Technical What the fric are the FIA up to now?

[snowy]

What's the betting - should FRIC be banned - that FI is not running Mercedes power units next year?

 

[Fenderman]

"Anything can happen in F1 and usually does." Murray W.

 

[Wombcat]

gethinceri It's been around since 2008, it's now 2014, why would anyone think it was illegal?

Which rule is it even breaking anyway? Active suspension? Moveable aero? Anyone know?

That's explained in the article

could be in breach of article 3.15 of F1's technical regulations.
Article 3.15 is the catch-all regulation that relates to moveable aerodynamic devices. It outlaws any part of the car that influences the aerodynamics that is not "rigidly secured to the entirely sprung part of the car (rigidly secured means not having any degree of freedom)."[/q

 

[rufus_mcdufus]

If the majority of teams are using FRICs and it's up to the teams whether to ban it for the rest of the season, then they're not going to want to, are they?

 

[Dizzi]

But they need 100% agreement from the teams & if just one team isn't running it they're not going to agree to keep it & be at a disadvantage.
It's like asking pirates to elect a captain...it ain't going to happen.
If it's banned mid-season it's going to make the FIA look like a joke, especially if it's been around since 2008 - how embarrasing.
Sounds like the FIA are clutching at straws to let the other teams catch Merecedes (they didn't think of that when Red Bull was so boringly dominant) when they should be letting the fans enjoy the battle brewing between Nico & Lewis.
If it's been presumably illegal since 2008 then do we delete the last few years like they did with the Tour de France??!

 

[chreden]

gethinceriWhich rule is it even breaking anyway? Active suspension? Moveable aero? Anyone know?

Moveable aero. It's always moveable aero. FIA Technical Delegate for the Millennium Charlie Whiting said so.

Sounds like the FIA are clutching at straws to let the other teams catch Merecedes (they didn't think of that when Red Bull was so boringly dominant)

Off throttle blown diffusers were banned for one race (Britain) in 2011 and Ferrari won it.

 

[KekeTheKing]

From Craig Scarborough's analysis on AUTOSPORT http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/114890

Those teams that adopted the system early, such as Lotus, Mercedes, Ferrari and Marussia, have the car's design fully adapted to the slightly different mechanics of the FRIC.

The teams with suspension fully optimised around the FRIC design do not necessarily have the mounting points for a full complement of side, heave and roll elements that an unconnected system requires. There may not be the space or sufficient hard points inside the car to create these at short notice.

It is unlikely to knock Mercedes' dominance of the sport this year, nor have a huge effect on the running order behind it.

I would be surprised if cars are not running FRIC at Hockenheim.

 

[olegg]

It is RB "cabinet win"?
Marco is able to achieve the advantage out off-circuit

 

[RasputinLives]

It still makes me laugh when they make comments like "...if all the teams agree". All of the teams never agree. Thats why we have Bernie.

FIA needs to man up and say yes or no and then the teams can lump it. Its probably 6 years too late at this point though.

 

[siffert_fan]

Two things in this have surprised me:
1. The FIA under Todt makes the Mosley years look efficient

2. I haven't heard a single team principal claim that they thought the FRIC was legal (even though the FIA let them use it). THAT has to be a first!

 

[Galahad]

Any suspension component could be ruled illegal at any time as a moveable aerodynamic device. It's ludicrous and apparently just how the FIA like it.

Todt claims to be trying to cut costs. Regulating the sport in this half-arsed manner isn't helping with that.

 

[RasputinLives]

Max always said we'd miss him.

 

[Galahad]

We had this under Max, and worse. Monza 2003 was absolutely farcical, Sepang 1999, the mass damper, etc. etc.

 

[Fenderman]

Max always said we'd miss him.

... most of us said "No way, mate." and I for one still do (say that and DO NOT miss him).

 

[snowy]

Fenderman He's unmissable!

 

[RasputinLives]

I miss him as much as British politics misses his Dad (I.e not at all) but I find myself asking which is better as a leader - one that makes bad decisions or one who appears to make no decisions.

I guess its like asking whether you'd prefer to die from being shot through the hit or bleeding to death.

 

[snowy]

Any suspension component could be ruled illegal at any time as a moveable aerodynamic device. It's ludicrous and apparently just how the FIA like it.

Todt claims to be trying to cut costs. Regulating the sport in this half-arsed manner isn't helping with that.

The FIA has always governed in this way. They set the teams on one another, promoting suspicion, decent and giving them weapons to bash each other over the head with. Divide and Rule is the rule people understand, which is quite ironic since it cannot be comprehended or recognised by 99% humans!

 

[Road of Bones]

Wearing my cynical hat, I reckon it's all about curbing Mercedes' dominance and trying to level the playing field for the rest of the season - Merc will still win the championship, but they hope that a few other teams might win a race or two.

Less a case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" than "let's break it anyway, and then fix it"...

 

[RasputinLives]

Isn't it a standard rule in F1 now that after the British Grand Prix they make a big regulation change to make 'better racing' and it goes wrong and gets duller?

It happened last year.

 

[RasputinLives]

Van Der Garde had a huge crash in testing yesterday and he (or the media) seemed to be suggesting that it happened because they were testing without there FRIC

http://richlandf1.com/?p=25246