The Official 2017 F1 thread

[s2k_Sean]

I wish it was "Hass" lol I'm sure you meant Haas.

I hate the fact Mercedes is so dominant, even my wife notices it. She laughs at me because of my frustration with McHonda.

I didn't even notice I spelt it like that, HA. I should have said Hoss. Yeah, the Silver Arrow show gets a bit boring, but it was the Red Bull show for 4 years before that. I'm hoping there is a lot more competition for the rest of the field at least. Maybe some other guys can sneak in more than one win.

 

[britlude]

All eyes on Red Bull at the second test
Such uncertainties and rumouring are nothing new at testing and week one in Spain was not unusual in throwing up more questions than answers.

But even more intriguing than Ferrari's form, which McLaren described as "surprising", was Red Bull's relative anonymity and the minimalist appearance of their car.

The RB13 ran with very few aerodynamic gizmos attached, prompting many in the paddock to wonder what the former world champions were up to.

"We've tried not to put too many appendages on to the car in the early stages so we understand the flow structures properly and develop the car from there," answered Adrian Newey.

But many in the paddock suspect Red Bull have something up their sleeve and are holding back improvements until the second test to give their rivals as little time as possible to copy their ideas. If so, next week could be something special.

hmmm the did have a lack of aero-rakes on the car... concentrating on just the mechanical first?

 

[SFNSXguy]

ttps://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2017/02/analysis-5-things-we-have-learned-from-f1-new-car-testing-so-far/

 

[scammy]

this has been rolled out again, still funny unfortunately

https://youtu.be/JZWzWp5yPkk

 

[Bram]

So true....I'll look at it several time again for sure..

 

[britlude]

Honda engine expert Gilles Simon leaves team

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/39183145

 

[Blackhorse06]

Honda engine expert Gilles Simon leaves team

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/39183145

Bring back Goto! He was the last Honda engineer to know his head from his ass and make a fast engine!

 

[sadlerau]

Ah the "good old days". We could wish......

 

[sadlerau]

Another day, another litany of embarrassment. At least they eventually got up to a reasonable number of laps, just.

Trying hard to put a positive spin on this, but words just fail me at the moment..........

 

[scammy]

Another day, another litany of embarrassment. At least they eventually got up to a reasonable number of laps, just.

Trying hard to put a positive spin on this, but words just fail me at the moment..........

refer to post #104

 

[scammy]

and now from the horses mouth so to speak... https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/alonso-honda-has-no-power-and-no-reliability-880808/

 

[fastaussie]

well, that really sucks big time. :frown:

really Honda, WTF?

p.s. honestly can't believe Alonso is still there. he is wasting what time is left of his career.

 

[Bram]

Wow, what a shit storm this team has been been over the last few years....Mighty Mclaren.

I do like this Quote..."Oh yeah, for us, not only Turn 3," he smiled. "For us nearly all the corners are flat."

Bram

 

[scammy]

well, that really sucks big time. :frown:

really Honda, WTF?

p.s. honestly can't believe Alonso is still there. he is wasting what time is left of his career.

yeah love him or hate him he deserves better the guy pushed the limits because he is a competitor and now he is just circulating in a slow car

 

[bboxer]

NBC sport recap video of today's testing is pretty depressing for MacHonda. Both Alonso and Bouiller today squarely blamed Honda for the poor 3 days results. Really hard to believe this is the third year of dumping all kind of resources and knowhow into the program with such bad results.

 

[fastaussie]

i knew they wouldn't be competitive from day one, but i didn't think by day 1000 they'd still be struggling with no end in sight... :redface:

 

[bboxer]

i knew they wouldn't be competitive from day one, but i didn't think by day 1000 they'd still be struggling with no end in sight... :redface:

Curious as to how you knew since both Macca and Honda came back together with past success and huge capabilities both independantly as well as a team.

 

[jwmelvin]

Curious as to how you knew since both Macca and Honda came back together with past success and huge capabilities both independantly as well as a team.

Because by any account they haven't committed anywhere close to the resources that Mercedes has to engine development.

 

[bboxer]

Do you have any more details; I would be very interested to know. Also how did Honda's effort and commitments compare in your opinion to Renault and Ferrari?

 

[Bram]

I remember reading an article, that said Honda had design and was developing the PU a full two years before entering F1, it also said that they had 400 Engineers assigned to the project in a specially design facility in Suzuka.

I'll try and find the Article.

Bram

 

[jwmelvin]

My understanding is that Mercedes had more lead time than that and has over 600 people working on it. But reliable information is notoriously difficult to come by in F1.
Edit: though this article makes it sound like they are about the size of the Honda effort you mention.

 

[jtrikakis]

More up to date -> http://www.topgear.com/car-news/det...-amg-project-one-hypercar-will-land-september

Now if I can only get my hands on enough cash...

 

[sadlerau]

Perhaps the BIGGEST difference with Mercedes is that they had Ross Brawn in charge during the development of the current generation of PUs.

Not that Brawn had a hands on approach, but what he is a genius at is being able to guide and direct his engineers in the most effective path, that maximizes their potential. Of course it also helps he seems to have the knack of hiring the right people as well.

As the poster Wasari on F1 Technical has pointed out, Honda's weakest link is their collective inability to say "whe have experimented enough on advancing the design, let's pick a point and maximize that potential, and reliability, from here". Leadership is needed, and it has becoming very obvious that this is one area they are lacking.

Going forward, with the severe lack of running I'm afraid it will take a miracle for them to catch the "big 3" this season. At best even assuming the PU magically becomes reliable and develops the power levels they were anticipating [to match end of '16 Mercedes levels], McLaren would struggle to develop the chassis to bridge the gap in a short period [say before the end of the fly away races]. After that, they might bridge the gap, but the moving target will be hard to overtake!

And that's assuming Honda can deliver their part of the bargain, alas something I no longer have any confidence in!

 

[britlude]

seems it could be a long comeback....


http://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12...lems-explained-after-mclarens-troubled-winter

 

[fastaussie]

probably at least another year or two of severely lackluster results lads... :frown: