Easy way to reduce cornering speeds

[jiminee]

I was having a talk with my boss at work today when we came up with an easy way to reduce cornering speeds in nearly all forms of motor racing but especially in Formula One - make the cars stay on the track! It seems really silly but think of turn one at Austria as a good example, on the exit of this turn all drivers use as much of the road as they can, to the point where some cars dont actually have any of their four wheels within the white lines of the track as they acclerate away up the straight. Another example is the Swimming Pool complex at Monaco, though this time it is more of a case of kerb hopping rather than running wide on exit.
Now if the drivers were forced to stay within the white lines of the track, these corners and many others like them would instantly become significantly slower both on entry and exit.
The problem being of course is enforcing this and coming up with a suitable penalty for drivers who go over the limit. Though the problem has gone away now, remember all the issues with the pit exit blend line a few years ago when Formula One became similar to a tennis match? Well ensuring something similar did not happen would be hard but not impossible.
Another idea would be to use kerbing that would make it much slower to run over, this could also be difficult to do safely but surely it is possible one way or the other.
The team managers who have so far stopped all other suggestions to reduce car speeds should also like this idea as it wont cost them anything.
I'm keen to know what everyone here thinks of this idea.

Jiminee

[Peter Mallett]

Hmm,

Yes you could apply grease to the kerb surfaces so that when the car runs over it the engine either buzzes or the car spins!

I can see the point but the best thing to do is increase mechanical grip and lose all the downforce. In itself that serves to slow them and keeps them off the slippry stuff.

[Adam43]

Slow the corners? errrrrr.

It is far better to have the limit of the track defined by the track (and going off line, or too wide, is slower). Defining it by white lines? Then we have penalties all the time. An inch over the line should just be slower than perfect, not a stop go. This way one inch loses less time than one foot, less than one yard...

As for Austria. It is a little silly, but just put a decent exit kerb there! Or allow it, at least we know they are on the limit!

Another alternative would not be having a white line which someone has to watch all the time, but have a wall? Less people would cut those chicanes at Monza if there was a concrete wall just past the kerb. (Only half-joking).

[Morris 1100]

Just plant some trees in the run off areas ....

[steve_r]

I enjoy seeing the cars bounce over the curbs, and run wide on corner exits - it shows that they are on the limit. I don't think this is the answer to make F1 safer.

[touringcarnut]

To slow the cars down, just fur up the bottom of the cars, it works for scale electrix cars.

Sorry

[mp356a]

Remove the wing/advert boards. Give 'em back the fat ol' slicks. Racing is back on the menu.

Mike

[rustyfan]

My suggestion: attach two chains to the rear wing and have the car pull Max and Bernie on rollerskates.

Not sure if it would slow things down, but it would make for one helluva show!

[DannyG]

Originally posted by Morris 1100
Just plant some trees in the run off areas ....

[twig]

Originally posted by jiminee
...ensuring something similar did not happen would be hard but not impossible.

So how difficult would watching every car - through every corner - on every kerb - on every lap and deciding on suitable penalties be?

Looks closer to impossible then it does hard.

[429CJ]

Easy way to reduce cornering speeds?
Tires so hard, they can drive the whole weekend with same set. That will reduce cornering speeds dramatically, and have some old style four wheel sliding.

[Rich R]

get the local police to put a few stingers across the edge of the tarmac run off areas. you could guarantee they wouldn't use them as track.

[Kirk]

Am I the only one who feels that F1 cars bouncing over curbs is somehow wrong? It seems to take the purity out of precise driving that should dominate the pinnacle of auto racing. I'd like to see the curbs eliminated altogether and introduce rules similar to ovals like Indy where a driver is penalized for crossing a white line... maybe difficult to enforce but it would slow them down, that's for sure. What use do the curbs really play if drivers ignore them anyway.

[pirenzo]

Yeah, I agree sort of with what you're saying jiminee.
Not slow the corners down, but just let those guys know that the bit you drive on is between the white lines...
Its ridiculous we have all this tarmac run off and grasscrete everywhere. I don't mind tarmaced run off, as long as there's a metre or two strip of grass between it and the track...

[Adam43]

Put concrete walls where the white lines are and you haev a deal...

[Kirk]

Yep, if that's what it takes. The threat of losing one's suspension will definitely slow one down. But on the downside, safety might be compromised, not to mention the likelihood of more yellows and Safety Car situations. One thing we don't need to see is the artificial bunching of the pack that is all too prominant in the Champ series.

[Logrence]

Can't they make the cars front-wheel drive? It'd slow them down and somehow make the racing a little more interesting as well...

[Adam43]

Why would it be more interesting?

900bhp through the front wheels We really would see the end of steering on the throttle!

Real cars have there power transmitted through the rear wheels.

[Marbot]

Originally posted by Logrence
Can't they make the cars front-wheel drive? It'd slow them down and somehow make the racing a little more interesting as well...

Terminal understeer...

[Paddy_NL]

negative banking

[tally-bally-ho]

Pardon me for repeating the obvious, but an easy way to reduce cornering speeds and make the cars more exciting to watch would be to remove downforce and use harder tyres. However, this will not happen anytime soon as too much money has been invested in expensive wind tunnels and aero experts, tyre testing programs and tyre specialists.

Isn't it obvious to lots of people on Ten-Tenths that the racing could be more entertaining for the fans and less costly for the teams if the level of technology was reduced?

More money spent on technology means less of a contribution from the drivers skill too.

The best driver in the world is not found by making those drivers race in different cars with different technological capabilities!

Sorry for the rather "ranty" post. My excuse? Its Friday afternoon....

[Teretonga]

Tally bally ho.
An obvious conclusion which has been mentioned here many many times but so far the FIA has never has the guts, nor have the car makers, to alter the rules to make it so.
Now Max is talking about a much cheaper F1 in 2008.

So does that mean 4 litre engines with a 10000 rpm rev limit. Generic/common electronic/ignition systems, tyres to last 300km,(or 10 tyres per car per weekend) and a generic wing package that everyone has to run and an end to diffusers, winglets etc.
You could also sell/buy and use other peoples chassis.
It would be alot cheaper to build and maintain a car to such rules than the present ones. Inevitably the top teams would still be the top teams but the guys at the back would have lower costs and be more competitive,(ie closer to the guys in front.