Posted on 08/05/2009 7:57:45 PM PDT by Chode
This will be a general purpose thread for F1 news and pings that really don't require a thread of their own.
“...four cylinder engines...”
That’ll save alot of money...
Sheesh!
Just remember the 1.5-liter engine BMW entered in Formula One in the Brabham chassis, it reached a top level of nearly 1.500 bhp in its qualifying form! Of course they used rocket fuel.
Well a lot of Boost and Rocket Fuel can be pretty exciting! At 1500 hp in 1.5 liters, the yield is 16.38 hp per cubic inch. So a 427 Chevy would have to put out 6,994.26 hp to equal the 1.5 liter BMW. That's 1/4 mile dragster engine output, with tear downs after each 1/4 mile.
but when it blows it's impressive, may even take the whole rear end off a F1 car. would add some excitement to night racing!
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Updated: 5:18 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2010 Published: 10:57 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2010
Clearing fans from a planned Formula One racetrack southeast of Austin within three hours would take as much as $15 million in major road improvements which even in the best case could not be completed by the projected 2012 opening date, according to an analysis of the site performed by Travis County planners.
Consequently, for the first Grand Prix races, "we're looking at minor improvements to the existing system" and "intensive traffic management," said Joe Gieselman, manager of Travis County's Transportation and Natural Resources Department.
The county's presentation Tuesday coincided with local promoters' second visit to the Travis County Commissioners Court seeking permits to site and build the estimated $200 million facility east of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.
During his initial presentation two weeks ago, Full Throttle Productions attorney Richard Suttle fielded sharp questions from commissioners about the F1 organizers' lack of traffic studies and other basic information that county officials said they needed to make even preliminary decisions about the project.
On Tuesday afternoon, Suttle apologized for the slow start and promised to work closer with Travis County to get the plans approved.
"We heard (you) loud and clear," he said. "The information flow is going to open up."
As part of that promise, Full Throttle filed documents and maps Tuesday that displayed a fuller picture of the proposed 900-acre complex, including building locations, curving walkways and parking lots. The site plan also depicts a kart track and a "luxury" membership-only motor sports driving club.
Previously, organizers had submitted only grading plans. County planners had complained that they could not begin to evaluate the proposal's impact on traffic and safety without other crucial information, such as knowing where buildings and the track's entrances and exits would be.
Suttle also said organizers recently had initiated an environmental study and hired two traffic engineering firms one of which worked on the Grand Prix site in Silverstone, England to conduct studies of the Austin site.
"Everybody has an interest in being successful from a traffic standpoint," he said.
It is still unclear who would pay for the improvements. Developers typically pay for most upgrades considered necessary to allow the site to function smoothly.
With an estimated 120,000 fans descending on the track on the race weekend's busiest day, county officials said they anticipate 35,000 vehicles and an additional 15,000 people arriving by bus. To clear the facility after the race in three hours the average time it takes race fans to get out of Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth Gieselman said several lanes would have to be added to FM 812 and Elroy Road.
Taking into account the time needed to purchase rights of way, move utilities and lay pavement, "two years is not enough time to put in the infrastructure needed to get down to three hours," he said. "I would not look for the major improvements to be done by the first race."
Suttle said organizers were committed to working quickly to get the necessary improvements completed in time for the 2012 opening. He said groundbreaking would need to take place by December.
"We're a little more optimistic on when we can get this done," he said.
Methods I have used to view high level motor racing, at low cost and minimum time wasted in congestion:
1. Go on practice and/or qualification days.
2. Park a distance away, and ride bicycles or walk to the course.
8** Laguna Seca, Long Beach, old Riverside, Hockenheim.
my dream vacation would be to see Hockenheim and Spa
Hell if the F1 race turns out to be booring, wait until we race each other out of the track, yahoo!
Porsche could make a shock return to Formula 1 racing, Porsches new chairman, Matthias Mueller, told Autocar at the Paris motor show today.
When asked about Porsches motorsport plans, Mueller told us that Porsche or Audi, but not both, could compete in LMP1 prototype sports car racing; with the other brand turning to Formula 1.
However, as recently as June this year - just weeks after celebrating a third 1-2-3 finish at Le Mans in a decade - Audis motorsport boss Wolfgang Ullrich told German news agency SID that F1 and Audi do not fit.
Read more on the Porsche 911 Speedster at the Paris show
Today Mueller said: With LMP1, there are two classes and two brands Audi and Porsche. We do not like to both go into LMP1 [against each other]; that is not so funny.
So therefore we have to discuss whether it makes better sense for one of the [two] brands to go into LMP1, and the other brand into Formula 1. So we will have a round-table to discuss the pros and cons, he said.
Its no secret that Volkswagen Group has been contemplating entering F1 as an engine supplier in 2012 or 2013, and the newly integrated Porsche marque would give them a brand to suit.
Porsche last competed in F1 back then as an engine supplier, too with the Footwork team in 1991.
Read more on the Porsche 911 Carrera GTS at the Paris show
An engine supply deal would fit with Porsches recent motorsport activity, which is buoyant despite it steering largely clear of works entries.
Porsche claims to make more racing cars than anybody else. It is important to understand we support customer motorsport and we earn money [through the 911 GT and RS Spyder programmes], said Mueller. We dont spend money. We earn money.
Mueller also said that Porsches motorsport division might yet support cross-country rallying, should Volkswagen walk away from the sport next January if it wins its third Dakar Rally.
Maybe there is the opportunity to follow that model [of its customer race-car sales programme] for off-road customer motorsport, said Mueller.
Autocar also understands VW Group's vice president for powertrains Wolfgang Hatz has been heavily involved in discussions with the FIA regarding the proposed new four-cylinder turbocharged engines the sport plans to introduce from 2013.
Porsche in F1 would be awesome, though I suspect it would take some time for them to get up to snuff with the top teams.
Audi, meh, I have no feelings one way or the other about them. They always struck me as an upscale VW, even though historically that is Porsche.
“Audi, meh, I have no feelings one way or the other about them. They always struck me as an upscale VW...”
If you follow American LeMans and the originl 24 Hours of LeMans you will learn the Audi Turbo diesel has dominated its class for several years, and won last year.
In other racing, going back decades Audi’s quattro system was so effective that other brands got rule changes to disallow Audi.
There is talk of Volkswagen in NASCAR, and as an engine supplier to F1.
All in all, VW Group is full of performance brands, up through the $1.7 to 2 million Bertone holding top speed records for production cars. This car uses a W16 engine originally developed by VW.
“there is NO substitute for cubic inches... “
Turbocharger or Supercharger.
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