2014 launch thread

[Faustus]

https://twitter.com/suttonimages/status ... 57/photo/1

[DanielPT]

https://twitter.com/suttonimages/status/428894438841389057/photo/1

Like the livery, but that's about it. The car looks too simple...

I prefer the Caterham. There, I've said it.

[roblo97]

https://twitter.com/suttonimages/status/428894438841389057/photo/1

Like the livery, but that's about it. The car looks too simple...

I prefer the Caterham. There, I've said it.

Same here. The Marussia looks bland, almost to the point where it looks like they updated last years car.

[Eifelland]

It reminds me of GP2 car, where the aerodynamics are that bit more primitive. Or something from mid-90s.

[Ataxia]

There's some smart stuff on it though; it seems to be a lot more sleek and slender than the Caterham does around the sidepod area, and they've incorporated a monkey seat into the rear-wing mountings too. The front wing also looks quite aggressive, so it's not as "simple" when you stare at it for long enough.

[DanielPT]

it seems to be a lot more sleek and slender than the Caterham does around the sidepod area, and they've incorporated a monkey seat into the rear-wing mountings too. .

Could that be because the Ferrari engine allows for better packaging that the Renault?

At least, if the Renault powered cars keep going like this, Marussia will have, compared with Caterham, the massive advantage of having a Ferrari engine in the back.

[S951]

Marussia looks much better than Caterham prob get more running to going by how the engines are going

[Jocke1]

The car looks too simple...

The Marussia looks bland, it looks like they updated last years car.

?

When you have the best driver on the grid, you don't really need a fancy looking car.
I'm sure that with 'simple', Max could churn out a couple of top notch qualifying results.
I'm sure that with 'bland', Max could force his way past any other driver on the grid through Eau Rouge.

[BabyG]

I picked up my hole punch at work today and, turning it on its side, I thought to myself 'This looks strangely familiar'. Perhaps it seems that some designers have turned to office stationary for inspiration...

[DanielPT]

The car looks too simple...

The Marussia looks bland, it looks like they updated last years car.

?

When you have the best driver on the grid, you don't really need a fancy looking car.
I'm sure that with 'simple', Max could churn out a couple of top notch qualifying results.
I'm sure that with 'bland', Max could force his way past any other driver on the grid through Eau Rouge.

Really Jocke? I am confident that Kamui Kobayashi can finally end Chilton's finishing streak on his way to the first points ever from the so called 'new' teams.

[Yannick]

The new Caterham is a true beauty.

The new Ferrari's nose reminds me of a car from the 70s: could be a Shadow. The new Merc looks similar but this nose looks better in silver than in red.

The new Sauber and Williams look pretty decent, too.

[dinizintheoven]

Cast your minds back to this thread. I quote, from the 16th of November:

And my first thought on seeing that diagram wasn't an anteater, a proboscis monkey, or a bloke in a hat (though, rather than the one pictured, I was thinking more Robert Helpmann, a.k.a. the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, who seems to have been picked for the role mainly on account of his pointy beak.)

Oh no. I thought of the armour-piercing nose of the infamous McLaren MP4/10.

Well well well. Look what's just turned up on the pages of the internet...

The FIA, the Federation internationale de l’automobile, is reportedly unhappy with some of the nose solutions of the new Formula 1 cars that are currently being tested laps at Jerez.

Germany's Sport Bild reported on Thursday that a major row is brewing in southern Spain, after top teams Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull Racing unveiled cars with mainly conventional low noses for the new season.

But other teams, notably Sahara Force India and Toro Rosso and co, have been attracting phallic descriptions of their 'anteater' thin noses.

Those with the more conventional noses argue that, while the thin noses may comply with the letter of the regulations, they pose a spear-like danger to rival cars in collisions.

[Nuppiz]

I've been pondering the same as well. If the point of the new rules was to make collisions safer, isn't having a stalagmite poking from the nose of most cars rather counter-productive in that aspect?

[AndreaModa]

And so in response we'll have yet another rule that will restrict the design of the nose area even further...

[mario]

There's some smart stuff on it though; it seems to be a lot more sleek and slender than the Caterham does around the sidepod area, and they've incorporated a monkey seat into the rear-wing mountings too. The front wing also looks quite aggressive, so it's not as "simple" when you stare at it for long enough.

I'd agree that, to be honest, I think that Marussia's MR-03 is not quite as simple as some might think, certainly towards the rear of the car (their rear bodywork is much tighter and more sculpted than Caterham's car). Packaging wise, at least, I'm much more impressed by what Marussia have done compared to Caterham.

Cast your minds back to this thread. I quote, from the 16th of November:

And my first thought on seeing that diagram wasn't an anteater, a proboscis monkey, or a bloke in a hat (though, rather than the one pictured, I was thinking more Robert Helpmann, a.k.a. the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, who seems to have been picked for the role mainly on account of his pointy beak.)

Oh no. I thought of the armour-piercing nose of the infamous McLaren MP4/10.

Well well well. Look what's just turned up on the pages of the internet...

The FIA, the Federation internationale de l’automobile, is reportedly unhappy with some of the nose solutions of the new Formula 1 cars that are currently being tested laps at Jerez.

Germany's Sport Bild reported on Thursday that a major row is brewing in southern Spain, after top teams Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull Racing unveiled cars with mainly conventional low noses for the new season.

But other teams, notably Sahara Force India and Toro Rosso and co, have been attracting phallic descriptions of their 'anteater' thin noses.

Those with the more conventional noses argue that, while the thin noses may comply with the letter of the regulations, they pose a spear-like danger to rival cars in collisions.

By the sounds of things, the FIA is going to have quite a few queries coming in over the next few weeks - we've already had a few queries flying around recently, and I would not be surprised if a few more end up being put to the FIA before pre-season testing is over.

[AndreaModa]

I think I've worked out how to solve all these problems when new rules come around and the different interpretations designers come up with.

Ban protests from other teams.

If the FIA themselves deem a design to be hazardous, detrimental to the sport or whatever, then they can ban it. But with the teams all running to Charlie Whiting like kids in the playground running to the teacher to complain about something, anything ingenious always gets banned!

[rachel1990]

I think I've worked out how to solve all these problems when new rules come around and the different interpretations designers come up with.

Ban protests from other teams.

If the FIA themselves deem a design to be hazardous, detrimental to the sport or whatever, then they can ban it. But with the teams all running to Charlie Whiting like kids in the playground running to the teacher to complain about something, anything ingenious always gets banned!

Brilliant idea- It always seems to be Red Bull lately and since its not going well for them at the moment...

[dinizintheoven]

I'd agree that, to be honest, I think that Marussia's MR-03 is not quite as simple as some might think, certainly towards the rear of the car (their rear bodywork is much tighter and more sculpted than Caterham's car). Packaging wise, at least, I'm much more impressed by what Marussia have done compared to Caterham.

A further thought for you, Mario:

In recent years, since Marussia became Marussia and started using the MR designation on their cars, a lot of people have said the same thing - the car is too plain, not adventurous enough, looks like a GP2 car, looks like it came from the 90s, and so on. What stood out to me on the MR03 was the airbox - in recent years there's always been a noticeable gap between the intake hole and the driver's head rest, supported by a couple of pylons; the Caterham CT01, of all cars, had this particularly pronounced, where it was more of a chasm. Even the original Virgin VR-01 was designed this way, the fledgling team presumably sticking to what was convention by that time. 1990s cars with airboxes (all of them bar the Benetton B189B and Coloni C3B), unless they had an unusually shaped airbox (as sometimes demonstrated by Williams, Brabham, Footwork and Jordan) had a smooth line from the bodywork, over the top of the airbox and back down again - presumably the airbox was just an extension of the 1980s-style roll bar (which, when the return to turbos was first proposed, I thought we'd have back). It looks like Marussia have gone back to that idea with the MR03, and looking head on, I thought initially that it looked rather bulky around the airbox area the way the MR01 did.

An F1 Technical thread is pointing out that this may be intentional; it looks like a very large aperture, only with this T-shaped divider in there, above the T being about the same shape and size as the regular airbox - feeding the engine (via the turbo, now) and the split section below to capture more air for extra cooling. Then there's this small but noticeable duct in the back of the engine cover, apparently for cooling the turbo - which I saw somewhere that the other Ferrari-powered teams have, though on closer inspection I only see something similar on the Sauber. The top picture in this thread also makes it look like the intake on the sidepods has been divided, but with all that black around, that might just be an optical illusion.

So could it be, that Marussia's "horribly plain" car is as innovative as John Booth says it is, especially in the cooling department, or is he - if you'll excuse the horrific pun - blowing hot air?

[pasta_maldonado]

I'd agree that, to be honest, I think that Marussia's MR-03 is not quite as simple as some might think, certainly towards the rear of the car (their rear bodywork is much tighter and more sculpted than Caterham's car). Packaging wise, at least, I'm much more impressed by what Marussia have done compared to Caterham.

A further thought for you, Mario:

In recent years, since Marussia became Marussia and started using the MR designation on their cars, a lot of people have said the same thing - the car is too plain, not adventurous enough, looks like a GP2 car, looks like it came from the 90s, and so on. What stood out to me on the MR03 was the airbox - in recent years there's always been a noticeable gap between the intake hole and the driver's head rest, supported by a couple of pylons; the Caterham CT01, of all cars, had this particularly pronounced, where it was more of a chasm. Even the original Virgin VR-01 was designed this way, the fledgling team presumably sticking to what was convention by that time. 1990s cars with airboxes (all of them bar the Benetton B189B and Coloni C3B), unless they had an unusually shaped airbox (as sometimes demonstrated by Williams, Brabham, Footwork and Jordan) had a smooth line from the bodywork, over the top of the airbox and back down again - presumably the airbox was just an extension of the 1980s-style roll bar (which, when the return to turbos was first proposed, I thought we'd have back). It looks like Marussia have gone back to that idea with the MR03, and looking head on, I thought initially that it looked rather bulky around the airbox area the way the MR01 did.

An F1 Technical thread is pointing out that this may be intentional; it looks like a very large aperture, only with this T-shaped divider in there, above the T being about the same shape and size as the regular airbox - feeding the engine (via the turbo, now) and the split section below to capture more air for extra cooling. Then there's this small but noticeable duct in the back of the engine cover, apparently for cooling the turbo - which I saw somewhere that the other Ferrari-powered teams have, though on closer inspection I only see something similar on the Sauber. The top picture in this thread also makes it look like the intake on the sidepods has been divided, but with all that black around, that might just be an optical illusion.

So could it be, that Marussia's "horribly plain" car is as innovative as John Booth says it is, especially in the cooling department, or is he - if you'll excuse the horrific pun - blowing hot air?

That makes me wonder - what was the purpose of the undercut? Seemed like a dead end for the air to me.

[andrew2209]

I think that there's been quite a few complaints due to the fact that some of the noses are very fragile, and while they pass the front crash tests, look liable to shattering or fracturing off from the main chassis in an impact, rendering them useless.

[mario]

I'd agree that, to be honest, I think that Marussia's MR-03 is not quite as simple as some might think, certainly towards the rear of the car (their rear bodywork is much tighter and more sculpted than Caterham's car). Packaging wise, at least, I'm much more impressed by what Marussia have done compared to Caterham.

A further thought for you, Mario:

In recent years, since Marussia became Marussia and started using the MR designation on their cars, a lot of people have said the same thing - the car is too plain, not adventurous enough, looks like a GP2 car, looks like it came from the 90s, and so on. What stood out to me on the MR03 was the airbox - in recent years there's always been a noticeable gap between the intake hole and the driver's head rest, supported by a couple of pylons; the Caterham CT01, of all cars, had this particularly pronounced, where it was more of a chasm. Even the original Virgin VR-01 was designed this way, the fledgling team presumably sticking to what was convention by that time. 1990s cars with airboxes (all of them bar the Benetton B189B and Coloni C3B), unless they had an unusually shaped airbox (as sometimes demonstrated by Williams, Brabham, Footwork and Jordan) had a smooth line from the bodywork, over the top of the airbox and back down again - presumably the airbox was just an extension of the 1980s-style roll bar (which, when the return to turbos was first proposed, I thought we'd have back). It looks like Marussia have gone back to that idea with the MR03, and looking head on, I thought initially that it looked rather bulky around the airbox area the way the MR01 did.

An F1 Technical thread is pointing out that this may be intentional; it looks like a very large aperture, only with this T-shaped divider in there, above the T being about the same shape and size as the regular airbox - feeding the engine (via the turbo, now) and the split section below to capture more air for extra cooling. Then there's this small but noticeable duct in the back of the engine cover, apparently for cooling the turbo - which I saw somewhere that the other Ferrari-powered teams have, though on closer inspection I only see something similar on the Sauber. The top picture in this thread also makes it look like the intake on the sidepods has been divided, but with all that black around, that might just be an optical illusion.

So could it be, that Marussia's "horribly plain" car is as innovative as John Booth says it is, especially in the cooling department, or is he - if you'll excuse the horrific pun - blowing hot air?

There certainly are some comments that are food for thought on the MR-03 - speaking of that engine cover duct, I believe that Ferrari have had a similar small duct on their engine cover too, although it is not that clear.

There has been something of a trend in recent years for teams to start installing a secondary intake for cooling beneath the primary intake for the engine - McLaren and Williams, for example, also have inlets beneath the main air intake, but it seems that their designs are more traditional in some senses than the one Marussia are using.
Now, Marussia might not have fully equipped the car - it seems that a few aero pieces, such as the turning vanes, are missing off the sidepods, but overall I do think that the MR-03 is potentially a solid enough base for Marussia to work with. At the very least it seems, going by what the other Ferrari powered teams have been able to do, that Marussia might at least be able to rack up a reasonable amount of test mileage tomorrow.

That makes me wonder - what was the purpose of the undercut? Seemed like a dead end for the air to me.

It enabled the teams to meet the requirement for a lifting point around the central region of the car - the marshals could put a bar beneath the air intake and then attach the hoist to that bar, enabling them to lift the car.

[roblo97]

Could the Marussia cause an upset and score some points in Melbourne?

[Waris]

presumably the airbox was just an extension of the 1980s-style roll bar (which, when the return to turbos was first proposed, I thought we'd have back).

That makes me wonder: can anyone explain to me why this hasn't happened? Is it just "aesthetical" reasons, or is there more to it?

[mario]

presumably the airbox was just an extension of the 1980s-style roll bar (which, when the return to turbos was first proposed, I thought we'd have back).

That makes me wonder: can anyone explain to me why this hasn't happened? Is it just "aesthetical" reasons, or is there more to it?

The regulations prevent the teams from placing engine intake inlets around the sidepods, so the best solution remains to integrate the roll over hoop and the engine air intake into a single structure that goes above the drivers head.

[Waris]

presumably the airbox was just an extension of the 1980s-style roll bar (which, when the return to turbos was first proposed, I thought we'd have back).

That makes me wonder: can anyone explain to me why this hasn't happened? Is it just "aesthetical" reasons, or is there more to it?

The regulations prevent the teams from placing engine intake inlets around the sidepods, so the best solution remains to integrate the roll over hoop and the engine air intake into a single structure that goes above the drivers head.

Ah, that makes a lot of sense. Thanks for the insight. It's kind of a shame though, the cars could've looked even more different, they look pretty different to last year's cars in the nose department but very similar when viewed from the side.

[Sublime_FA11C]

Should we be getting used to these noses? Teams changed noses last year and the regs were well known for years, so i kinda expect a lot of changes throughout the season, esp. in the early races and the Bahrain test.

A few comments (opinionated opinions) on the launches/noses:

- Love the look of the Red Bull, best looking car of the lot. It features a penisy nose but it is well hidden by the livery and it looks sophisticated on closer inspection.
- Merc is good looking as well. Second only to RB.
- Kill the Ferrari. Ugliest thing in F1 in ages. Ugly to -11 The vacuum cleaner nose is awfull and looks ill-fitting, the rest looks kinda pretty. Very pretty even.
- Caterham get the fugliest prize though. They're trying something adventurous but that car looks disgusting.
- McLaren looks really good and really sensible. Even the penisy nose makes sense on that car. Wish the black/red photoshop was for real. Still dont like the nose, so 3rd best only.
- Williams looks ok.
- Toss Force India, Toro Rosso, Sauber all in one sack and beat with a hammer. Don't care which one gets the most of the beating. Ugly ugly ugly...
- Marussia looks like an early-mid 90s car with a penisy nose. Looks very plain. The livery is not ugly, it's just so bland. I must raise the Beige alert whenever i see the car. Really wish they repainted it, it could look smoking hot without those silly thick white lines and an aggresive paint job instead.
- The low noses idea as a whole delivered a varied bunch of designs, so i'm happy to see that. Cars generally look good this year except some of the protrusions that kill the show. Already looking forward to racing to get underway.
- Engines so far sounded sickly but they were tuned down and not driven in anger. I do like the sound. It's different and has the potential to sound very very nice once the cars get going.
- One thing that's missing... Webber. :( I'm not even a fan of his but his absence is noticable. I suppose it had to happen eventually.
- Red Bull were idiots not to call the car the RBX. What an obvious name to miss...
- Speaking of RB, their bullish noises make little sense. They were better when they were selling themselves short and insisting that succes doesn't change their ethic. All this "We're not in any trouble at all" talk sounds snobish. Good to see Ricciardo handleing the pressure well at least.

All in all, More! Gimme more. 2014 looks pretty good right now. Can't wait for it to get underway.

[Jocke1]

[go_Rubens]

The Lotus looks good in the flesh. I will admit I like it.

[AustralianStig]

As much as I'd love them to lose the red altogether from the livery, they've actually made it quite the feature and it looks better than last year, IMO.

[James1978]

Is one of the "tusks" of the Lotus nose supposed to be longer than the other?

[Ferrim]

"Venezuela. Conocerla es tu destino" (Venezuela. Your destiny is knowing it/her). I wonder how appropriate that is giving the current circunstances in the country.

I believe the destiny thing wasn't it in the Williams last year, that's why I've noticed it.

[go_Rubens]

Is one of the "tusks" of the Lotus nose supposed to be longer than the other?

Yes. In order for the tusks to actually be used, one has to be longer than the other, because the FIA rules state that there can only be "one" nose tip. It's a clever way around the rules and the way they're written.

[Aerospeed]

Is one of the "tusks" of the Lotus nose supposed to be longer than the other?

Yes. In order for the tusks to actually be used, one has to be longer than the other, because the FIA rules state that there can only be "one" nose tip. It's a clever way around the rules and the way they're written.

Ingenious! Though I fail to see how having two 'noses' would help the car...

[go_Rubens]

Is one of the "tusks" of the Lotus nose supposed to be longer than the other?

Yes. In order for the tusks to actually be used, one has to be longer than the other, because the FIA rules state that there can only be "one" nose tip. It's a clever way around the rules and the way they're written.

Ingenious! Though I fail to see how having two 'noses' would help the car...

mario made a post a while ago about what the benefits of having the tusks on the nose of the car would be, and also the disadvantages. I have no idea where he made that post, you and I will have to search. But it is very insightful, so I suggest that when you find it, read it.

[Wallio]

The Lotus looks good in the flesh. I will admit I like it.

I agree. To me this is the prettiest of the lot. God I hope its quick.

[watka]

I notice that the Total sponsorship has been relegated to the wing mirrors only. Just goes to show whose bringing what amount of money to the team.

Overall, the car looks good, simply because its different. Very triangular at the front.

[AndreaModa]

I notice that the Total sponsorship has been relegated to the wing mirrors only. Just goes to show whose bringing what amount of money to the team.

Good spot. I always wondered how it would work out considering Total and PDVSA are two competing companies in the oil and gas industry.

[pasta_maldonado]

I've always been a fan of the red on the Lotus, and this year's car is another improvement livery-wise, even if it is starting to look a little cluttered.

[Basetornado]

I think so far the biggest winner out of Lotus's sponsors is whoever that David Guy is on the front wing. Its been pretty much the only thing people have looked at.

[nome66]

i'm thinking they were sort of flipping a bird to the rules by going this extreme.
easily my favorite nose this year. a close second to AMG Mercedes because it is the cleanest looking in my opinion.