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Hi, all. I was watching the race at the weekend and I heard the commentator talking about the new Red Bull. He said the team say its so advanced its like working on a space shuttle. I was just wondering what could be so advanced about it that they cant set it up properly yet, basic layout in F1 hasnt really changed much in years so what could be so radically differant about it?
Well the Red Bull, according to me is a very good car, (or atleast looks like a very good one) but I think their problem is basically with setting it up. What I think has happened is that Newey has created a masterpiece, but the whole engineering department is not so strong or atleast not that good, and they are struggling with how to set-up the car. Just imagine ehat would happen if you suddenly gave an F2007 chassis to a team like Spyker, obviously it will be a struggle for them to set it up as they lack the experience/resources/key people to do so.
Actually they said about the same thing at McLaren about the MP4-18, another of these legendary cars by Newey (well not completely in fact, Newey at the time pushed MP4-17D development, although he was needed to fix serious trouble and build the MP4-19).
Anyway, at the time that car was hard to work on because its components were located incredibly tight to each other. It's probably the same with this RB3 compared to their previous car.
I think that with just a bit more experience the team will improve all the way through the season, possibly also making podium finishes.
I think thats James Allen getting his facts muddled. Gerhard BErger said to the press (NOT JA) that the Toro Rosso guys find working on the RB3/STR2 a bit like working on the space shuttle as its so much more advanced than the Jaguar reloaded RB2/STR1 of last year and the Minardi before it
I keep hearing the word "advanced" when poeple describe the Red Bulls/Torro Rossos but I just dont understand what can be so advanced seeing as F1 cars pretty much all work the same way and have done for a while. If they had some radical new suspension design I could see thier point but its just double wishbone/pushrod like every other car.
Every F1 car's internals are packed together in a slightly different way, Newey likes to compress it as much as he can, so working on the parts can be a hastle to the Rosso crew. Especially considering the Jaguar they had last year, that car still carries on from a time when aerodynamic efficency was a bit less paramount than it is today.
Also the guys from the STR team didnt get there car for a long time..so they are still understanding why newey designed certain things on the car. A Minardi into a Mclaren-esque car in a span of 6 months takes some time to understand.
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Simon: [on the phone] John... in the back of the truck you're driving, there's $13 billon dollars worth in gold bullion. I wonder would a deal be out of the question?
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I see this concept of a very tightly designed mechanics and devices (said to be tricky to operate) in opposition with the general trend of the grid (albeit ferrari).
In press reports, it's reported all teams (especially ex-michelins) have designed the cars so that they are easily adabtable (especially the front end) with ballast and suspention set ups devices easily accessible and working in a wider range in the research of how to use the bridgestones.
Making a car that is hard to work on and/or have a tight range of set up possibilities is dangerous this year.
I hope for Webber & Coulthard that it's not another "looking forward to next season" campain for Red Bull! They withdrawed efforts in 2006 to focus on the Newey car, it would be sad they now they give one year to learn it.
