F1: Pirelli Proposing Switch To 18" Wheels

[Kchrpm]

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/07/09/p...la-one-wheels/

Pirelli's proposed solution is what you see pictured here. It wants to increase the wheel size to 18 inches and fit lower-profile tires to them in order to make them more relevant to road car tires, while also increasing sidewall rigidity to the betterment of handling – even if that would decrease the size of Pirelli's branding.

Of course, doing so would require a vastly different suspension setup if not an entire redesign, since the engineers take the sidewall compliance into account when designing the cars. But Pirelli is proposing the idea to the teams just the same, and will test the idea using a Lotus F1 car at the upcoming mid-season test at Silverstone. Watch the video animation below to see what Pirelli has in mind.

[Kchrpm]

And now actual pictures

http://jalopnik.com/these-18-inch-wh...car-1602289481

[Mr Wonder]

It looks like west coast customs got hold of an F1 car.
Not a fan.

[tigeraid]

Those particular wheels are ugly.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't current F1 cars dependent on the extra-tall wheels as suspension (ie. spring) components? Would this not make them ride so rough that things would break, or they'd bounce off the track?

[Kchrpm]

They could adjust the spring rates and such accordingly.

[The359]

Yes, the sidewall height is part of the suspension setup on all the cars. Every team would have to redesign their suspension setups if they went to these rims. They'd also have to redesign their brake systems since they'd have much more room to fit bigger discs.

Also, Pirelli are suggesting they should go with 19" rims, but compromised for this test with 18"s.

[Crazed_Insanity]

Looks good to me. With potentially bigger brakes... F-1 cars can now turn and slow down even faster!

Well, maybe bigger brakes won't help stopping the car that much since the tire contact area remains the same as before... so perhaps they can make bigger diameter, but lighter brakes?

Anyway, I don't see how bigger wheels can be a problem. It's not like F-1 cars might hit potholes or anything..., but then again, maybe lower profile tires will make it harder for them to climb those curbs?

Anyone knows the real good reason why F-1 wheels are only 13"?

[FaultyMario]

Those particular wheels are ugly.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't current F1 cars dependent on the extra-tall wheels as suspension (ie. spring) components? Would this not make them ride so rough that things would break, or they'd bounce off the track?

Not just suspension geometry and dampening parameters would need be to revised. Aero is also designed with wheel wake and outwash in mind. Not to mention weight distribution (larger diameter wheels have their larger mass distributed differently). I'm sure they can make adjustments to compensate stiffness and ride roughness, but what seems entirely dissociate is how they propose a change to lower profile tires, which would bring and advantage to rubber warmup, i.e. more exciting qualifying sessions and then undo it announcing standing restarts.

I'd be all hands in the air with joy over this if it was a technical solution to an actual problem. when it really is manufacturer motivated, they want F1 cars to be more "road car relevant".

F1 has a problem with aero-dependency. and they need to adjust accordingly. If they're going to cut down on downforce levels so that closer competiton is possible, they need to loosen up suspension limitations, open up tire design (width, construction, diameter, compounds). Right now they are answeting the questions no one asked, meanwhile they avoid acknowledging having an addiction to costly aerodynamic substances.

[Random]

Physically limits brake diameter.

[FaultyMario]

Well, maybe bigger brakes won't help stopping the car that much since the tire contact area remains the same as before... so perhaps they can make bigger diameter, but lighter brakes?

They could have larger brakes. They've chosen not to. That's why you saw those problems with Mercedes engined cars in Canada. They didn't update the rules on brakes to take into account the regenerative energy recovery and fly-by-wire systems. They get abused at so few venues, they'd rather not spend resources engineering those types of brakes, instead they focus on systems solutions, for example brake ducts that also help air flow for the rest of the chassis or how the caliper profile can help condition other functions of the car.