Vanity screen

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Graphic for the use of the vanity screen (red component) on a 2013 Formula 1.

The Eitelkeitsblende ( English vanity panel , even modesty panel ) was a cover from the 2013 season of Formula 1 - racing cars could be fitted to an aesthetic defect in the vehicle front due to rule changes for the 2012 season to cover.

history

Comparison of the noses of the Force India racing cars from 2012 and 2013

In 2011, for safety reasons , the FIA announced that the height of the vehicle nose would be reduced to 55 cm for the 2012 Formula 1 season . This should ensure that in the event of a side impact, the nose hits below the cockpit opening. The cockpit height, however, remained unchanged at 62.5 cm, since most teams would have had to discard the existing design drafts for 2012 in the event of a change. The designers made full use of the maximum height of the cockpit in order to be able to pass as much air as possible under the vehicle for the flow to the underbody.

Most of the designers decided to bridge this difference in height not by a constant slope, but by a step at the height of the front wheels, the only exceptions were the McLaren MP4-27 and the Marussia MR01 . Racers, journalists and spectators repeatedly described the vehicles with this level as terrible, ugly or gave the constructions nicknames such as "hook nose", "duck nose", "duck bill", "stork" or "platypus".

definition

Front with vanity cover on the Toro Rosso STR8 . The cover is attached with several silver-colored screws.

In September 2012, the FIA ​​included the vanity panel in the Technical Regulations under the new Article 3.7.9.

The fascia is the only component of the vehicle that may be more than 1950 mm in front of the rear end of the cockpit and more than 550 mm above the floor plate. The size of the screen is limited to ensure that it is not used as an aerodynamic element. It must be in one piece, and it must not be part of the overall structure.

use

The 2013 vehicles from McLaren ( McLaren MP4-28 ), Ferrari ( Ferrari F138 ), Force India ( Force India VJM06 ), Mercedes ( Mercedes F1 W04 ), Toro Rosso ( Toro Rosso STR8 ) and Williams ( Williams FW35 ) were at their presentation Equipped with a vanity screen, Lotus ( Lotus E21 ) and Caterham ( Caterham CT03 ) decided against using it. On the Sauber ( Sauber C32 ) and Red Bull ( Red Bull RB9 ) vehicles , the cover only covers part of the step. As with the previous model, the front of the Marussia MR02 is designed with a constant slope, so that it is not necessary to use the cover.

James Allison , head of technology at Lotus, ruled out installing a vanity panel on the Lotus E21 that would not have any aerodynamic advantage due to weight reasons. Adrian Newey , chief designer at Red Bull, explains the use of a "reduced version" of the vanity panel on the Red Bull RB9 by saying that it is very small and does not reach far forward, because this would also mean unnecessary weight. Tim Goss , Head of Technology at McLaren, sees no disadvantage in using the cover, as it is a very light component. Force India chief technology officer Andrew Green justifies the use of the cover with a quieter airflow over the vehicle, but admits that the effect is "vanishingly low".

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Formula 1 - Caterham: No plans for vanity panel. (No longer available online.) Autosport.com, February 5, 2013, formerly in the original ; accessed on February 7, 2013 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / uk.eurosport.yahoo.com  
  2. ↑ Formula 1 teams will be able to hide stepped noses in 2013. Eurosport.Yahoo.com, September 27, 2012, accessed on February 7, 2013 (English).
  3. ↑ a b c FIA paves the way for the end of the ugly step noses. Motorsport-Total.com, November 22, 2012, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  4. ↑ Allison explains rule changes for 2012. Motorsport-Total.com, December 11, 2011, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  5. ↑ a b Formula 1 technology - noses in comparison: the Formula 1 generation platypus. auto-motor-und-sport.de, March 22, 2012, accessed on February 1, 2013 .
  6. ↑ a b New noses in Formula 1: kink in optics. sueddeutsche.de, March 21, 2012, accessed on February 1, 2013 .
  7. ↑ a b Horner believes: Nose variants will remain the same in 2013. Motorsport-Total.com, February 12, 2013, accessed February 19, 2013 .
  8. ↑ Formula 1 - Stuck thinks optics are terrible: All aesthetics are lost. Motorsport-Magazin.com, February 12, 2012, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  9. ↑ John Barnard: "Step noses are incredibly ugly". Motorsport-Total.com, April 1, 2012, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  10. ↑ Vehicle noses : No animal is that ugly. Motorsport-Total.com, March 15, 2012, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  11. ↑ McLaren: Fast and Beautiful? Motorsport-Total.com, February 23, 2012, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  12. ↑ Ferrari F2012 in the technical analysis: Ferrari engineers with radical ideas. auto-motor-und-sport.de, February 7, 2012, accessed on February 1, 2013 .
  13. ↑ Karin Sturm: Formula 1 starts the new year: duckbill, new names and 20 races. tagesspiegel.de, March 16, 2012, accessed February 6, 2013 .
  14. ↑ Mercedes AMG W03 for the 2012 season: Silver stork with a star on its beak. auto-motor-und-sport.de, February 21, 2012, accessed on February 6, 2013 .
  15. ↑ a b c 2013: New rules for step noses and double DRS. Motorsport-Total.com, September 27, 2012, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  16. ↑ Lotus does not do away with the step nose. Motorsport-Total.com, January 28, 2013, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  17. ↑ McLaren is True to Itself: Innovation in Homeopathic Doses. Motorsport-Total.com, January 31, 2013, accessed February 1, 2013 .
  18. ↑ Force India: Success with "hundreds of improvements"? Motorsport-Total.com, February 1, 2013, accessed February 26, 2013 .