4WD or 2WD

[nihar]

Hello All,
Can anyone pls tel me if F1 Cars are Four Wheel Drives or Two Wheel Drives?
Thanks

[cerebraljl]

f1 cars are rear wheel drive cars

[DaveKillens]

FIA F1 Technical Regulation 9.1
"9.1 Transmission types:
No transmission may permit more than two wheels to be driven."
http://www.fia.com/resources/documents/ ... ATIONS.pdf

[Ciro Pabón]

That's true. Of course, this could change with regenerative system or "surge power units", as this "FIA sponsored" article I already mentioned points out:

http://www.fia.com/automotive/issue5/sp ... cle10.html

2. The FIA has indicated it would be quite happy to see surge power units driving the front wheels... Could engine power also be supplied to the front wheels...?

[mx_tifoso]

f1 cars are rear wheel drive cars

I HOPE IT STAYS THAT WAY FOREVER

[ds.raikkonen]

I HOPE IT STAYS THAT WAY FOREVER

Ya ..me too.. one cannot possibly ask for more grip with 4wd than there already is with rwd..

[DaveKillens]

IMO, you could squeeze out more performance by going 4WD. But of course it would add a lot more parts and mass to the drivetrain, driving team's budgets even higher. And I don't know if I'm ready to see open wheel cars with the front wheels as large or larger than the rears.

[ds.raikkonen]

ya..and drastic changes in the front section, one helluva complicated mess

[mahesh248]

wonder how the car would look if its a four wheel ... where would the gear box and the differential n all be ..

[DaveKillens]

http://www.4wdonline.com/ClassicCars/Racing.html

http://www.f1technical.net/f1db/cars/246

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotus_63

[tuj]

Back in the group B rally days, all the top teams save Audi thought 4wd was a waste of time; too heavy and complicated. After Audi introduced its 4wd car, the other teams saw the fallacy of their logic.

So I think someone in F1 could make it work. There's extra acceleration to be had at the front wheels if the TC is cutting because the back is out of traction.

[DaveKillens]

Audi proved 4WD can be applied to road racing. In 1988 they competed in the Trans Am series with their Audi 200 turbo quattro and won 8 out of 13 races. Pretty well dominated against RWD.
Getting all four wheels to drive is an advantage, balanced against the added weight and mechanical complexity.

[riff_raff]

I remember a few years back, Benneton didn't use 4 wheel drive, but they did employ a pair of drive shafts and differential to connect the two front wheels. Supposedly, it improved traction under braking, side-to-side at the front end. They dropped it after one season, so I don't know if it really helped.

[West]

I remember a few years back, Benneton didn't use 4 wheel drive, but they did employ a pair of drive shafts and differential to connect the two front wheels. Supposedly, it improved traction under braking, side-to-side at the front end. They dropped it after one season, so I don't know if it really helped.

I believe BAR Honda tried the same thing in 2004 for a couple of races; but they stopped using it to avoid having to deal with possible arguments from all teams. I also heard that once there was an effective "ban" on the system, it would prevent other teams from developing the same, if not better, technology.

[DaveKillens]