Twisting In The Spotlight

[Tim Ling]

Twisting In The Spotlight

More attention has been focused on the front wing of the Red Bull F1 car after Sebastian Vettel's crash at Spa. Questions have been asked about how the wing behaved coming out of Buttons slipstream.
Looking at the replays, it's quite obvious the Vettel was a passenger, as the car was out of control when it hit Button. In Vettel's words, "I lost the car going over the bump as I was braking and unfortunately hit Jenson."
This is almost a repeat of the words he uttered after hitting Webber in Turkey. Suggestions have been made that the flexible nature of the wing makes the car unstable when pulling out from behind another car.
Christian Horner insists that the wings the team are using are the same that they used in Hungary. Other teams commented that although the wings may be the same aerodynamically, they may have been manufactured differently, which could make them stiffer.

The FIA will be introducing a new test at Monza to ensure that the front floor section doesn't flex.
Whtever the results of this new test, it's certain the arguments about the flexing wings will run on and on.

 

[Günthar Rowe]

and on and on and on.....

 

[Alex Kyriak]

Sounds interesting..... what's the source of this news?

 

[Omer Said]

I think that was a natural crash, to avoid early braking Button, he tried to change his line and spun.

Webber-Vettel one was a contact, there wasn't a sliding.

 

[Alex Kyriak]

It's interesting watching the front wing movement on the onboard shot at about 0.50 just before the accident

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/8953543.stm

 

[Mark A Warmington]

You see the same effect as Webber pulls out from behind Kubica...

It may well just be that we are seeing the differences in air density that the wing is passing through: giving an idea of how the turbulent air is flowing off the rear of the cars in front (and probably the best examply of why so many drivers state that it is hard to follow a car once you get within one second of it).