well, let's discuss.

first big one, that i am sure some of you have heard about, are the changes to qualifying.
http://www.formula1.com/news/3770.html

i personally think it is a great idea. not that it was boring before, but now there will be some good action involved between the teams at the same time before the race.
qualifying will be SLOWER in terms of laptimes, but i think it will mix up the grid positions and will provide some surprises.

haven't made up my mind yet on the changes to tyre rule. seems to be better, probably won't effect much anyways.

the proposed change for tyres in 2008 seems more interesting. a return to slicks and larger wheel sizes? hmmm, most likely FIA will opt to reduce power output AND/OR downforce if that happens...

 

Not changing the tires ment that drivers had to play it conservatively. There was far less pushing for quick laps as there was conservation. We rarely got to see what the cars were made of. We rarely got to see a true dogfight between Alonso vs Kimi/JPM.

Also, McLaren typically ran very heavy on fuel. I believe that they would have run a lot lighter had they not needed to drive slow to conserve tires. In the past the chance of getting stuck behind a slower car (like the Trulli train) was devistating to the result and forced fast cars to run with a light enough load to start close to the front. It seemed somehow artificial to see a McLaren qualify behind a Sauber and have to wait for the Sauber to pit.

The move to groved tires was a poor one in terms of the intended results. In the end I think it was positive because the groves ment that the cars could run in a certain amount of wet without flying off the track.

Qualifying definately needed some improvement. It seems rather pathetic that they have not been able to come up with a system superior to the old one.

 

Just bring back the old system. 1 hour and 12 laps with whatever fuel you want to run. Fastest man wins. Leave the strategy for just the race.

There was absolutely NOTHING wrong with that system!

 

yeah but at least what they will have next year is better than what they had this year

 

I'm glad they can change tires again, that is good.

This last year they shot themselves in the foot with the 2 race engine rule. All that it caused was less track time for each car, because nobody wanted to risk an engine - I think Renault only drove on friday during 3 races all year!

I welcome the new qualifying format. I just hope that they give it a fair chance before screwing with it again. I like the idea of a driver being able to go out there with low fuel and new tires, and put in a flyer - really show who was fastest that day.

As for the 2.4 litre V8's.
It looks like the rev limited V10's will be cheaper, more drivable and more robust. The whole V8 idea is a stupid one. This isn't the IRL.

 

lol, yeah but they don't rev to 20k in the IRL and make your ears bleed
i agree though, i really liked the V10 powerplant. sure, maybe it was time for a change, but somehow this doesn't seem all that great.
all i know is that **** will be LOUD!

 

I like the new qualifying rules...with the slower cars dropping out during the hour, the fastest runners will not have so much of an excuse at the end of being held up by traffic.
I welcome the V8 spec. Rumours that the Mercedes has already exceeded 24,000RPM on the bench. Yes, 24K! It will be interesting to compare race spec engines. I think Cosworth will be the best out of the blocks (pardon the pun).
I also welcome slicks and tire-changes and re-fuel at parc ferme.

The 2008 (or is it 2007?) wing spec looks very promising, unless your an advertiser...it will be nice to see a bit of drafting and downforce maintained deep into the braking zones for following cars. But it will take a while to get used to the look.

 

The V-8's will be fine.
If you can handle the loss of the turbo era (for those old enough to remember), or the demise of the Ferrari V-12, then you will survive this.

These are high tech V8's anyway. I'm sure they will sound and perform great! You could be right about Cosworth. If anyone knows how to make V-8's, it should be them

I'm more worried about the loss of Spa-Francorchamps...

 

I definately agree that the 2 engine rule was dumb. I think that the main problem wasn't the fact that engines needed to last 2 races but that the driver gets penalized. I think it should work against the WCC not the WDC.

 

I know, I know, the V8's will be fine eventually. We'll get used to them - just like we got used to turbos, then no turbos, then V10.
I'm just a bit frustrated with the direction of F1. It seems they are in a hole and are trying to get out by digging! The main problem with F1 is that the rules are so restrictive. Everyone on the grid has been forced to try and make the perfect version of one car. If all 10 teams painted their cars black, I'd bet that 95% of people couldn't even identify half of the field. The FIA needs to loosen rules, not restrict them. Make the cars wider, give them slicks, let them use V10, V8's V12, even flat engines! F1 is supposed to be the pinnacle of racing technology, so let the designers create!

The main things agains this are that the costs will be high, and the cars will be fast. Well, developing the new V8 has been a huge cost to everyone, and the aero packages haven't significantly reduced lap times (to the amount they wanted). There are better ways to slow the cars and costs of developing as well as produce passing.

1) Loose testing between GP weekends. Each GP weekend will include 2 or 3 days of testing on that track. All your personelle are there, as well as the cars and drivers. This would greatly reduce costs. They could test wed, Thurs, and even monday. The cars would be better set up for the track as each team would have more data to work with. This would reduce the gap between teams. Hell, you could even gain revenue by selling tickets to the testing days!

2) Loose the Carbon Ceramic brakes. Even though I love the braking force and spectacle of F1, increasing stopping distances will help to create passing oportunities.

That's just two suggestions, and while they are slightly half baked, there is some merit (I think). But the bottom line is this: F1 is F1. We will all get used to whatever rules they come out with and we will all still watch and buy tickets.


* Oh, and I totally agree about cosworth. When Williams signed with them I thought it was a brilliant move, and they will surprise a lot of people next year.

 

Going back to a more standard braking systems will never fly. Someone is going to come out and say that would be a 'safety issue', and that will be the end of it.

 

well i know at the Montreal GP this past summer, i could definetly tell the difference between a Jordan, Mclaren, and Renault by each ones exhaust note

but yeah, of course a "Formula" series will always be very restrictive. if anything F1 is fairly diverse actually. some Formula series are restricted to one engine manufacturer, how boring is that! lol

if they opened it up, it is really hard to say how much more technological creativity would go into it. i mean, some people might even say that you have to be MORE creative when the restrictions and rules are so tight, in order to get ahead of the other teams.

Nick, i'm not quite sure why you would want to go back to slower braking. the sheer awesomeness of how fast these cars can stop is part of what makes Formula 1.
i think i have heard that they actually want to go to carbon-ceramic rotors.

yeah, 2 engine rule i didn't like. i mean, this is Formula 1. i really don't think that increasing engine lifespan really saved these teams, that spend millions and millions of dollars, THAT much in costs.

 

I just hope that we don't get subjected to that horrid CDG Wing that the FIA is thinking about, in hopes of increasing passing. The cars look ugly enough already

Just another misguided attempt rather than a real solution...

 

a) bring back the turbo era.. best racing ever..!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

b) CART's singe engine/single tyre format placed 85% racing in the driver hands.. More exciting by far then F1.

c) improved the down force and grip, cut the engine outputs ( rpm limiting, ect..) I'd much rather see 280kph and 120kph carried into a corner then 300kph and 60kph carried into a corner. Cutting traction is no way to slow down a car.. just means it's less stable & more prone to accidents..

d) add gun mounts to front a rear.. yeah baby.. cool!

 

Now THAT would be sweet!!!

 

so, a new Japenese team is slated for F1 next season.
it's got a cool name too:
http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns15877.html

as much as they sound like they are going to suck (although Sato driving should keep it quite entertaining), that means three japenese teams (well...if you want to call Toyota a "Japanese" team). they are taking over! lol

well we shall see how Honda does this coming season...they have most the ingredients to be at the front, but it may all go wrong again somehow.
Toyota should have enough money to start buying their way to more podiums

 

The Super Aguri team is not on the list. I thought they had put up the $48million bond to join the club, and that all they needed to do was develop a unique chassis (F1 teams cannot buy a chassis, like they can with engines).

On a MUCH brighter note, Jacques Villeneuve has been confirmed for the 2nd BMW seat, finally, for 2006. Unless he performs a miracle, this will be the last year that we will see him in a F1 ride.

 

well it won't be known until January or so if Super Aguri will be official...unless you have heard otherwise?
i know they can't buy chassis, but they can "acquire the rights" i think.

 

Aguri Suzuki are officially NOT part ofthe '06 season, and that wont change. The FIA have officially rejected their proposal for an F1 team in '06.

They had the $48 million bond, but they had no car. They planned on using a honda engine - which is allowed, but you have to develop your own chassis - no sharing allowed at all. Their proposal was to use the remaining 2002 Arrows Chassis (and headquarters) mated to an 06 spec honda engine. The FIA didn't like that idea. F1 is about cutting edge technology - why would they let a team use a 4 year old car that is 2 generations behind the current rules, safety standards and technical development? I actually agree with the FIA's decision on this one. F1 may need more teams, but it doesn't need more backmarkers.

You can bet though Aguri Suzuki will be developing a chassis over the next year, and then join in '07.

 

http://www.f1racing.net/en/news.php?newsID=104191

Here's a link to an article that gives you a sound bite of the restricted V10 vs a V8. Those thigs are going to get wound up!

 

Montreal tix have been purchased...should be interesting to hear the V8s up close.

 

ok, i just haven't read any news confirming their participation or not.
of course their idea of using the old Arrows chassis is kind of backwards. it was purely based on the time frame though. waiting a year is a good decision, as long as they actually do come back and race in 07.

was Minardi not using more or less a pretty old chassis? heh, maybe that says something about their results though...

i wish someone would get me Montreal tickets for Christmas, lol. i'll just have to wait and get screwed out of the good stand seats, as usual...

 

Yeah, Minardi had been using an older car up until the middle of the season, but it was their older car, and they were an established team. Starting with a 4 year old car is something completely different! It'll be interesting to see what they can do in the span of a year!

Yup, Montreal tickets have been bought and paid for - and this year my Indy tickets are free!

 

Well, looks like an arrangement has been made. I wonder what they did to get Midland F1 to agree to this? It'll be nice to see more cars on the grid. I just hope they aren't an embarassment to F1.

Super Aguri F1 Team Gets FIA Green Light
Written by: Cassio Cortes Paris, France – 1/26/2006
For the first time since the 2002 season, Formula 1 will have an 11th team competing as the FIA revealed this Thursday that it has accepted the application from the new Super Aguri squad.

The outfit, led by former F1 driver and IRL IndyCar team co-owner Aguri Suzuki, missed the deadline for this year's championship last November when it could not produce the mandatory $48 million deposit fee demanded by the sport's governing body. Super Aguri then began a long process to get its late entrance accepted, which included getting the approval from all other teams in the paddock.

"Following receipt of the necessary financial guarantee and with the unanimous support of the competing teams, the FIA has accepted the late entry of the Super Aguri F1 Team to the 2006 FIA Formula One World Championship," the FIA announced in a brief statement.

The new outfit will begin its 2006 campaign with reworked versions of Arrows' 2002-spec chassis, bought from Minardi's Paul Stoddart. Its first proper car, the Honda-powered SA106, is expected to debut on the first race of the European season at San Marino.

Takuma Sato's confirmation as Aguri's lead driver is expected shortly. It is believed the team's second racer will also be Japanese, with F-Nippon frontrunner Yuji Ide, who had a seat-fitting at Aguri's headquarters at Leafield (UK) earlier this month, tipped as the favorite for the ride.

"I am thankful for the support we received from all of the other F1 teams and we look forward to seeing them soon," Aguri Suzuki stated.

"Our team members are doing their best to make sure that we are on the grid in Bahrain - and I am confident that we will make it."

The 2006 F1 season kicks off with the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 12.

 

well i don't think they will be an embarassment, but needless to say they won't do too well this coming season!

Honda might actually be able to pull off a fully reliable engine package this year...we'll have to wait and see.