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2010 Rules Published
Topic Started: Aug 20 2009, 09:08 AM (183 Views)
Alien_SAP_Fiend
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http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/77775

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The FIA's new sporting and technical regulations for the 2010 Formula 1 world championship, published today, feature changes to the qualifying procedure to accommodate the expected 26-car grid next year.

The hour-long session will still be split into three segments, but will now see the slowest eight dropped in the opening 20-minute Q1 session, and another eight in Q2 to allow for 10 drivers to contest the shoot-out over 10 minutes.

Moreover, in a move that will please fans, Q3 will now be run in low-fuel configuration with the regulations taking into account the re-fuelling ban for 2010.

Other significant points in the document, posted on the FIA's website, include a continuation of the current points system, as opposed to Bernie Ecclestone's previously mooted winner-takes-all medals scheme.

Each car's minimum weight has been raised to 620kg, to take into account the added weight of KERS - which will still be allowed under next year's regulations, despite FOTA's agreement not to use the system.

Tyre warmers will also be allowed, despite previous indications that they would be banned on cost-saving grounds.

The re-written regulations also no longer contain any reference to the proposals for a two-tier Formula 1, that was at the centre of the row between the sport's governing body and the Formula One Teams' Association prior to the signing of the tri-partite Concord Agreement last month.


Pretty good news all round, I think. I've not been and read the actual rules, but it looks like aero and tyres are being left alone, so this year's cars will be allowed to evolve into next year's.
Happy to see that tyre warmers are staying, refuelling is banned and Q3 will have no fuel limitations, although I think we'll see most teams lurking in their garages until the very end.
Interesting to see that KERS is staying. Is it the standard KERS, I wonder? Are the teams still so limited in its use?
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Red Andy
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KERS is not standard as far as I know but the maximum use (400kJ per lap) remains the same.

Only thing that concerns me is the lack of refuelling. It's not going to magically solve the overtaking problem, and with the daft tyre rules remaining races will still be decided largely in the pits.
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Alien_SAP_Fiend
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At least the grid will be more representative with the fastest car first, not the lightest and we'll see cars racing the car in front of them...

Agree about the tyres, although certain car/tyre/track/weather combinations will suit some teams more than others and we'll see different teams on the podium rather than the same old teams every time.

It looks like all the effort that Mclaren, Ferrari and others have made on KERS will pay off, especially with the additional minimum weight allowance. Non-KERS teams are going to struggle next, especially at the starts.
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Red Andy
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FOTA's "gentleman's agreement" not to use KERS next year still stands as far as I know. It will be interesting to see if Williams in particular decide to use it next season, though, or whether given that FOTA now does not represent the whole grid, they will decide to scrap the agreement and use KERS anyway.
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Iberiafromoz
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Alien_SAP_Fiend,Aug 20 2009
09:31 AM
At least the grid will be more representative with the fastest car first, not the lightest and we'll see cars racing the car in front of them...


That really worries me as the fastest car goes first and disappear into the horizon to the chequered flag. a few snoozes in front of the tele. Don't like the refueling ban at all, the savings could be lost in a reduction of interest. I really hope I'm wrong.

The rest of changes are fine. It's going to be interesting to see 26 cars at once for Q1 with a few new really slow ones....
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Alien_SAP_Fiend
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http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2009/08/19/f1-2...s-kers-to-stay/
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There has been no change to the amount of power a KERS may produce in 2010. Cars are still limited to a maximum output of 400kJ per lap, approximately 80bhp for 6.6 seconds.

However one other rule change may have a bearing on how many teams choose to use KERS: the minimum weight has been increased from 605kg to 620kg. That’s half the weight of a typical KERS, and it should require teams to make fewer compromises to their designs in order to accommodate the technology.

Quote:
 
Martin Whitmarsh explained the technical challenge of making their system, developed in co-operation with Zytek, viable and useful:

F1 is a real packaging challenge. To be able to harvest energy and redeploy it is challenging enough but to achieve that in an F1 car environment has been a real challenge. Inevitably there are compromises. The lightest systems are 30kg – ours is one of, if not the lightest. But 30kg on an F1 car is around 1 sec of lap time. Given the amount of energy and power we’re able to deploy the theoretical benefit is never any more than 0.3 to 0.4s per lap.
Martin Whitmarsh


So, whoever can make the lightest KERS system will have the advantage, as the total amount of power you get per lap is the same for all.
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Iberiafromoz
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Forgot the KERS. Should be compulsory as it will be interesting to see this technology developed fully into street cars.
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Norbert
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Iberiafromoz,Aug 20 2009
10:45 AM
That really worries me as the fastest car goes first and disappear into the horizon to the chequered flag.

Well, it is racing... what is someone with a fast car supposed to do, slow down in case fans of a rival get bored? There is no equivalence formula in F1 to level the field, so if someone dominates, then it's the fault of the opposition for not being on the ball. I didn't see too many people here complaining when Brawn were wiping the floor with people at the beginning of the season.

However, at present we have one of the closest fields of all time, so if the rules stay pretty much the same, I doubt we'll have a repeat of the dominance that McLaren, Williams and Ferrari have all managed in the past for years on end.
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Alien_SAP_Fiend
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Iberiafromoz,Aug 20 2009
09:45 AM
That really worries me as the fastest car goes first and disappear into the horizon to the chequered flag. a few snoozes in front of the tele. Don't like the refueling ban at all, the savings could be lost in a reduction of interest. I really hope I'm wrong.

It all depends on the tyres. How many sets did the car in P1 use to get pole? How quickly can the driver get them heated? Where is the optimum window for those tyres? Is that driver in that car on that track only fast over a single lap or will the tyres last the distance? Look at the differences between Rubens and Button? One was whizzing around while the other struggled. Same car, same tyres, different driver/strategy? totally different performance.

Come to think of it, tyre warmers should be banned at the start of the race. Drivers have one lap to get them warmed up. They should allow them at pitstops though as a car on cold tyres coming out of the pits would be a danger to others.
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Norbert
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Iberiafromoz,Aug 20 2009
10:55 AM
Forgot the KERS. Should be compulsory as it will be interesting to see this technology developed fully into street cars.

But KERS is a gimmick. It's like getting a power-up in Mario Kart, but of course, Mario wanted it this year, and now Mario can't afford to play any more and it quitting....

<roflmao>

I think KERS should be dumped. £375K per team per race is the cost of running it, and Max wants costs cut! If you want a push to pass button, stick a turbo on the car and have a fuel limit that means the drivers have to balance boost with their chances of running dry. Can you imagine the sort of power that they'd get out of a turbo engine these days if quali engines were allowed?
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Norbert
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Alien_SAP_Fiend,Aug 20 2009
10:59 AM
They should allow them at pitstops though as a car on cold tyres coming out of the pits would be a danger to others.

Doesn't seem to be an issue in any formula outside of F1.....

<thumbsup>
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AndyW76
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Will we see the daft "parc ferme" rule scrapped too? and reintroduction of Sunday morning warm up? The warm up helped because the teams could try altering the set up for the race and eek a little extra pace out of the car.
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Alien_SAP_Fiend
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Low fuel Q3 should help the drivers who struggle with understeer to do better.
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Lord Tau
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Woot! No silly medals!
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Rob
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Red Andy,Aug 20 2009
04:39 AM
FOTA's "gentleman's agreement" not to use KERS next year

Isn't worth the paper it's printed on. Some team will use it, and depending on who announces it first some on here will go on about how that team is a dirty and doesn't care about F1, only about themselves.
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