Formula 1 is one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious sports. The cars are going faster than planes taking off, making it a truly mesmerising spectacle. The drivers are the most skilled racers on the planet. However, the sport of F1 is not just about the driver. F1 is all about squeezing the most performance from the given car. To do this, teams find loopholes in the rules to make the cars go faster. More often than not, these new innovations give birth to technologies that change the sport forever. In this blog, we will take a look at some of the most innovative F1 techs that changed the sport forever.
F1 Tech That Transformed The Sport
F1 is all about tech and innovations. However, before starting the list, we must tell you that it is not ranked in any particular order, and each one of these technologies has had a big impact on the sport.
#1 Carbon Fibre Monocoque
Before the 1960, F1 used traditional space-frame design for their chassis. However, in 1962, Lotus introduced their first-ever aluminium monocoque, which essentially made the whole car a big single-piece chassis. This changed the weight distribution of the car and made it significantly better. Then, in 1981, McLaren took this F1 tech design to its conclusion when they introduced a carbon fibre monocoque, making the car even lighter than before. This F1 tech is still used in F1 to this day and has saved the lives of hundreds of F1 drivers.
#2 Mid-Engine Setup
This F1 tech does not come from equipment or a part of the car but rather from the placement of the car engine. Before 1959, all the F1 cars had their engine placed in the front, mimicking a horse chariot, thinking this was the most efficient way to place the engine; however, in 1959, a team by the name of Cooper Team changed the layout and placed a small engine at the back of the driver seat and right in front of the read wheels. This completely changed the weight distribution, and every supercar or F1 car ever since used this layout, which shows how influential it was.
#3 Halo
One of the most dangerous things for an F1 driver is the debris flying on the track in case of an accident or crash. This debris can severely injure the driver and can even result in death. For this reason, FIA, the governing body of F1, ruled that all the cars in the paddock would have to fix a halo on their car to save the driver from big pieces of debris. Although the decision was met with some criticism by the teams and the drivers, they quickly realised how crucial it is for the driver’s safety. Since then, the Halo has saved the lives of countless drivers, making it one of the most important F1 tech ever made.
#4 Wings
If you have ever seen an F1 car, you might have noticed the big spoiler at the back of the car and small wings all over the car. Initially, there weren’t any wings on the car and teams thought that a smoother surface would result in more speed, and they weren’t wrong. However, they forgot that they also needed something to fight the lift of the car and stick to the ground. This is when, in the 1968 Monaco Grand Prix, the team principal of Lotus, Colin Chapman, created a spoiler in his now legendary 49B car and changed F1 history forever. Unlike aeroplanes, which use wings to generate lift, Chapman used the wings to create a negative lift or downforce. This made the car much more stable and grippier than before, resulting in a seriously fast car.
#5 Active Suspension
This F1 tech is exactly what the name means. Before the 1980s, cars had a fixed suspension, which they had to use throughout the race. However, in 1982, Peter Wright of the Lotus F1 team made something called active suspension. This F1 tech could help the suspension adapt to the circuit conditions and provide the most downforce possible, making the car much faster and more stable. Quickly, many other companies also followed suit.
#6 Semi-Automatic Gearbox
In the 1980, F1 drivers had to control 3 pedals with their legs, a brake, an accelerator, and a clutch. However, as the engines became more powerful and the cars became faster, engaging clutch and changing gears became a distraction. However, drivers had to use the old clutch gearbox due to the lack of any other option. This was until 1989 when Ferrari introduced a semi-automatic gearbox. Now, instead of engaging the clutch and changing the gear using a stick shift, drivers could change gear using 2 pedals or buttons on their steering wheel, which made driving much easier and safer.
#7 Drivers Aid
In the 10th century, the sport of F1 was still very raw and driving these F1 cars was nothing short of a legendary feat, mainly because of the power these cars had. However, in 1994, ABS (Anti-Lock Braking System) and Traction Control were introduced, which reduced wheel spin under power but, in doing so, increased the cost and the complexity of the F1 cars. For this reason, FIA outright banned the F1 tech. However, in 2001, the driver-aids made their way to F1 again; this time, they were here to stay. Ever since then, every car has had an ABS and a traction control system on their F1 car.
#8 Turbo Charger
In the 1970s, the rules of F1 allowed a 3.0-litre naturally aspirated engine or a 1.5-litre force-induced engine. Most teams thought that any turbocharged engine would be too laggy and any supercharged engine would be too inefficient. However, in 1978, Renault used turbo in Le Mans and got good results. This inspired them to use turbochargers in F1, and to their surprise, the turbocharged cars, in their very first run, were producing the same power as their naturally aspirated counterparts. This F1 tech changed the sport forever and gave birth to crazy fast cars that produced more than 1,500 horsepower.
#9 KERS
Kinetic Energy Recovery System, or KERS, is the F1 tech of the 21st century that changed the sport forever. This system recovers the kinetic energy from the brakes of the car in the form of heat and pushes it into a battery connected directly to the drive train. This gave F1 drivers a 160 Hp boost at the press of a button, which lasted a few seconds. This also made the cars much more energy efficient and this is what F1 is all about.
#10 Ground Effect
There always comes a time in a sport that changes it forever. For F1, it was the late 1970s. The team principal of the Lotus F1 team, Colin Chapman, came up with an idea that changed the sport for good and for worse. Instead of using wings to create downforce, Chapman designed the bottom of the car as an upside-down wing and closed the car’s side skirts. This created a low-pressure area underneath the car which sucked it to the road. This means the car was now generating much more downforce without any drag. Soon, other teams followed suit, and every car on the grid used Chapman’s ground effect kit idea.
QnA
Q1- what is the name of the F1 Netflix series?
A- Drive To Survive is the F1 Netflix series that has been running for 5 years since 2019.
Q2- Which is the best F1 driver ever?
A- Aryton Senna is considered by many as the best F1 driver ever.
Q3- Who is the most accomplished F1 driver ever?
A- English Driver Lewis Hamilton is statistically the most accomplished driver in the history of F1.
Q4- Who is the current world champion?
A- Dutch driver Max Verstappen is the 2-time defending world champion in the 2024 season.
Q5- Which F1 team has the most constructor championships?
A- With 16 championships to its name, Ferrari has the most constructor championship in F1 history.
