First photos: Formula 1 presents the 2021 race car

They have never been an umbrella organization FIA and leadership Formula 1 worked so closely and intensively on the new generation of race cars. According to exhaustive calculations CFD technology and the first computer graphics of what a vintage car might look like 2021, became greats Formula 1 now more concrete. They posted photos of the car in a wind tunnel on their official website. At the same time, the data from the previous calculations are checked in the wind tunnel.

formula 1 has used the best wind tunnel in the world, located in Hinwil (Sauber). This is the third time that a generation model has been placed in the wind tunnel 2021. In January 2018, they still used a 3: 5 scale model, followed by a second attempt in March. The third experiment, where the photos also come from, was done with a scale model 1:2 and with 18 inch wheels. The experiments were performed with a working group independent of the team Alfa Romeo, which v Hinwil provides external services. In this model, the shape of the side boxes and the rear wing in the wind tunnel should correspond quite precisely to the final version of the year 2021.

Formula 1 Technician Pat symonds said: “Our experiments in the wind tunnel are conducted somewhat differently than is the case with teams. They are about the different forces acting on the car and how the vacuum values ​​change at different air currents. We’re looking at that, too, but we’re more interested in what’s going on with the swirling air behind our model. We are working with very powerful calculation models, but now we want to compare the results from CFD technology with the data from the wind tunnel. We opted for a 50 percent model and installed it far in the front of the duct to get the best possible picture of the air swirling behind the car."

Another Formula 1 technician Nicolas Tombazis but he said: “The core of our research is to reduce the vacuum loss of the racer behind the competitor. For this reason, we work with a simplified front wing and a diffuser that generates more vacuum. In this way, the role of the front wing is less dominant in generating vacuum, and also the competitor behind the car is less susceptible to changes in air flow."

Of course, the question rightly arises here as to why the model is not being worked on 1:1. The answer lies in cost. And why 50 percent model and not a measure 3:5as used by teams? “Because with the 50 percent model, we have more room in the windshield to be able to see what’s going on behind the car. We believe that this is a good compromise between the reliable values ​​of the car and the possibility to explore the vortices behind the car,” he says Pat symonds. Why didn’t they use a second model and put it behind the first to get an even more realistic picture? “Because it's not necessary. We did this once in 2008, but with 25 percent models. Even with a wind tunnel as big as the one at Sauber, we can't place two models and perform measurements. I believe we are well served with values ​​from CFD technology and wind tunnel,He added Symonds.

And where are we at the moment? Nicolas Tombazis answer: "Basically, the numbers from the simulations were confirmed in the wind tunnel. There were no surprises here. If we start from the fact that today the airflow deteriorates by 50 percent when one racer wants to follow another in front of him, then we are at ten percent with the new model." Pat symonds it even says that they are "values ​​better than we expected. The results are really extraordinary."  

At the time, the FIA ​​and Formula 1 working with the teams on the policy year 2021, which is expected to be adopted by October. Symonds he says: "The teams were a great help to us. They have huge resources at their disposal and have helped us with various projects. We meet and talk regularly."