Inside a Formula 1 Car – Engine, Gearbox, Exhaust,
Radiator
For all the advanced aerodynamics and driving skill, a Formula
1 car would go nowhere without an engine, so in the third
part of Panasonic Toyota Racing’s Inside a Formula 1
Car feature, Senior General Manager Engine Luca Marmorini
explains what lies under the skin of the TF107.
Think of Grand Prix racing and you think of passion, excitement,
glamour – and noise. The roar of an engine has become
a trademark of Formula 1 throughout the years, an unmistakable
sign that the best in the business are in town.
To the expert ear, of course, that roar has changed several
times over the decades, incorporating turbo engines and now
the normally-aspirated (non-turbo), 2.4litre V8 engines in
accordance with the latest regulations.
Unlike previous years, engine development is now restricted.
Teams had to submit an engine at the end of the 2006 season
to world governing body the FIA. For this season, engines
must be of the same design as given to the FIA, with a limited
number of changes allowed only to improve reliability –
not performance.
But don’t be fooled into thinking a Formula 1 engine
is anything but a high-tech beast which can really pack a
punch, producing over 700 horsepower for a top speed of around
360km/h at Monza, the fastest track on the calendar.
Luca explains: “In the engine we use almost every kind
of material you can on a Formula 1 car, for example you can
see aluminium made with complex casting techniques but you
also see carbon material. It is very important to keep the
centre of gravity of the engine very low so we tend to put
the very light parts on the upper part and the heavy parts
on the bottom.”
But the engine cannot power a Formula 1 car on its own, it
needs the help of a gearbox - and that’s not your standard
five-speed road car transmission with gear stick and clutch.
In Panasonic Toyota Racing’s TF107, there is no clutch
and no gear stick, instead the driver flicks a lever behind
his steering wheel to change up or down and the gearbox makes
the change.
A new development for the team’s 2007 car is a ‘seamless
shift’ gearbox, which maintains constant acceleration
even when the driver changes gear. This gets the car to top
speed quicker than the previous technology.
Luca says: “Over 700hp has to be transferred from the
engine in the right way to the wheels. In the Formula 1 car
the gearbox lay-out is a bit different to a normal car. In
a road car the engine and the gearbox is the same unit - the
power train. But historically in Formula 1 the gearbox is
part of the chassis, because the suspension wishbones are
connected to the gearbox.”
The quest for high performance does not stop with the engine
and gearbox, as the exhaust system also plays a vital part
in maximising power output. Any engine needs to breathe and
the efficiency of an exhaust system has a direct influence
on engine performance.
In principal, a Formula 1 exhaust behaves exactly as a road
car’s – it takes gases away from the engine and
expels them safely at the back of the car. In practice, the
intricate welding and precision design of the TF107 exhaust
looks closer to a work of automotive art.
In order for the bodywork to be as aerodynamically-efficient
as possible at the rear of the car, the exhaust system is
designed to fit as tightly around the engine as possible.
Therefore, a successful exhaust design serves two purposes
– maximising engine performance and minimising aerodynamic
compromises.
Luca says: “Engine people start with the details of
the flow inside the exhaust. We are tuning it like a musical
instrument, like an organ, to be sure the engine torque is
the highest possible in all the rev ranges.”
With all the power, performance and noise of a Formula 1
engine comes heat, so much so that the exhaust system glows
orange at full throttle. As any driver knows, an overheating
engine can be a serious problem, so a modern Formula 1 car
has sophisticated radiators to keep the engine within safe
temperature limits.
These radiators, produced by the team’s official partner
Denso, are located in the sidepods, to the right and left
of the engine and contain around three litres of coolant.
To fine-tune engine cooling, different air vent options are
available on the bodywork, allowing more, or less, air to
reach the radiators, depending on the cooling required.
Luca adds: “The radiator has a very important role
in the speed of the car. It is not just the engine that makes
a car fast – it is a partnership with other parts. The
radiators have to be small because a smaller radiator makes
it easier to design a fast car, when it comes to aerodynamics.
We tend to have a very narrow engine cover, but the engine
also has to run in a very narrow temperature window.”
The heat of competition in Formula 1 is intense and Luca
and his team are doing their bit to give Panasonic Toyota
Racing the power to succeed.
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