Enclosed Rear Wheels

[KekeTheKing]

cars as weapons

Covering the rear wheels will only embolden drivers to take bigger risks and make more contact.

Although it may lead to some Dijon 79 type duels again. If modern F1 cars made as much contact as Villeneuve and Arnoux on that day they would have left a minefield of debris throughout the entire circuit.

 

[no-FIAt-please]

When was the last time a driver used their car as a weapon? Schumi against (Jacques) Villeneuve? It simply doesn't happen anymore.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

Covering the rear wheels will only embolden drivers to take bigger risks and make more contact.

Although it may lead to some Dijon 79 type duels again. If modern F1 cars made as much contact as Villeneuve and Arnoux on that day they would have left a minefield of debris throughout the entire circuit.

I'm not soo sure that drivers coming from behind would take more risks. As the attacking driver, clipping someone's rear is much more likely to cause you a problem than the other driver, on the premise that there is no cover around the front corners other than the front wing.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

When was the last time a driver used their car as a weapon? Schumi against (Jacques) Villeneuve? It simply doesn't happen anymore.

Vettel passing Sutil at Silverstone 2010 (or was it 2009)?

 

[Galahad]

When was the last time a driver used their car as a weapon? Schumi against (Jacques) Villeneuve? It simply doesn't happen anymore.

What I mean more is drivers giving their rivals the choice of contact or going off the circuit, like Vettel at the start in Suzuka, say, or countless other recent examples. That's why there's so much more contact than there used to be. Senna is held up as the pioneer, but I don't want to get into that. There's no obligation to give 'racing room'.

 

[KekeTheKing]

I'm not soo sure that drivers coming from behind would take more risks. As the attacking driver, clipping someone's rear is much more likely to cause you a problem than the other driver, on the premise that there is no cover around the front corners other than the front wing.

We'll have to wait and see how this season plays out in the IRL.

 

[no-FIAt-please]

Vettel passing Sutil at Silverstone 2010 (or was it 2009)?

It's funny that moment did actually come to mind, although I wouldn't describe what Vettel did as dangerous it certainly was a calculated barge past.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

It's funny that moment did actually come to mind, although I wouldn't describe what Vettel did as dangerous it certainly was a calculated barge past.

Phew. You've probably just saved me from being labelled a "Vettel hater" again.

 

[Clinton]

There are a ton of series where cars can rub and bump each other. I happen to love the fact that F1 drivers have to race each other in extremely close quarters WITHOUT making contact. Driver skill is at a premium in open-wheel F1 racing. I'm not interested in reducing that burden.

The fragility of the current F1 cars and the ungainliness of their front wings, combined with the fact that most of the drivers defend aggressively, creates an additional difficulty in overtaking apart from the problems caused by turbulent air. For example, Schumacher and Senna's minor collision in Brazil last year and Rosberg and Perez's clash in Australia probably wouldn't have caused either of the passing drivers to suffer a puncture if their cars had had enclosed rear wheels.

It's certainly the case that racing in close quarters without having these collisions takes skill, but this comes at the expense of rendering drivers often wary of making any attempt to execute an ambitious passing manoeuvre, not least because however much skill the driver in question possesses a measure of co-operation on the part of the defending driver also tends to be necessary.

Personally I would prefer to see bold moves rewarded a little more often. I shall at least say that enclosed rear wheels, with respect to their effect on the quality of racing, would represent less of a dilution of F1's skill-level than DRS does.

 

[Incubus]

I'm not raking a stand on that issue but - and I haven't seen any reference to it on this thread - such a device would probably have prevented Gilles Villeneuve losing his life on that saturday afternoon.

 

[no-FIAt-please]

I'm not raking a stand on that issue

I'm afraid you may be in the wrong thread, this thread isn't about ride height!

 

[Vortex]

Maybe its because its new and different but that car looks bloody awful, like something out of a computer game, I really hope F1 never does this (they’re ugly enough already).

 

[rufus_mcdufus]

I disagree - I think it looks really nice!

 

[Dario Resta]

Having seen the first race for these monstrosities it's hard to think of anything that could look worse (apart from maybe grafting the front end of one of this year's F1 cars on to it). They look like rubbish Batmobiles, and I reckon that on an oval, a car would still get launched if the front wing broke allowing the front tyre to hit that hideous protrusion at the back.

The front end is actually quite sleek though.....

 

[Lewywo4]

I don't mind this in IRL however, and I agree that the cars do look pretty sleek.

As they go by, they look like shifter karts on steroids.

 

[RickD]

I looked at these and they reminded me of something...

http://www.worldcarfans.com/110112629768/red-bull-x1-dream-racer-gets-built-full-scale/lowphotos#0

 

[ExtremeNinja]

I looked at these and they reminded me of something...

http://www.worldcarfans.com/110112629768/red-bull-x1-dream-racer-gets-built-full-scale/lowphotos#0

And there's nothing wrong with that at all! Sex on wheels.

 

[Bill Boddy]

F1 is an open wheel race. The number of cars taking flight is mercifully very small and the security shell seems to cope well.

If the rear wheels are to be covered then cover the front ones as well. Whilst you're about it have a wide, thick piece of rubber going all the way round it as well. You could also use an overhead grid for supplying electricity to an electric motor, just have an electrode from the car up to the grid and another one down onto the road. How about a remote control system in conjunction with sensors to avoid collisions, that would make driving it much safer.

 

[Blue Flags Again]

The aero guys would love this, more bodywork to play with and 2 big drags eliminated.

 

[soccerman17]

There is no reason for it in F1. Indycar only has it because flips like Webber's occurred frequently, as in maybe 3 times a season. That and the danger of high speed tracks with walls right next to the track, mainly ovals but a few others. The walls themselves weren't a problem but instead the fence as in Wheldon's incident and also Conway's at Indy