The Formula One Season 2005

Hi Michael,

"No, of course I can't. However, it's an undisputable fact that Ferrari have the most reliable engine and that's a HUGE benefit. Added to that the Ferrari engine is definitely a contender for most powerful on the grid (along with BMW and Honda) and it must be pretty driveable too and you have a pretty winning combination."

I can't see many people disagreeing with that.

"Indeed, the "spec sheets" of F1 engines are a closely guarded secret so I'm making my judgements based on observation."

Even within the teams they are closely guarded so very few people in the team know any real details about the engines. It is possible though to estimate (accurately) certain charactersitics of competitor engines.

"IMO if an engine is powerful/driveable enough to win races and it's also the most reliable that makes it pretty much the best engine out there."

Difficult to argue with that. Nonetheless the Honda is very powerful and one of the best.

Ian

 

I wouldn't argue with that either.

Michael.

 

Yes Ferrari are the most reliable which suggest they have some power in reserve, but remember the engine only contributes about 25% of the performance of the vehicle. So is the transmissision better? the Aero better we do not know. What i do know is this Sch won 2 world titles in a inferior car 'Benniton'.

 

Saw a bit of the Bahrain GP yesterday. I have to admit it was probably the first time I actually tune in to F1 races for some time. Looking a bit more interesting with new teams in front and new drivers coming on the podium. I might just be rooting for Toyota as it would be interesting for a Japanese team to win the constructors championship for the first time. IMHO this might really stimulate more mainstream manufacturers to be involved in F1 races in the future. The likes of the red team don't really makes cars for normal people to be used and enjoy everyday, does it?

 

So Renault are proving not to be as flookish as first thought then? Alonso handled pressure from MS well - first Ferrari new car intro in last 6 which failed to win - early intro due to pressue from Renault. Signs of anxiety in Italy.

 

This year for the first time in years I've actually watched hardly any F1. I caught the first 25 laps or so of the Bahrain GP and wasn't particularly gripped. Having said that, the recent personal issues I've been dealing with have really refocussed my outlook on life and, rather like hifi, I've found that I'm suddenly not really that interested in F1 (or even cars in general) any more. Some things just suddenly seem so superficial.

Having said all that, I'm still keeping a weather eye on the season unfolding. I wouldn't write Ferrari off just yet. The F2005 proved it's fast enough to keep pace with the Renaults and there's every reason to believe its reliability gremlins will be sorted come Imola...and there are still 16 races to go.

If MS and Ferrari don't win the title though I'd be happy to see Alonso and Renault take it.

Michael.

 

Would that be because your team are taking time to get going Michael? I found the race very interesting, give it a few more races for the drivers to fine tune there driving to suit new conditions.

 

Is it very true there is more to life then cars and hifi. As long as we keep things in all in the right spirit we could enjoy lots of things and bit of fun be it food, clothes, books and especially children and family.

 

Absolutely right Wolfgang .

GAZZ - no, I'm actually not even that fussed that Ferrari aren't doing do well. That they aren't can only be a good thing for the sport. I'm just less interested in F1 as a whole. For the past 7 or 8 years I have religiously watched every single qualifying session and race - if I wasn't able to watch it live I'd always make sure I recorded it in full to watch later. This year I've been pretty ambivalent about it. I watched the first 25 laps of Bahrain only because I happened to be at home waiting for someone but I couldn't even be bothered to record the rest, being content to read about the result later.

This change has nothing to do with F1 and everything to do with me

Michael.

 

So our friends at BAR have hired an interesting new broom. We'll see if he has more success in F1 than most Americans before him.

Speaking of BAR, they seem to have fallen victim to the changes in regulation, with several other teams coming up with better answers to the enforced changes. Ferrari also seem to flourish more in a stable environment, or is it just Bridgestone letting them down? Anyway, I'd say Schumacher's hopes for the title this year are slim.

The rules should change little for the next two season, so - MSC champion of 2006 and then retiring, for Alonso the honour of being the only man to beat Schumacher during his reign?

 

I wouldn't write Ferrari off quite yet!

Bob

 

I'm not writing Ferrari off, that would be silly. My point is Renault have targeted the 2005 season to be their winning year - that's the business plan of their rentry into F1. Amongst the various changes regards teams and technologies during the closed season, Renault appear (so far) to be on target development wise to be genuinely competitive with Ferrari. Ferrari have clearly been rattled and broken with normal form to introduce their 2005 car too early - previous intros have been both technologically and politically effective.

Btw - why didnt they manage to produce the 2005 car by the start of the season?

 

Not forgetting Hill, Villeneuve & Hakkinen as drivers to have beaten MSC to the title.

Ferrari have successfully used this approach for the last few seasons. They have used their older car for the first few non-European races to ensure reliability. Given their cars had been good enough to start the season well like this. Its only this year that some other teams have come up with better solutions from the get go.

Stuart.

 

"My point is Renault have targeted the 2005 season to be their winning year - that's the business plan of their rentry into F1. Amongst the various changes regards teams and technologies during the closed season, Renault appear (so far) to be on target development wise to be genuinely competitive with Ferrari. Ferrari have clearly been rattled and broken with normal form to introduce their 2005 car too early - previous intros have been both technologically and politically effective."

It has little to do with the Renault business plan. The rule changes have favoured the Renault approach to designing an F1 car. The rule changes have been a big problem for Ferrari and in particular Bridgestone. Overtaking is more difficult than before on the narrower tracks and so teams with quick cars further back down the grid will struggle to overtake.

The rules have a strong positive re-inforcement now. So Renault should be looking good for the next few races in any case.


"Btw - why didnt they manage to produce the 2005 car by the start of the season?"

Other teams have done this before. It can work very well. For 2005 it should have worked very well as the sporting regs were not settled until very late. But due to the tyres (and 2005 aero on a 2004 car not working that well) it hasn't worked to their advantage yet.

Ian

 

Well favouring of rules in their technical direction apart - if they do succeed this season i'd find it hard to ignore the fact 2005 is their target year.

 

"if they do succeed this season i'd find it hard to ignore the fact 2005 is their target year"

Just making the point that business plan targets like that have little to do with the reality as there are so many factors that affect where you end up in the championship that are completely outside your control (and often understanding) and are very likely to change unpredictably.

I am sure every team says that they will target winning in year xzzy for example but the reality is that all bar 1 team will fail!

It is important to have targets that are opimised each year as they are an effective way to keep your team focused.

Ian

 

I completely agree. Since taking on RenaultF1 as a client two years ago, I've been puzzled by this expressed target of victory in 2005. Most of the Enstone folks I have met just seem to be getting on with what they do, just with bigger budgets and more staff.

Renault have tried to introduce more formal business processes at Enstone but they havent succeeded and just cant seem to comprehend how a company can operates effectively on talent, gut instinct and flexible methods - rather than by formalised process, targets and measurement.

I just cant appreciate how its possible to expect this considering all the other teams have equal (as far as I can see) motivation to win, especially considering the enormous cost just to enter. As such I'm fascinated by the apparent beginnings of them acheiving their corporate goal.

 

The common wisdom is that Renault get rewarded for stopping work on the 2004 car and starting work on the 2005 car very early, so early that it cost them second place in last year's championship. They took a gamble by designing their car long before the new rules were definite; if there had been major last-minute changes, which looked possible last year, the ywould have looked very silly.

there is an element of luck to their current success. I don't think good luck can be written into a business plan.

 

Hi Markus,

"The common wisdom is that Renault get rewarded for stopping work on the 2004 car and starting work on the 2005 car very early, so early that it cost them second place in last year's championship. They took a gamble by designing their car long before the new rules were definite; if there had been major last-minute changes, which looked possible last year, the ywould have looked very silly."

I wouldn't go with the common wisdom as the explanation. All team start designing their new car very early. The real issue is how much of the available resource is put onto the new car vs developing the old car to achieve a high place in the current championship. They may well have made the call to switch more of their resources a bit earlier than we did. And benefit from it this year.

But I think there are other much more significant factors that have helped them more than some other teams.

Ian

 

I think I remember reading they stopped all work on the 2004 car in August last year.

I agree that is not the whole story. For one thing, they seem to have a good deal more power than last year.