Ferrari's F150: All the technical info
Friday 28th January 2011
Ferrari's F150: All the technical info
Ferrari's technical director Aldo Costa and chief designer Nikolas Tombazis share their thoughts on the F150 including the tech specs...
Aldo Costa
Q: There are many changes regarding the regulations for 2011. Which are the ones with the major impact on the F150 project?
AC: The major aspects with the most impact on the project were connected to the aerodynamic development. The car will change a lot. The double diffuser, the F-duct, is gone. The driver can't change the car's aerodynamic set up anymore. The underbody won't have any 'holes' in the central part anymore. This is a fundamental change. The rear wing will be movable, so that the driver can overtake the car in front of him and use it in the qualifying according to his needs. The KERS is back. Although we've improved its size, it's still quite big. Therefore the technicians had to redesign the car's layout. There are also new safety rules. We participated in the changes the Federation made to improve safety on the track, which is always extremely important.
Q: Would you say that this car is more of an evolution or a revolution compared to last year's single-seater?
AC: Due to the new rules the car should be a proper cut compared to the previous one, with new concepts and lines of development. As far as the looks are concerned the rules keep them quite unaltered. The cars look like the ones from last year, but from a technical point of view they will be really different.
Q: How will the F150 as we see her here today will evolve over the next weeks?
AC: The car's evolution has been planned with two big stages: one during the winter tests, where we will mainly develop the area of the mechanics, which means that the car's structure, the chassis, the gearbox and the suspension will remain the same for the first couple of races. The aerodynamics is simplified and temporary for the first tests, waiting for the real aerodynamic development for the first race.
Q: According to you, which were the most demanding challenges regarding this project?
AC: Starting from scratch with the car's rear, because the double diffuser and the F-duct are gone and there have been some clarifications regarding the car's underbody: these were the main challenges and why we had to start from scratch rethinking the whole project.
Q: This year there is a new provider regarding the tyres: to what extent are the Pirelli tyres still a question mark.
AC: The project and the evolution of these tyres happened in a very short time frame: Pirelli had only a couple of months to develop the tyres. I think they've done some really good work, but there's still a lot to do. We have to test several compounds, while we are already in a good and reliable condition as far as the tyres' construction is concerned. There's still a lot to do and it's a very important issue. We have to use the winter tests as good as we can to set up the Pirelli tyres.
Q: How do you get ready for the debut on the track?
AC: The structure and the method have progressively changed over the last years at Ferrari: we were used to many miles on the track. But now we only have 4 days in February. There is no time to resolve fundamental problems as far as the car's reliability is concerned. Therefore this work has to be done on the test stand. That's why at the moment we're testing the car's substructure on the test stand, checking its functionality and weariness, so that we can go on the track with a reliable car.
Q: Personally, do you feel obliged to win?
AC: A short question needs a short answer. One word is enough: Yes.
Nikolas Tombazis
Q: When did you start thinking about the project of the F150?
NT: We started when the previous car touched the ground. That was in late January last year. We put some basic ideas together, started talking about the new regulations and how they would influence the main parts and we set up a programme in the wind tunnel to examine the new regulations.
Q: Which were the most important parts in this challenge?
NT: This project had several important challenges, because the regulations are quite different from last year's. We had to reintroduce the KERS in the car. We've learned a lot about the KERS two years ago. But now we've got a new package, so the installation wasn't the same. We had to think about that a lot. Another challenge was the mobile rear wing. This is one of the novelties in Formula 1 this year. So we had to plan a wing, which doesn't influence the performance when it's shut in its normal configuration, but which gives us the highest possible reduction regarding CD, which means highest possible speed on the straights during the qualifying or while overtaking. This was a very important project. A third challenge war the introduction of new tyres. When you change tyres you also have to change several aspects of the car, regarding weight distribution, suspension between front and rear, but also some aerodynamic aspects. Because the Pirelli tyres are new, we've got lots of work. This is almost less important thinking about the aerodynamic aspect: this year we can't use a double diffuser. So we had to set a very ambitious goal: gaining the performance we lost without the double diffuser.
Q: Which are the most innovative characteristics of the F150?
NT: We've been working on different innovations for the car: some of ours and some new for Formula 1 in general. The rear suspension is really innovative, so is the rear wing system. But there are more novelties coming up regarding the configuration for the first race, which aren't in the car yet, for example something for the rear wing and the exhausts.
Q: Personally, as the planner, would you like to have more freedom during the planning phase?
NT: Yes. It would be nice having some more freedom and more time. The regulations are more and more restrictive, but there is a reason for that. Otherwise the cars' performances would be too high and maybe even the costs for Formula 1 would be higher than they are today. It would be very nice having more technical freedom to create even more sophisticated systems for the car. It would also be nice to have more time available between one season and the next, to work not in such a rush on some aspects of the car.
Q: Do you think you reached the target, which has been set for this project?
NT: We think we did. We set targets we think are very ambitious regarding the development in the wind tunnel, the car's weight and the performance of some sub-systems. We think, based on our analysis, that we've reached these targets. Especially for the car for the first race. Having said that, the regulations are new and it's impossible to know exactly where our competitors stand. I'm convinced that also they set themselves some ambitious targets. I'm confident in what we've done, but as long as we don't see the cars on the grid for the first race, it's a little bit difficult to answer this question.
Q: A last question: do you feel obliged to win this year?
NT: At Ferrari this is almost an obligation we have every year. And every year is the same. This is a stimulating pressure, but it never gives you a moment of rest in the work we have to do.
Technical Specs
Chassis
* Carbon-fibre and honeycomb composite structure
* Gearbox: Ferrari longitudinal gearbox
* Differential: Limited-slip differential
* Command: Semiautomatic sequential electronically controlled gearbox - quick shift
* Number of gears: 7 +Reverse
* Brakes: Brembo ventilated carbon-fibre disc brakes
* Suspension: Independent suspension, push-rod activated torsion springs front and rear
* Weight with water, lubricant and driver: 640 kg
* BBS Wheels (front and rear): 13"
Engine
* Type: 056
* Number of cylinders: 8
* Cylinder block in sand cast aluminium: V 90°
* Number of valves: 32
* Pneumatic distribution
* Total displacement: 2398 cm3
* Piston bore: 98 mm
* Weight: 95 kg
* Electronic injection and ignition
* Fuel: Shell V-Power
* Lubricant: Shell Helix Ultra
