Reports published in France's Auto Hebdo as well as the Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport said the V8 unit of the new Ferrari F10 has been fitted to the monocoque with a 3.5-degree angle. This has been seen in the past, 21 years ago.
Reports say that the engine is sloping towards the front of the car, an idea seen in the innovative Arrows A2 of 1979.
Dave Wass and Tony Southgate designed the Arrows A2. They wanted their wing car to produce as much downforce as possible from the sidepods. It was basically designed like a giant wing that would such the car to the tarmac.
It was intended to run wingless, as the ground effects underside of the car would produce enough downforce, but it soon appeared with a rear wing.
The Ford DFV V-8 engine is mounted inclined to the front for ground effects purposes. The revolutionary A2 had plenty of downforce but the centre of pressure varied according to the ground clearance under the car, so that every bump in the road altered the car’s handling.
The area of maximum downforce wandered around too and the car would porpoise down the straights, alternately sucked on to the track and then released.
“There were many problems with the car,” said driver Riccardo Patrese. “The engine and gearbox were at an angle and this meant there was a high centre of gravity at the back and this meant that the car did not behave correctly.”
“The A2 was a great idea,” Arrows’ Alan Rees explained. “The engine and gearbox were tilted giving an aerodynamic advantage, but the centre of gravity / roll centre were too high.”
It will be fascinating to see how Ferrari has managed to solve the problem.
photo:WRI2
Reports say that the engine is sloping towards the front of the car, an idea seen in the innovative Arrows A2 of 1979.
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| Riccardo Patrese driving the Arrows A2 during the French Grand Prix at Dijon-Prenois. |
Dave Wass and Tony Southgate designed the Arrows A2. They wanted their wing car to produce as much downforce as possible from the sidepods. It was basically designed like a giant wing that would such the car to the tarmac.
It was intended to run wingless, as the ground effects underside of the car would produce enough downforce, but it soon appeared with a rear wing.
The Ford DFV V-8 engine is mounted inclined to the front for ground effects purposes. The revolutionary A2 had plenty of downforce but the centre of pressure varied according to the ground clearance under the car, so that every bump in the road altered the car’s handling.
 |
The area of maximum downforce wandered around too and the car would porpoise down the straights, alternately sucked on to the track and then released.
“There were many problems with the car,” said driver Riccardo Patrese. “The engine and gearbox were at an angle and this meant there was a high centre of gravity at the back and this meant that the car did not behave correctly.”
“The A2 was a great idea,” Arrows’ Alan Rees explained. “The engine and gearbox were tilted giving an aerodynamic advantage, but the centre of gravity / roll centre were too high.”
It will be fascinating to see how Ferrari has managed to solve the problem.
 |
photo:WRI2