperature by as much as 50deg
‘The e ooster is an electric motor coupled directly to a compressor and it can provide near

instantaneous response’
‘The e ooster is an electric motor coupled directly to a compressor and it can provide ne

instantaneous response’


The goal of every powertrain department in all forms of racing is to extract the maximum

amount of power out of the engine. This is done by increasing engine torque as shown in
The goal of every powertrain department in all forms of racing is to extract the maximum
Turbochargers increase the amount of air entering the engine
Equation 1, which consequently depends on several other engine variables shown in
amount of power out of the engine. This is done by increasing engine torque as shown in
and therefore boost the power. E-turbos are particularly
Equation 2. Assuming that the variables relating to the fuelling and combustion remain
applicable to hybrid, electric and hydrogen vehicles
Equation 1, which consequently depends on several other engine variables shown in
constant (hf, QHV and F/A) there are essentially three main ways of increasing engine torque:
Equation 2. Assuming that the variables relating to the fuelling and combustion remain

T
he goal of every powertrain them going to waste,’ explains Harut Stepanyan,
1) Increase volumetric efficiency 2) Increase the swept volume of the cylinders 3) Increase
department in all forms of racing constant (h EQUATIONS
f, QHV and F/A) there are essentially three main ways of increasing engine tor
senior application engineer at Garrett. ‘This
the intake air density.
is to extract the maximum amount
1) Increase volumetric efficiency 2) Increase the swept volume of the cylinders 3) Increas
turbine wheel can spin up to 350,000rpm and is
EQUATION 1
This is
of power from the engine. connected to a shaft which rotates a compressor
done by increasing engine torque, as shownthe intake air density.
wheel through a system of bearings. The
in Equation 1, which consequently depends ��������
compressor wheel then spins, which allows it to : � =
on several other engine variables shown in suck in large amounts of ambient air, increasing
Where:
Equation 2. Assuming that the variables its T = torque (
density before goingm) ��������
into the engine. The Where: : � =

relating to the fuelling and combustion
remain more = power (kW)
air you can put into the engine, the more
Where: T = torque ( m) T = torque (Nm)
essentially
constant (ηf , Qhv and F/A) there are = engine speed (rev/s)
fuel flow rate you need to maintain a similar P = power (kW)
three main ways of increasing the engine ratio and = power (kW)
air/fuel therefore you can generate

torque: 1) Increase volumetric efficiency; 2)
N = engine speed (rev/s)
power. So = engine speed (rev/s)
more effectively instead of running
Increase the swept volume of the cylinders; 3)
a V8, you can run a turbocharged V6, making EQUATION 2
Increase the intake air density. the same amount of�������� : � =
power with better fuel
Volumetric efficiency can be improved efficiency because there are fewer cylinders.’
Where:
through clever fuel injection strategies as well as TTypically,
I = indicated engine torque (
turbochargers can��������
increase the m)
: � =

tuning of intake and exhaust manifolds, and also F/A = fuel air ratio
inlet air density into the combustion chamber
Where:
valve lift timing. But in most categories of racing by a factor of T I = indicated engine torque (
1.5 in road car engines and a m)
the type of fuel injection and the swept volume
factor of F/A = fuel air ratio
three in racing engines. Maximising Where:
of the cylinders are heavily regulated. This leaves the amount of air into the engine, either TI = indicated engine torque (Nm)
increasing the intake air density as one of the through increasing the flow rate or density, F/A = fuel air ratio
most effective ways of increasing engine torque, is the primary role of the turbocharger and is Qhv = heating value of fuel (usually 42-44MJkg-1
and therefore engine power, and this is achieved dependant on a wide variety of parameters that ηV = volumetric efficiency

through the use of a turbocharger. engineers have spent decades tuning. ηf = fuel conversion efficiency
‘A turbocharger uses the exhaust gases from One of the most important of these Vd = swept volume (m3))
the engine to drive a turbine wheel, instead of parameters is the geometry of both the

78 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

 ‘Instead of running a V8 you can run a turbocharged V6 and you
heating value of fuel (usually 42-44MJkg-1
volumetric efficiency
will be making the same amount of power with better fuel efficiency’
uel conversion efficiency
QHV = heating value of fuel (usually 42-44MJkg-1
wept volume (m 3
)
hV = volumetric efficiency
hf = fuel conversion efficiency
y can be improved through clever fuel injection strategies as well as
Vd = swept volume (m 3
turbine) and the compressor, which needs to turbo centreline to the centroid of that area. improve the efficiency,’ says Stepanyan. ‘The
and exhaust manifolds and also valve lift timing. However, in most
be designed to maximise flow capacity. This is The A/R has little impact on the compressor, more efficient you are on the compression
the type of fuel injection and the swept volume of the cylinders are
c efficiency can be improved through clever fuel injection strategies as well as
defined by ‘trim’, which is an area ratio between but does have a significant effect on the turbine stage, the cooler the air is that is coming out
his leaves increasing the intake air density as one of the most effective
the intake and exhaust manifolds and also valve lift timing. However, in most
the inducer and exducer of the turbine
ngine torque, and therefore engine power, and this is achieved through and as it can adjust flow capacity. For example, a of the compressor, so you don’t have to use
s of racing, the type of fuel injection and the swept volume of the cylinders are
arger. compressor wheels, defined by Equation 3. small turbine A/R, which means a large turbine the intercooler as much. Whereas on the
gulated. This leaves increasing the intake air density as one of the most effective
The trim of a wheel, whether the
s the exhaust gases from the engine to drive a turbine wheel, instead of turbine or housing diameter with a small intake area, turbine side, a higher efficiency means you
creasing engine torque, and therefore engine power, and this is achieved through
,’ explains Harut Stepanyan, senior application engineer at Garrett. ‘This
a turbocharger.
compressor, can shift the airflow capacity and will increase the exhaust gas velocity into the can make the same power at low turbo speeds
pin up to 350,000rpm [125,000rpm in F1] and is connected to a shaft
therefore affect performance. If all other factors
harger uses the exhaust gases from the engine to drive a turbine wheel, instead of
turbine wheel, leading to more power at low and lower boost pressure overall.’
pressor wheel through a system of bearings. The compressor wheel
are constant, a higher trim will allow a greater
g to waste,’ explains Harut Stepanyan, senior application engineer at Garrett. ‘This engine speeds and faster boost.
ows it to suck in large amounts of ambient air, increasing its density However, a small A/R can also cause the
flow capacity through the wheel. Turbine
heel can spin up to 350,000rpm [125,000rpm in F1] and is connected to a shaft Keeping cool
e engine. The more air you can put into the engine, the more fuel flow
trim tends to range from 70 to 90, whereas
ates a compressor wheel through a system of bearings. The compressor wheel flow to enter the wheel more tangentially which When the air is compressed during the
intain a similar air/fuel ratio and therefore you can generate more
, which allows it to suck in large amounts of ambient air, increasing its density
compressor trim can be between 50 to 60. can reduce the overall flow capacity, increasing compressor stage, its density increases and
y instead of running a V8, you can run a turbocharged V6, making the
ng into the engine. The more air you can put into the engine, the more fuel flow
Another geometric variable is the A/R (area/ the exhaust back-pressure and reducing consequently so does the temperature. In fact,
wer with better fuel efficiency because there are fewer cylinders.’
eed to maintain a similar air/fuel ratio and therefore you can generate more
radius) ratio for the compressor and turbine the engine’s ability to breathe at high rpm; turbochargers can increase engine intake air
gers can increase the inlet air density into the combustion chamber by a
effectively instead of running a V8, you can run a turbocharged V6, making the
housings. It is defined as the inlet (or the ultimately decreasing peak power. temperature by as much as 50degC. This will of
car engines and a factor of three in racing engines. Maximising the
ount of power with better fuel efficiency because there are fewer cylinders.’
discharge for compressor housings) cross- On the other hand, a large A/R, which means course reduce the density and the mass flow
he engine, either through increasing the flow rate or density, is the
turbochargers can increase the inlet air density into the combustion chamber by a
sectional area divided by the radius from the a larger intake area with a tighter housing, can rate of the air entering the engine. To avoid
urbocharger and is dependant on a wide variety of parameters that lower exhaust gas velocity, delaying boost.
1.5 in roadcar engines and a factor of three in racing engines. Maximising the this, charge air coolers or intercoolers are used
t decades tuning.
f air into the engine, either through increasing the flow rate or density, is the Furthermore, the flow enters the wheel more to lower the temperature of the air once it has
EQUATIONS
portant of these parameters is the geometry of both the turbine and the
ole of the turbocharger and is dependant on a wide variety of parameters that radially which increases the flow capacity and been compressed to ensure that cool, dense
needs to be designed to maximise flow capacity. This is defined by ‘trim’,
have spent decades tuning. decreases back-pressure, resulting in more air enters the engine to improve volumetric
o between the inducer and exducer of the turbine and compressor
EQUATION 3
e most important of these parameters is the geometry of both the turbine and the power at higher engine speeds. Choosing the efficiency and also minimise detonation.
quation 3.
or, which needs to be designed to maximise flow capacity. This is defined by ‘trim’,
Q right turbine A/R for a racecar is a tricky balance, Another essential, yet often understated,
������� ��������
n area ratio between the inducer and exducer of the turbine and compressor
����� �: ������� ���� = Q
× 100 but it must be suited to the power band that element of a turbocharger is the bearing system.
efined by Equation 3. ������� ��������
Q
the engine operates in the most. This supports the rotating shaft that couples
������� ��������
�������� �: ������� ����
������� �������� = Q × 100 the turbine wheel to the compressor wheel
���������� ���� =
������� �������� Q
������� ��������
× 100
Q
Air power and if that rotational motion is not transferred
Just like the bodywork of a racecar, the shape as efficiently as possible then this can result in
������� �������� Q
���������� ���� =
er diameter = diameter where the air enters the wheel × 100 and geometry of the blades within the wheels reduced boost. Conventionally, a set of journal
������� �������� Q
cer diameter = diameter where the air exits the wheel need to be as aerodynamically efficient as bearings together with a thrust bearing is
inducer diameter = diameter where the air enters the wheel possible and compensate for boundary layer commonly used. However, in the 1990s Garrett
whether that be the turbine or compressor, can shift the airflow
exducer diameter = diameter where the air exits the wheel
Where: effects. ‘We have a dedicated aerodynamics pioneered a ball bearing alternative to meet the
re affect performance. If all other factors remain constant, a higher trim
inducer diameter = diameter where the air enters the wheel group that uses CFD to analyse and predict the needs of racing. This is where a single cartridge
low capacity through the wheel. Turbine trim tends to range from 70 to
of a wheel, whether that be the turbine or compressor, can shift the airflow
exducer diameter = diameter where the air exits the wheel performance of the compressor wheel, and system contains a set of angular contact ball
ssor trim can be between 50 to 60.
nd therefore affect performance. If all other factors remain constant, a higher trim then adjust the design of the blade shapes to bearings on either end. Garrett ball bearing
variable is the A/R (area / radius) ratio for the compressor and turbine
a greater flow capacity through the wheel. Turbine trim tends to range from 70 to
d as the inlet (or the discharge for compressor housings) cross-sectional
as compressor trim can be between 50 to 60.
radius from the turbo centreline to the centroid of that area. The A/R
eometric variable is the A/R (area / radius) ratio for the compressor and turbine
he compressor, but does have a significant effect on the turbine as it
It is defined as the inlet (or the discharge for compressor housings) cross-sectional
city. For example, a small turbine A/R, which means a large turbine
ed by the radius from the turbo centreline to the centroid of that area. The A/R
mpact on the compressor, but does have a significant effect on the turbine as it
flow capacity. For example, a small turbine A/R, which means a large turbine

The turbocharger, in this case supplied by Van der Lee, can be seen here in the middle of the V of the Mecachrome V6 engine that powered the Ginetta LMP1 car in the WEC in 2018

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 79

TECHNOLOGY – TURBOCHARGERS

‘We have a dedicated

aerodynamics
group that uses
CFD to analyse
and predict the
performance of the
compressor wheel’
turbos can spool up to 15 per cent faster than
those using journal bearings and this improved
response equates to faster acceleration.

NAPIER TURBOCHARGERS
For years it has been quite common for
ball bearing turbochargers to be equipped
with ceramic rolling elements, which increase
reliability of the system. Compared to journal
bearings, ball bearing cartridges require less
oil flow, which has add-on system benefits,
such as reduced oil pump sizing. CFD has its uses beyond racecar aerodynamics; such as modelling the airflow through the inner workings of a turbocharger
One example of when the turbocharger
is subjected to high temperatures is during a
hot shutdown. This is where all the heat from
the cylinder heads, exhaust manifold and
turbine housing migrates to the turbocharger’s
central housing which can lead to the oil in
the bearings actually cooking. To minimise this
effect, the centre housings are water-cooled
using coolant from the engine which acts as a
heat sink. In high level racing, air bearings are
used which are completely oil–free and offer
further improvements in efficiency.

Get rich quick

Not so long ago motorsport was all about

NAPIER TURBOCHARGERS
generating as much power as possible.
Categories were only restricted by the amount
of air they could put into the engine, not
the amount of fuel. This led to an era where
maximising airflow was the primary focus and
the amount of fuel that burned with it didn’t
matter. Of course, this also led to teams running An insight into the distribution of Mach Number on the blades of an axial turbine using complex CFD simulations
extremely rich air/fuel mixtures, with fuel
spewing out of the exhaust in some cases. This
is far from eco-friendly and as public opinion
moved towards sustainability and saving the
planet governing bodies followed suit and
switched the regulations to restricting the
amount of available fuel, rather than air. Teams
now run lean air/fuel ratios.
However, there are still some categories that
run air restrictors such as rally and rallycross, and
the turbocharger design for these applications
is vastly different to those in fuel restricted
formulas. Firstly, this type of motorsport requires
rapid boost response and therefore smaller
Ball bearing cartridges are now commonly used
turbochargers are most suitable. Although this
in motorsport turbos. These support the rotating
can result in lower peak power due to increased
shaft between the turbine and the compressor
exhaust back-pressure at higher engine speeds,

80 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019


NAPIER TURBOCHARGERS
CFD is an essential tool used by engineers to help optimise the blade shapes of both the turbine and compressor wheels
NAPIER TURBOCHARGERS
Note the area of high pressure and turbulence within the bypass flow of this centrifugal compressor at the top of this image
the advantages of faster boost response
outweighs the need for high power.
‘The difficulty with an air restrictor is it
really does reduce the amount of air into the
turbocharger, so often you need quite a high
pressure ratio. This almost creates a vacuum
in front of the compressor and you need to
be able to compensate for that,’ explains Jaap
van der Lee, managing director of Van der Lee
Turbo Systems. ‘The challenges of designing
a turbocharger to survive in the brutal
environments of rally and rallycross are actually
a lot less than expected. The main issue remains
the anti-lag, but in terms of the vibrations and
shock loads of the jumps, this is not really a
concern. Good oil quality is important to avoid
the seals and oil path clogging up which can
result in bearing failure. But with motorsport,
mostly the oil change intervals will be more
than sufficient to avoid the oil deteriorating.
If air filters get clogged up, you create more
restriction or pressure drop in your pre-
compressor air-path and then you have to run
at a higher pressure which can cause problems
if you go out of the speed range.’
For fuel-restricted formulae, the challenge
for the teams has been to extract the maximum
energy from each droplet of fuel by burning it
with as much air as possible. This is why most
grids are now full of smaller, turbocharged
engines. ‘Firstly, this type of engine requires
a bigger turbine to maximise the amount of
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 81
air flowing into the turbocharger and it also
reduces the back-pressure,’ explains van der
Lee. ‘The compressor is also usually larger
to provide more airflow into the engine and
the aerodynamics of that airflow need to be
thoroughly optimised throughout both the
turbine and compressor stages.’
These smaller turbo engines run at much
higher operating temperatures, which has
consequently required the development
of advanced materials. Turbine wheels are
now made from Mar-M, which can cope with
temperatures of up to 1050degC, rather than
Inconel. Meanwhile, turbo housings are now
often made from stainless steel, rather than iron.
However, in some cases, the leaner mixtures
required to succeed in fuel restricted categories
can actually decrease engine operating
temperatures. ‘You can get into these ultra-
lean burns scenarios and it can actually drop
the temperatures by a surprising amount,’ says
Michael Moyer, worldwide motorsport leader
at Garrett. ‘A turbocharged race engine can run
around 1050degC at stoichiometric conditions,
but depending on what they are doing with
their combustion, engine development
engineers can be running very far off of
stoichiometric, which has the surprising effect
of lower exhaust temperature – sometimes
significantly so – where there may not be
enough available turbine energy to deliver to
power the compressor demands.’
Throttle lag
It’s well-known that during some turbocharged
engine operating conditions the amount
of available exhaust energy is relatively low
which contributes to a lag in throttle response.
Naturally, when you put your foot down during
these low exhaust energy conditions, such as
idle, it takes time for the exhaust gas energy
to build and spool up the turbine which
drives the compressor wheel and provides
boost to the engine. This lag can be minimised
by optimising the design and proper sizing of
each component, but this won’t necessarily
solve the problem. One solution is variable
turbine geometry or VTG.
‘This is where a series of vanes inside the
turbine housing direct flow onto the turbine
wheel,’ says John Norton, staff engineer at
Borg Warner. ‘These vanes essentially close
down at low engine speeds so the turbine
wheel can spool up faster, generating more
boost pressure at low rpms. At higher engine
speeds, the vanes open up to increase the
exhaust flow, decrease back-pressure, avoid
over-boost and/or overspeed conditions.
Although this technology is primarily used for
OEMs and production cars.’
Another solution to filling in this gap
on the torque curve at low engine speeds
is to incorporate electric motors into the
turbocharger, leading to the development of
E-boosters and E-turbos. These devices not
TECHNOLOGY – TURBOCHARGERS

only help to spool up the turbocharger faster

at low RPM, but are also capable of generating
electricity which can then be fed back into the
batteries on hybrid vehicles.

E-boosters
‘The E-booster is an electric motor coupled
directly to a compressor and can provide
near instantaneous response,’ says Norton.
‘When commanded to do so it immediately
accelerates the compressor to high rpms,
whereas a conventional turbo, which relies
on exhaust energy would take much longer.
Then there is the E-turbo, which has a motor
generator unit inside the bearing housing, so it
is a conventional turbocharger in the sense that
there is a turbine stage and a compressor
stage on one common shaft, but there is an
electric motor/generator set between the two An E-booster uses an electric motor coupled to the compressor which helps the turbocharger to provide instantaneous boost
which not only drives the rotor group but can at low engine speeds, thereby minimising throttle lag. This technology is most likely to be found in automotive applications
also be used as a generator, providing electricity
back into the battery pack.
‘Each type of electrified turbocharger
technology has its use, and E-chargers such
as E-boosters and E-compressors are best
used as transient boost enablers,’ Norton adds.
‘Effectively an electric motor with a compressor
section attached, it is typically designed to only
consume electrical power, not generate it. As an
example, the more time an E-charger is used to
provide boost for the engine, the more electrical
energy it consumes. If you were to constantly
supercharge your engine using one of these
devices, it would consume an ever-increasing
amount of energy, and your battery pack would
have to be very large to use it in this manner.
‘What is quite interesting about an E-turbo
is its ability to both use and generate electricity,’
says Moyer. ‘In a typical turbocharged race
engine, keeping the shaft speed high is how you
can ensure boost requirements are met, and in
off-throttle conditions, anti-lag systems have
been commonly used to help that. E-turbos
can help keep shaft speeds high in motoring
conditions, but we have also learned from
situations where the speed is already high, it E-turbos differ from E-boosters as they are also used as generators to provide energy that’s put back into the battery pack,
is beneficial to artificially drag the shaft speed as well as giving boost at low engine speeds. These are particularly applicable in modern motorsport hybrid powertrains
down by means of electrical generation, which
would be stored in the battery system. That
stored energy can then be re-deployed to
‘The E-booster is an electric motor coupled
motor the compressor back up to high speed on
demand. That strategy can be used to increase
directly to a compressor and it can
overall engine system efficiency.’
provide near instantaneous response’
Charging on dissimilar to engines. Power output depends already used in high end racing can also be
With the extinction of engines on the hugely on the amount of air and hydrogen that used to mitigate this problem for hydrogen fuel
horizon (or so we are always being told), and flows into the fuel cell so turbochargers are cell vehicles. The Honda Clarity [hydrogen fuel
electrification and now hydrogen taking once again the perfect solution for boosting the cell car] uses a Garrett two-stage compressor
over, you may think this spells the end of amount of power for the same size fuel cell. coupled to a 20kW permanent magnet electric
the turbocharger. However, by integrating ‘One of the technical challenges with motor which is supported on airfoil bearings, so
motors into turbochargers and consequently incorporating turbocharger technology into there is no oil in the system whatsoever.’
converting them into generators, turbochargers a hydrogen fuel cell is that the lubricating oil So whether racecars of the future are
are now another vital source of regenerative could contaminate the fuel cell stack reducing powered by fuel, electricity or hydrogen,
power for electric and hybrid vehicles. In the fuel cell’s efficiency,’ says Moyer. ‘However, turbochargers will continue to play a key
terms of hydrogen fuel cells, these are not too the oil-less airfoil bearing technology that is role in maximising their power.

82 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

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 TECHNOLOGY – SIMULATION

Closing the loop with lap time sim

Racecar’s chassis set-up guru explains how a DIL simulator, when used in
conjunction with LTS, can be so much more than just a driver training tool
By DANNY NOWLAN

T
he two types of simulation that have
dominated racing activity over the
past few years are lap time simulation
(LTS) and driver in the loop (DIL).
However, what has often been missing is not just
the linking of these two types of simulation, but
ensuring the veracity of these links.
Also, unless you’re an F1, NASCAR Cup
or LMP1 team another thing that has always
plagued DIL is the question as to whether you
can use it as a set-up tool. This conundrum has
dominated ChassisSim R&D for the last two
years. We now have an answer for it.
In this piece we are going to be looking
at the lessons learnt during the development
of the ChassisSim driver in the loop toolbox.
Some of these do challenge conventional
wisdom on how you conduct DIL testing and
implementation, and on what counts. But
this has now been tested on a wide range of
categories, including World Time Attack, FIA GT3,
LMP2 and V8 Supercars. During this testing the
XPB

same themes emerged and that in itself was

very revealing. But please note, I will not be DIL simulators are often used for driver training but when combined with lap time sim they can also help with the car’s set-up
giving specifics in terms of set-ups, as I do need
to respect the teams’ desire for confidentiality.
Figure 1: Results of the ChassisSim lap time simulation
Game theory
To begin with, if you are going to do DIL properly
you must have a strong vehicle dynamics
core. Once you get out of F1 etc the bulk of
motorsport DIL activity revolves around taking
the physics engine of computer games and
bashing their definition files into submission.
This is not to say these games are not good.
For what they are they are very good. However,
in the end they are just games, and it shows.
This is why with these packages you can get
great correlation for a particular set-up but it
struggles for set-up sensitivity work. This is also
why most DIL set-ups are only used for driver
training. But need this be the case?
Well, no. Thanks to it’s fully transient engine,
with ChassisSim you have a full race-proven
transient numerical engine; the lap time
simulation is fully transient – see Figure 1. Here
the first trace is speed, the second neutral and
actual steer, third throttle, and the final two are time simulation and taking out the automatic and the DIL is black. The first trace is speed,
front and rear tyre loads. The thing to note here inputs and putting them in with driver inputs. the second is throttle, the third is steering,
is the tyre loads. Notice the undulations in the Consequently, the code commonality between the fourth and fifth traces are front and rear
signal. It means the car is traversing over bumps. the ChassisSim LTS and DIL numerical engines dampers respectively, the sixth trace is lateral
This shows that this sim is transient. is over 95 per cent. This is why you can get and longitudinal acceleration and the final trace
The only thing that remained to be done correlation between ChassisSim LTS and DIL is curvature. The correlation isn’t exactly the
here was taking what was learnt from the lap as shown in Figure 2. Here the LTS is coloured same because it is a computer vs a human but

FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 85

TECHNOLOGY – SIMULATION

Figure 2: Correlation between ChassisSim LTS and DIL

the key correlation points are indistinguishable.

Figure 3a: The view from the cockpit
This illustrates the main advantage you have
with ChassisSim DIL. Both the LTS and DIL
components have the same numerical engine;
so what you do with one translates to the other.

Feel real
So the key question that needs to be asked is:
if this is so straightforward on paper why has it
taken so long to come about? This is all to do
with the things that we have learnt that really
count with DIL. The main thing that you have
to get right with DIL is track visuals and the
steering and brake pedal feel. If truth be told it
was these two components that chewed up the
development time. However, without these
two elements you are sunk.
With the visuals the critical thing you have
to nail with the track model is the brake markers
and the key visual points. The two images to
the right (Figures 3a and 3b) of ChassisSim DIL
vs actual are a good case in point. While they
Figure 3b: ChassisSim DIL view
are not the same the brake markers are in the
right place and the track goes the same way. If
you can achieve that with the graphical model
then you are well on your way.
The next thing to get right is the steering
wheel torque and brake pedal feel. In terms of
the former you need at least 10Nm of torque –
but, honestly, for racing purposes you’ll need at
least 20Nm. Also, the brake pedal needs to be
connected to either some hydraulic actuator or
stiff springs/bump rubbers. The steering wheel/
braking pedal set-up you’ll see on wheels like a
Logitech G27/29/920 is simply not fit for purpose
for motorsport applications. You can half fake
the steering wheel torque, but having a linear
soft spring for the brake is a show-stopper. If you
are stuck with this, disassemble the brake pedal
actuator, cut the spring in half and shove used
race cloth or bump rubber down the cylinder. It’s
agricultural, but it gets the job done.

86 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

 


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TECHNOLOGY – SIMULATION
Figure 4: GT3 correlation for LTS vs actual data
But just a quick note here on the simulator
hardware we found during our testing. The bulk
of the beta testers were using the Leo Bodnar
steering wheels and they worked very well; they
are the industry standard. That said, if you’re
short of money the Fanatec rig will get you by.
For a gaming platform it’s actually quite good.
Motion platforms
The other thing found during our testing was
that the motion platform was not mission critical.
This was something that we were very nervous
about but in the end it proved to be a non-issue.
As a matter of fact, all of the testing results we
are about to present were on either static rigs
or on motion rigs with the motion platform
turned off. While I do realise this will raise a few
eyebrows, one thing to consider in all this is that
as you start to invest in motion platforms the
spend increases by a factor of five, at least.
These observations about the motion
platform also illustrate that as a tool DIL will not
be for everyone. In order to be of use to a driver,
they need to possess the ability to take visual
cues and then translate that into their heads to
figure out what the car is doing. In one case one
of the beta testers had a senior and junior driver.
For the senior driver, since he was so used to the
actual car cues, he struggled on the DIL rig. The
junior driver had no such problems.
Also, contrary to popular belief, one key
lesson that emerged in testing is that the LTS was
an essential stepping stone for DIL. Bottom line,
if you don’t have the LTS correlated you might as
well not bother. Here’s a good example why. One
of our testers was a GT3 team and I took their
model at face value and started to play with it.
Suffice to say it was a total disaster. I stopped the
testing and I grabbed the engineer who made
the model and we started again. When we were
done, Figure 4 was the end result.
88 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
As always, coloured is actual data and
simulated is black. The traces are speed, steering
angle, front dampers, rear dampers and lateral
and longitudinal accelerations. When this model
was re-applied to the DIL simulation, there was
a night and day difference.
However, this testing also revealed that there
will be subtle differences between the DIL and
LTS simulation models, and these revolve around
steering correlation. This is most revealing as
it illustrates a common trap for new users of
LTS – that they over-chase steering correlation.
When correlating with lap time simulation you
want your steering to be less then actual. This is
for two key reasons. First, ChassisSim LTS always
Having a linear soft
spring for the brake
is a show-stopper
knows where the grip is. Second, due to castor
values actual drivers will always over-apply the
steering wheel. Once you understand that you’ll
be using the same models for both the DIL and
the LTS components of ChassisSim.
But while these lessons are all well and good,
they are meaningless without results. What
persuaded us to pull the trigger on the launch of
all this was the same themes and results we saw
from all the categories we tested it on.
Table 1: WTAC LTS vs DIL sim results
Set-up LTS lap time
Friday S1 88.02s
Friday S3 88.42s
Saturday S3 88.262s
2018 damper spec 86.7s
The first inkling we knew that something was
up was with our testing in World Time Attack
Challenge. This revolves around taking a road car
and doing pretty much anything you want to it.
One of our customers for this category was the
first beta tester and in the lead up to the 2017
event DIL was used as a driver training tool. After
running what we did in 2017 we did a DIL vs LTS
replay. The results are shown in Table 1.
As can be seen, while the lap times are not
identical the set-up trends were in step. This
also illustrates a truth about using LTS; that the
deltas in set-up are always smaller than on the
actual car. So, moving into the 2018 event the
DIL simulation played a much more prominent
role in set-up preparation, as the results of the
new spec dampers showed.
Eureka moment
To make sure this wasn’t a one-off we did the
same test with an LMP2 customer. This revolved
around taking set-up changes that they had
done with clear results and seeing if the driver
in the loop could reproduce them. The results
are shown in Table 2 (US is understeer, HS high
speed). Bottom line, the trends on the actual car
where in step with the DIL feedback. Also, this
was using the same model for ChassisSim DIL.
This was a true ‘oh my’ moment.
Finally, to make sure we hadn’t simply got
lucky we did the same test with one of our V8
Supercar customers. The results are presented in
Table 3. Again, while the set-up trends matched,
DIL lap Time
87.76s
90.30s
88.6s
86.8s
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TECHNOLOGY – SIMULATION
Figure 5: Actual vs DIL for a V8 Supercar
Table 2: LMP2 testing results
Set-up Actual feedback
Set-up 1 Okay but nervous on power
Set-up 2 More grip but more nervous
Set-up 3 Better but too much US HS
Set-up 4 Grip same but more nervous
Table 3: V8 Supercar results
Set-up Actual feedback
Set-up 1 Okay but US is main issue
Set-up 2 Not much of a difference
Set-up 3 More drive
Set-up 4 N/A
the magnitude of the changes where smaller.
When we dug a bit deeper the difference
between this model and the LMP2 model is that
the LMP2 model was a full thermo-sensitive
load tyre model; that is traction circle radius as a
function of load and temperature, whereas the
Supercar model’s tyre model had traction circle
radius as a function of load only.
Data comparison
But while set-up trends are great, how does this
compare to actual data? There is an old saying
that the proof is in the pudding, and Figure 5
is good pudding. Here actual is coloured and
simulated black. The traces are speed, rpm,
steered angle, throttle and lateral and in-line
acceleration. With regards to steered angle,
throttle and accelerations, for the most part they
are almost indistinguishable. The DIL model was
slightly quicker due to the fact the bump profile
needed to be dialled in and the circuit model
90 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
DIL feedback
Okay but nervous on power
More grip but more nervous
Better but too much US HS
Grip same but more nervous
DIL feedback
Okay but US is main issue
Not much of a difference
Slightly more drive
Improved turn but a believable change
didn’t penalise going off line. Also, the DIL circuit
models used a novel method. The graphics
where originated from fbx files. All DIL graphical
models, whether from rFactor, Project Cars, etc
can trace their graphical origins to this point.
However, the road surface profile came courtesy
of the bump profiling toolbox from ChassisSim.
While this is not the same fidelity as a LIDAR
scale track, it gets you 90 per cent of the result,
with one per cent of the expenditure.
But now a key question needs to be
asked. Where do LTS and DIL stand in the race
engineering pecking order? To resolve this we
need to refer to the race engineering process, as
outlined in Figure 6. This starts with what the
driver has to say. The next step is looking at the
race data, and based on what you see there you
run the scenarios through the LTS. Once you’ve
sorted that out you then test with DIL.
The key thing here is the LTS allows you
to sort through the options, and quickly. The
Figure 6: The race engineering process
Driver feedback
Data logging Driver in the loop
analysis simulation
Lap time
simulation
DIL simulation ensures they are drivable. But I
cannot stress enough that this is a tool and not
a magic wand. The problem with this business
is when new tech is introduced, whether it’s LTS,
inerters etc, then everyone thinks it’s a miracle
and they will instantly gain 10s a lap. It never is,
and DIL is no exception to this.
In closing, the ChassisSim DIL toolbox now
gives you a viable tool that allows you to not
only combine LTS and DIL simulation, but will
also ensure the veracity of these links. This
comes down to both components using the
same numerical engine. Also, many key lessons
were learnt during its development. The key
things to get right are to match the track visuals
and concentrate on matching the steering
torque and brake pedal feel. Once you have that
in place ensure the LTS model is correlated and
modelled correctly. Then, provided you treat this
as a tool as opposed to a magic wand, the end
results will take care of themselves.
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BUSINESS – PEOPLE

Interview – Catherine Bond Muir

What women want?

The CEO of the W Series responds to the critics of this all-new,
female-only, F3-level single seater championship
By MIKE BRESLIN

O
bservant readers may have noticed that in Racecar’s
feature on working in motorsport (November issue,
V28N11) all those interviewed and pictured were
women. It was our own subtle way of showing how
it’s not so unusual these days to see a female race engineer,
strategist or mechanic, even at the very highest levels.
Yet that’s not so much the case in the cockpit. The number of
women in professional single seater racing has reduced over the
past 10 years, while at the highest level – Danica Patrick’s time
in NASCAR being a notable exception – there has been no real
female involvement, in terms of actually racing, in recent times.
It’s this ‘glass ceiling’ that the new W Series hopes to shatter.
The idea is to offer a free drive for selected female racing
drivers in a women-only series, and at the time of writing 55
had been chosen to go through to an assessment process
which will whittle the field down to 18. Beyond the lure of
free racing, there’s also a $1.5m prize fund on offer, with
$500,000 going to the series winner.
Among those in the running for a W Series seat are fairly
well-known names such as Jamie Chadwick, Alice Powell,
Beitske Visser and Carmen Jorda. But other female racers,
and indeed others working in motorsport, have questioned
this concept, some saying the money could be better spent on
progressing the best female drivers up the single seater ladder,
while others believe that the idea is patronising, or perhaps
‘I was very sceptical even sexist. Yet none of this has actually surprised W Series
CEO Catherine Bond Muir, as she was also dubious about
of the concept at the idea herself, to begin with.
first, but the more ‘I was very sceptical of the concept at first, but actually,
the more that I researched it the more that I realised that the
that I researched W Series was required,’ Bond Muir, who has a background as a
it the more that high-level sports business lawyer, says. ‘It’s been 42 years since
a woman has been in Formula 1 [Lella Lombardi was the last
I realised that to race in an F1 grand prix] and no woman has ever been in
the W Series Formula 2 [in its modern guise, including when it was GP2].
And while there does seem to be quite a lot of effort to get girls
was required’ involved at grassroots, there also seems to be a glass ceiling in
motor racing, where women can’t get beyond Formula 3.’
‘And then there’s that pull we are talking about, too,’
Bond Muir adds. ‘I think that we’re going to create some
iconic drivers. We’re going to increase the fame of a whole
variety of drivers across the world, and hopefully that will
encourage more girls when they are deciding what sports
they want to go to; if they have got stars they can look up to,
then they are more likely to take up karting.’
Business plan
But while that’s all very well in principle, the prize of $500,000
for the W Series winner does not look so generous when held
up against the €750,000 ($850,000) budgets that were required
for the FIA Formula 3 European Championship in 2018. So
wouldn’t it be better to invest the entire $1.5m in one worthy
female driver, helping her to get to Formula 1?
‘The criticism is that the money that we are putting into our
series should go into supporting individual drivers,’ says Bond
Muir. ‘And that business model is one that has been going on for
decades. The problem is, just putting money into young drivers,
with the hope that they will succeed frankly isn’t a business
model; that’s more philanthropy. So we’ve raised equity to get
us going and we hope that we will be announcing in the next
few months some sponsorship deals. We hope to build a very
successful, sustainable business model.’
But what about accusations of segregation? ‘I think what
critics are failing to understand, is that we do not believe in
segregation of female drivers. That word has been used and I
think it is a very emotive word … We are just giving, probably
A fleet of Tatuus
T-318s will be run
by Hitech GP in the
W Series. The cars
will be driven by
18 female racers

Finishing school
Which is why W Series is to use a regional-level Formula 3 car,
the Tatuus T-318, a fleet of which will be fielded in a six-race
series that’s to support the DTM in 2019 – the basic idea being
to create a pool of female talent at this level.
‘We decided to set our store out at a Formula 3 level so we
could have both push and pull influences,’ Bond Muir says. ‘And
the push is to train a lot of women in to becoming better drivers.
We have got 55 drivers going towards our test in January, and
eventually we will have 18 drivers on the grid … Once the 18
drivers get on to the grid they are going to have actual racing
experience; and there are very few women in single seater series
above Formula 4, so overnight we’re going to give more women
this experience and also, more importantly, by definition, we’re
going to give more women winning experience. And I think that
that’s really important, that drivers actually learn to win.

92 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

what could be best described as a platform, to help prepare
women to race better against men.’
W Series is to be run centrally, for the simple reason that
involving many race teams would mean the drivers would
need to find the money to compete, and the top-level Hitech
Formula 3 operation has now been handed the contract to run
the fleet of Tatuus racecars. One unknown at the time of writing
was whether there will be any super-licence points on offer,
but the series is confident that the fact it’s using pukka regional
Formula 3 machinery should mean there will be.
Friends in high places
What W Series already has is some big name backers. The
judging panel which will decide on the 18 drivers to race
includes David Coulthard, former F1 team manager Dave Ryan
– who is also the racing director for the series – Adrian Newey,
who is an advisory board member, and former McLaren PR boss
Matt Bishop, who takes on the same role for the series.
Coulthard, Bond Muir says, has particularly embraced
XPB
the concept. ‘With the initial conversations with David, as
with all people, I think he was sceptical about it, because of
the reason why I was sceptical; is this something that is sexist
and is this something that is putting women down? But once
it was explained to him that it is about giving women an
opportunity in order for it to be more likely that they will be
able to race at the highest levels of motor racing, I think he
was convinced. And frankly David has been so helpful to the
business. Because [of him] we have got superstars like Matt
Bishop and Dave Ryan. I’m not a motor racing person myself,
and I’m sure they would have looked at me and said, “who on
earth is this?” They wouldn’t have given me the time of day, so
David has been key to this business.’
But will a female racer ever be able to achieve the sort
of success Coulthard enjoyed in his own career as a result of
an involvement in W Series? ‘We are not going to make any
predictions as to when we are going to get our drivers into F2
or F1, because obviously we have no idea of when that is,’ Bond
Muir says. ‘But that is our aim.’ And what then for W Series? ‘Let’s
face it, if we achieve our aim, maybe in 15 to 20 years 50 per cent
of karters are going to be female, then frankly that’s job done
and there won’t be any need for W Series.’
RACE MOVES
Tony Ross, who until the end of the 2018 season was
race engineer for Valtteri Bottas at the Mercedes
Formula 1 team, has now switched to the marque’s
new Formula E operation, where he is chief race
engineer. Ross, who had been at Mercedes in F1 since
2011 and was previously Nico Roserg’s engineer, will
now work with the works-affiliated HWA squad in FE’s
Season 5 – the former DTM outfit is paving the way for
a full works Mercedes entry in Season 6.
It’s been reported that Jock Clear will be
the race engineer for Ferrari newcomer
Charles Leclerc in 2019, effectively
taking a step back from the senior
performance engineer role he has filled
at the Scuderia since joining the team
from Mercedes in 2015.
Jerome Hiquet has been appointed chief
marketing officer at Formula E. Hiquet,
who comes to FE from endurance event
company Tough Mudder, started his
career with a stint at the Accor Group and
since then he’s worked across Europe and
America at both Voyages-sncf.com and
Club Med. In 2015 he was listed as one of
the top-40 marketing innovators to watch
by industry magazine PR Week.
Massimo Rivola is leaving his post as
head of the Ferrari Driver Academy to
take on an as yet undisclosed role at
the Aprilia MotoGP operation. Rivola
has headed the Academy since 2016,
when he succeeded Luca Baldisserri
in the position. Before that he was
sporting director at Ferrari, which he
had joined from Toro Rosso.
Bryan Brophy, who was the FIA steward
for the Thoroughbred Grand Prix series
(now Masters Historic F1) has died at the
age of 69. Brophy, who also served on
the panel of contemporary Formula 1
stewards for some grands prix, came to
motorsport through competing in both
racing and rallying in his native Ireland.
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 93
Denny Stockman is to be the crew chief
for Austin Dillon at Richard Childress
Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series in
2019. Stockman, who held the same
position on the organisation’s No.21
Xfinity Series car in 2018, replaces Justin
Alexander on the No.3 Chevrolet.
Fahim Choudhary, 23, who is
currently studying Engineering Project
Management at Lancaster University in
the UK, has won the Middle East finals
of the Infiniti Engineering Academy. He
will begin a six-month work placement
at Renault’s Enstone Formula 1 factory in
January and will then go on to spend a
further six months at Infiniti’s Technical
Centre Europe in Cranfield. Dubai-based
Choudhary is the seventh and final
winner of the 2018 Academy scholarship.
NASCAR chairman and CEO Jim France
was presented with the prestigious
Award for Outstanding Contributions
to the Sport of Stock-Car Racing at
NASCAR’s end of season 2018 NMPA
Myers Brothers awards in Las Vegas.
Talladega Superspeedway president
Grant Lynch won the 2018 Buddy
Shuman Award at the NASCAR end of
season gala at Las Vegas (see above), an
accolade which recognises individuals
who have played vital roles in ensuring
the continued growth of NASCAR.
Also at the NMPA NASCAR awards, the
Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Year
Award went to Doug Yates; the Mechanix
Wear Most Valuable Pit Crew Award
was scooped by Joe Gibbs Racing’s
No. 18 crew; and the Champion
Crew Chief Award was given to Todd
Gordon, who oversaw Joey Logano’s
championship winning Cup campaign.
NASCAR Cup crew chief Mike Wheeler
has joined Leavine Family Racing (LFR)
for the 2019 season, where he will
oversee the No.95 Toyota that’s to be
driven by Matt DiBenedetto. Wheeler
comes to LFR from Joe Gibbs Racing,
where he was responsible for the No.11
Denny Hamlin-driven Toyota.
CAMS, the Confederation of Australian
Motor Sport, has appointed the first
members of its all-new Australian Women
in Motor Sport Commission. Jess Dane,
the daughter of Triple Eight principal
Roland Dane, who is also the Supercars
team’s commercial operations officer, is
to chair the Commission.
BUSINESS – PEOPLE
Ghosn departure will not
impact Renault Formula 1
programme says team boss
Cyril Abiteboul, the managing
director of the Renault F1 team,
has stated that the departure
of Renault chairman
and CEO Carlos Ghosn
will have no immediate
impact on the race
team’s future.
Ghosn, seen by
many as a key figure
behind the return of
the Renault team to F1
in 2016, was forced to
XPB
give up his position at
the head of the Nissan, Formula 1 fan Ghosn is no
Renault and Mitsubishi longer in charge at Renault has reason to be in
alliance following his
arrest in Japan on charges pertaining
to financial irregularities. Chief
operating officer Thierry Bollore
has now taken over as CEO at
Renault on an interim basis.
But Abiteboul insists that this
change at the top should not affect
the F1 team. ‘My message is simply
that there is a continuity plan of all
the operations of the Renault group,
as well as Nissan and Mitsubishi.
F1 is part of this operation. It is a
project and an activity that is well
known, very visible, generating a lot
of exposure with clear expectations
Shake-up at Porsche Motorsport
in wake of Seidl resignation
The departure of Andreas Seidl
from Porsche has led to a reshuffle
within the company’s motorsport
management team.
Seidl, who led the Porsche
Formula E project
throughout 2018, is set to
take an as yet unknown
senior role in Formula 1.
He was unable to say
at which team when
asked by Racecar, but it’s
rumoured to be McLaren
– although Ferrari has
also been mentioned.
In the wake of Seidl’s Seidl has left Porsche and is Walliser, the vice-
departure Former LMP1 rumoured to be set to work president in charge of
vice-president Fritz in Formula 1 in 2019
Enzinger has now stepped in to take
overall charge of Porsche Motorsport him take over responsibility for the
on a temporary basis. Enzinger, who
94 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019
RACE MOVES – continued
The late Tom Walkinshaw has
been inducted into the
Supercars Hall of Fame, in
recognition of his contribution
about a return on investment, and to Australian touring car racing.
contribution to the business. Although he was perhaps better
‘I think the reasons why we known for founding motorsport
joined F1 in late giant TWR, the Scot, who died at
2015 are still here the end of 2010, ran a number
today, for exposure, of touring car operations in
and for technology Australia and his last team is
development,’ now run by his son Ryan.
Abiteboul added.
‘There is no reason Former BTCC champion Tim
that those factors are Harvey is to step down from
XPB
suddenly going away the role of director of the BRDC’s
… If Formula 1 was McLaren has said that the dispute it’s been (British Racing Drivers’ Club)
a good proposition embroiled in with Toro Rosso over the future of Superstars Programme after 11
in the past, it still Formula 1 designer James Key has now been years at the helm of the scheme,
resolved and that he will join the Woking outfit which helps to assist and promote
the future.’ at some time during the 2019 season. It was selected up-and-coming British
Abiteboul added: I have no announced in the summer of 2018 that Key racing drivers. Former BRDC
indication that Thierry Bollore is not would be leaving Toro Rosso, where he was Superstar and club member Andy
keen about Formula 1.’ technical director, to join McLaren, but Meyrick is to take his place.
Meanwhile, Renault Sport the Italian team then insisted he was under
Racing, the motorsport division contract and would not be released early. Key Seven individuals who have made
which includes the Formula 1 team, had been at Toro Rosso since 2012. significant contributions to the
has a new president with Thierry Sports Car Club of America (SCCA)
Koskas replacing Jerome Stoll, the Jed Copham, the owner of and motorsport in general are to
latter having retired. NHRA-hosting drag strip Brainerd be inducted in to the SCCA’s Hall
Frenchman Koskas most International Raceway (BIR), of Fame at the club’s conference
recently held the position of has died at the age of 46 after a in Las Vegas in January. These are:
executive vice president, sales and swimming accident. Copham David Ammen, Dr Frank Falkner,
marketing at Renault. Prior to that and wife Kristi bought BIR in George Follmer, Patricia Henry,
he was in charge of Renault’s 2006 and he had been responsible John McGill, Dorsey Schroeder
business activities in Argentina. for many improvements at the and Henryk Szamota.
venue since taking it on.
Chris Gabehart is to be the crew
NASCAR Cup crew chief John
Klausmeier was fined $10,000
chief on the No.11 Joe Gibbs
Racing (JGR) Toyota in the NASCAR
after the Aric Almirola-driven
No.10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
he tends was found to be running
Cup in 2019. He moves up from
JGR’s Xfinity operation, as does
Eric Phillips, who will be the car
is also the vice-president of group with a lug nut improperly secured chief on the same entry. Phillips
motorsport, a role that covers all the at the season-ending Homestead- was previously a crew chief in the
Volkswagen brands, insists this is Miami round of the series. Xfinity Series for JGR.
an interim measure while Porsche
looks for someone to fill the role The Bob Bondurant School Also at JGR, Jeff Meendering
fulltime, part of his of High Performance Driving returns to the organisation to fill
duty now being to has reopened after a US the role vacated by Gabehart as
recruit for this post. bankruptcy court approved the crew chief on the No. 19 NASCAR
Meanwhile, Malte appointment of Timothy Shaffer, Xfinity Series Toyota (see above),
Huneke, who was the a restructuring specialist, who while Ben Beshore will move from
head of performance will now help the company to his current role as engineer on
at the LMP1 team, is reorganise. Shaffer will also work JGR’s No.18 Cup car to replace
now project leader with parties interested in investing Eric Phillips as crew chief on the
for the FE effort, in or acquiring the business. No.18 Xfinity Series car.
while Frank-Steffen
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 BUSINESS TALK – CHRIS AYLETT
Return of the ICE age
Combustion engines still have a huge role to play in our sport, argues the MIA’s CEO
C
an you handle just one more dose of
political content? With EU politicians
threatening the future of motorsport
through the Vnuk issue, and the UK Prime Minister
battling to make a sensible Brexit deal, you may
ask what else politicians can do to motorsport.
There was a time when they left us alone.
Things changed when politicians, seeking
to extend their careers by securing votes from
the public, recognised the emotional value and
importance of a car, and its future, to a family.
Over the last two decades we’ve seen politicians
directly influencing powertrain choices of
automotive OEMs so they win votes by reducing CO2.
By them pressing and rewarding consumers to buy
diesel cars, sales went through the roof benefiting
from motorsport demonstrating the
power and efficiency of diesel at tracks
everywhere. All despite experienced
observers warning of the inherent
danger to the public from increasing
particulates in the atmosphere.
The next wave of politicians seeking
votes spotted this weakness in their
opponents’ policies, and aided by the
short-sighted, unforgivable antics
of some car companies, switched
their attention to promoting ‘zero-
emission electric cars’. Again, endless
knowledgeable advice explained the
well-to-wheel whole of life story for
EVs being far from zero emission, true Car makers like Audi (above) have committed their futures to Formula E. But while
of most solutions from any source. FE has its place, the development of better ICE technology should not be neglected from unbiased advisors. With so much
The best the world can hope for is to
significantly reduce CO2, but when the whole cycle is
considered a different picture always emerges.
Politically incorrect
Interfering in engineering and business decisions of
the OEMs and thereby the consumer, would seem to
have become a valuable political activity. One which
the next generation of politicians will not ignore; so
expect them to also re-direct powertrain solutions.
But their worthwhile political life-cycle is far shorter
than that of a battery – and certainly of a vehicle.
The valuable and unique role which the
motorsport industry can play in this unusual
scenario is the focus of the Energy Efficient
Motorsport Conference on January 9 at the NEC,
under the heading Don’t demonise ICE too soon.
Some predictions from researchers show that
by 2030 (a vital date for politicians and their CO2
By 2030 ICE will still power far more than 50 per cent of the vehicles in use
agreements), ICE will still power far more than 50
per cent of the vehicles in use. Even estimates for
new vehicles show that only 15 per cent will be full-
electric, yet some 50 per cent will use petrol engines.
The valuable role for motorsport of demonstrating
and promoting increasingly energy-efficient internal
combustion engines has a great future and can
counter-balance these political manoeuvres.
Racing ahead
Formula 1, WEC and other series must promote the
benefits of motorsport acting to improve efficiency
to a wide audience and explain how our regulations
can help to reduce future CO2. Embracing new non-
fossil and synthetic fuels in motorsport will also open
up great opportunities, and talented people working
in our sport can reclaim their reputation as pioneers
and innovators. Clearly this ICE expertise will transfer
into the hybrid solutions, which will, by 2030, also
out-sell fully-electric vehicles.
The latest direction from Formula 1 governing
power units in use to 2025 is to stay focussed
on gasoline-fuelled ICE, while continuing to
show increasing power from the hybrid system.
These powerful demonstrators will influence car
manufacturers and the public, and may even catch
the attention of the politicians of the day.
We will undoubtedly also see an increase in
electric-powered motorsport as part of a diverse
‘power menu’ to engage and excite future race fans.
I see an exciting future where the wide variety of
power units, spread across various championships,
will reach grassroots motorsport and even keen
youngsters, using fully-electric karts.
So we should not demonise electric power, as
it will play an important part in future mobility,
particularly in urban areas. But it’s clear that,
when the entire electrification landscape for
transport is brought into view, substantial and
expensive solutions will be required.
There are awkward political issues to be resolved
which should keep our friends occupied for a while.
Where does the budget come from to create the
electric power needed to meet demand from the
increasing sales of EVs? How can they genuinely
hold back an increase in fossil fuel use? How do they
plan to handle the likely fact that 95 per cent of our
electric transport will rely on Chinese supply, as
opposed to the Middle East and others for gasoline?
When all the entire costs relating to ownership
are clarified, how costly will electric
vehicles be? Make no mistake, we
taxpayers will have to meet, directly
and indirectly, all these costs – not
our political friends.
Expert panellists from across
motorsport and automotive will
discuss these issues and opportunities
at our EEMs conference on 9 January.
And they will try and answer the
eternal question from SMEs: ‘Okay, I
understand the direction of this, but
what’s in it for me and my business?’
I see a future full of R&D-based
innovative opportunities for companies
who listen, study and take advice
technology disruption occurring in
mobility, including autonomy, then fast-moving,
eagle-eyed businesses will prosper. Businesses will
learn by attending relevant events, like the MIA’s
along with many others, to spot these opportunities.
They will meet the people involved and move fast
to fill the space that will be created.
Silver jubilee
Motorsport will continue to entertain people. And
just as a good restaurant will alter its menu from
time to time to cater for the current tastes, so will
our sport. This is the positive message for 2019, the
25th anniversary year of the MIA.
We are proud of this achievement and want
to share it with you. I hope to see you at the MIA
Business Lounge at Autosport International, or the
EEMs conference, where I can personally wish
you a happy and prosperous New Year.
FEBRUARY 2019 www.racecar-engineering.com 97
 BUMP STOP

Command and control

PIT CREW

T
Editor here is something about the new LMP1 and long-term deals are hindering the development processes,
Andrew Cotton
@RacecarEd Formula 3 regulations that has led me to a and gains are therefore made in the most expensive areas;
Deputy editor question; has motor racing become so expensive electronics, dynamic set-up, and aero development. The law
Gemma Hatton
@RacecarEngineer that it can no longer afford to be the place of of unintended consequence is not driving down the cost
News editor and chief sub editor experimental technologies? There are so many tools in of competition, it is putting development into ever-harder
Mike Breslin
Art editor the box of an engineer that the regulations have become to find areas of the racecar. That, in turn, leads to more
Barbara Stanley more and more restrictive, while maintaining the illusion of governance, and more cost in the infrastructure.
Technical consultant
Peter Wright technology development. And it is just that, an illusion. The LMP aero regulations are a good case in point; while
Contributors The batteries and hybrid systems that are used in there is a fixed point on the lift/drag graph, there are few
Mike Blanchet, Sam Collins
(associate editor), Ricardo Divila, LMP racing, or in Formula E, bear no relation to those in who believe that this will stop development. The tunnel
Eric Jacuzzi, Simon McBeath, Danny production cars. Energy management does, clearly, and
Nowlan, Mark Ortiz
time will be designed to get as close to this point in as many
Photography that feeds into production car development, although after different conditions as possible. The FIA says it has closed off
James Moy, Jakob Ebrey
years of competition at Le Mans, Toyota has now mastered the loopholes and that aero work will not be beneficial, but
Deputy managing director
Steve Ross Tel +44 (0) 20 7349 3730 this in racing terms to the point that no one else can hope this is where GT3 racing started. It took longer than expected,
Email steve.ross@chelseamagazines.com
to compete against it without the major rule change that but now the cars are so developed through their evo kits that
Advertisement Manager
Lauren Mills Tel +44 (0) 20 7349 3796 obliterates much of its learning since 2012. competent amateurs do not feel comfortable driving them.
Email lauren.mills@
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These two sets of regulations are the latest that are It is not all doom and gloom. There is investment in new
Sales Executive designed to drive down the cost of competition, while making technologies and race teams are being put to use in other
Stephen Upfold
Tel +44 (0) 20 7349 3775
cars safer and relevant to the industries, electric being one.
Email stephen.upfold@
chelseamagazines.com
Circulation Manager Daniel Webb
motor industry while also
appealing to a new, young and Dallara had to think But as Ricardo Divila
points out in these pages, the
Tel +44 (0) 20 7349 3710 online audience. However, they current generation of electric
Email daniel.webb@chelseamagazines.com
Publisher Simon Temlett
are killing the innovation on twice about producing technologies is only an interim
Managing director Paul Dobson which racing thrives. phase and we are still waiting
Editorial and advertising
Racecar Engineering, Chelsea Magazine
Company, Jubilee House, 2 Jubilee Place,
The combination of a
reduction in costs and increase
the new International for the solution that will take us
through the next 50 years.
London, SW3 3TQ
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in safety has transferred the
development investment from
F3 car due to the The ACO is clear what this will
be. Its president Pierre Fillon has
Subscriptions
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the sale price, in other words
from the customer, to the small profit margins discussed his recent attendance
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Online: www.subscription.co.uk/ manufacturer, and in doing so has nailed the ACO’s colours to
chelsea/help
Post: Racecar Engineering, Subscriptions
has driven out much of the competition. Even Dallara had to the hydrogen mast. This begged a question. If hydrogen is,
Department, Sovereign Park, Lathkill St, think twice about producing the new International F3 car due indeed, the future, why not introduce cheap LMP racing in the
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UK (12 issues) £89 This follows the trend of single tyre supply to international Had the ACO and FIA withdrawn the hybrid element of the
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racecar@servicehelpline.co.uk race series, limited number of chassis suppliers, limited engine regulation, they may well have lost Toyota, but would have
Back Issues choice, limited electronics, and heavy investment in data gained others in a heartbeat, in the US as well as Europe.
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but the increase in reliance on raw materials will also be a
Printed by William Gibbons Diemen, Reynard and Lola as racecar manufacturers, all of blockage. There are new technologies out there, and many
Printed in England
ISSN No 0961-1096
them once proving grounds for young engineers. In F3, we are working on them, but are these regulations really the way
USPS No 007-969 have only Carlin left as a UK team on the international stage. to encourage their development? Or, has racing just become
In Ginetta we have some glimmer on the horizon as a major so expensive that it has ceased to be a place for experimental
racing car manufacturer, but there is no doubt that the UK is technologies? In which case, this next phase of racing rules
losing its place in the traditional sense on the world stage, and should simply be about entertainment.
the level of engineering expertise is diminishing.
Long homologation periods are deliberately dulling the
www.racecar-engineering.com
competition, and what is racing, if not competition? These ANDREW COTTON Editor

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• Racecar Engineering, incorporating Cars & Car Conversions and Rallysport, is published 12 times per annum and is available on subscription. Although due care has been taken to ensure that the content of this publication is accurate and up-to-date, the
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98 www.racecar-engineering.com FEBRUARY 2019

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