This is the first series of Ancillary F1, I hope you enjoyed it. If you have any suggestions for future companies or feedback about the ones covered above, I'd love to hear from you.
This is Ancillary F1, a mini series brought to you by Sidepodcast, focusing on those companies that contribute to the sport, but don’t compete for the title. Yesterday we looked at tyre manufacturer Bridgestone, and today we’ll be taking a look at McLaren Electronic Systems.
The McLaren Group of Companies includes McLaren Racing, McLaren Cars and McLaren Electronic Systems. The Group started out as Ron Dennis expanded his Formula 1 team to encompass more and more activities. Dennis is the Chairman and CEO of the company, while Martin Whitmarsh is the COO.
McLaren Racing is obviously known for it’s Formula 1 success, McLaren cars are an elite and popular road sportscar, but we need to look at McLaren Electronic Systems.
The official blurb of the company says: “It is a leading exponent of the group’s technical prowess and design philosophy. Its goal is to provide the automotive electronics customer with a complete range of products which are reliable, yet at the very limits of technology.” That’s as clear as mud, obviously.
What the company does, then, is provide the high tech stuff. Although not limited to Formula 1, they also provide for the aerospace, marine and medical industries as well as home entertainment systems for you and I. However, F1 is the bit we’re interested in, and McLaren Electronics supply many useful bits of technology, including:
Sensors, for tyre pressures, temperature and speed.
Refuelling regulators.
Trackside telemetry, for lap analysis, graphs and charts.
System monitors, for car setup, tuning, and configuration.
In 2008, McLaren Electronics were handed the contract to supply the standard ECU to all teams. This immediately caused controversy, of course, as McLaren Racing were perceived to perhaps gain an advantage from the close association.
McLaren Electronics have teamed up with the Microsoft Corporation to develop the system, and they manufacture the units for every team on the grid. An ECU is designed to monitor the powertrain, gather data, and send it back to the garages in real time. With up-to-date information to hand all the time, the idea is for strategy decisions to be made quicker, setup and tuning to be verified and data to be compared from current and previous laps.
However, the McLaren Standard ECU is thought to be at least 50 % less powerful with barely any of the memory of it’s predecessors. It was actually designed to be a lesser model than the previous ECUs due to the ever-present desire to cut costs. The current ECU took a lot of getting used to for teams and drivers alike, as the unit was well over 30% heavier, and allowed for engine braking and traction control to be banned.
There are rumours that the ECU can also be used to override the control of the cars in the future, particularly in terms of a safety car period. With the safety car rules under review, one option appears to be allowing the ECU to reduce car speeds in case of an incident, and thus increase safety.
Whether this will come to pass very much depends on the other teams. They cannot be happy with one team having greater access to the group that makes the ECU, even if there have been no incidents as yet. Meanwhile, McLaren are confident that the company is separate enough for it not to be an issue.
That’s it for this episode of Ancillary F1. I’d love your feedback on this series and the standard ECU. Leave your thoughts on the voicemail 0121 28 87225, or at sidepodcast.com. Join me again tomorrow for our next look at an ancillary company.
This article was originally written for BellaOnline, but is republished here for posterity.
The first race of the new season is rapidly approaching, so I thought it would be a good idea to take a look at the rule changes that will be in force as soon as the cars take to the grid in Australia. There are two types of rule changes: we have already looked at the sporting regulations, and now we’ll look at the technical side of things.
The technical regulations dictate exactly how much the engineers can get away with in terms of building and setting up the car.
This year, the engine homologation perimeter has been widened. This means that the engine freeze that is in place for five years from this year now encompasses more of the engine. The two-race engine from last year continues, with a penalty for a failure, however, the FIA have said competitors are now able to make the first engine change without penalty. This seems to be adding genuine confusion amongst fans, and will no doubt be complicated to follow out on track.
This year, teams have to use a standard ECU – the engine and gearbox components that are controlled electronically. This is made my Microsoft-MES, a partnership with a sister company of McLaren. The ECU eliminates traction control and engine braking, and has been tricky for some teams to implement into their car seamlessly. Renault said that the ECU caused them a weight gain of over 35%. There are obvious concerns that McLaren may have an advantage, with their close connections to the ECU suppliers.
After Coulthard and Wurz’s close call in the season opener last year, the cockpit sides of the car have been raised 20mm for this year. It offers the driver greater head protection, but has caused some consternation regarding the placement of mirrors. It is unclear whether driver visibility has been reduced or not.
There is now a list of permitted materials, with restrictions on what teams can use to build their car. Some teams were using small quantities of expensive materials, and the FIA are keen to prevent excessive spending for a limited return on track.
Lastly, the FIA want to implement the use of biofuels and have introduced the first stage this year. 5.75% of fuel must comprise oxygenates from biological sources, which the FIA are hoping will bring F1 in line with what is assumed the road car norm will be by 2010.
The technical rules have a less obvious effect than the sporting ones but they will play their part in making this season different (and hopefully better) than previous ones.
This article was originally written for BellaOnline, but is republished here for posterity.
The 2007 season is over, and you may be wondering what you’re going to do for the next four or five months, until the racing starts again. Don’t worry, though, there is plenty to keep you occupied.
Firstly, we are still waiting for the McLaren appeal against BMW and Williams to be heard, so technically this season hasn’t quite finished yet. Once that is resolved and out of the way, we can start looking ahead. November and December hold two key test sessions. Teams will be starting to think about the new regulations for 2008, which include four-race gearboxes, no traction control, and a single ECU supplier (we will look at these in more detail in a future article). The gearboxes encourage reliability, the traction control change encourages driver skill, but the ECU is the biggest change. It affects some fundamental parts of the car, and means the winter tests are very important.
Also, before this year is out, the so-called “silly” season will start. This is where all the teams start announcing their drivers and contracts. It usually happens before the racing is over, but this year everything is resting on Fernando Alonso. His unhappiness in McLaren has fuelled speculation that he will be leaving the team despite a contract for next season. Until team principals know where he will end up, a lot of them are waiting to announce their own driver line up. It’s not just the front men, either, teams often find some of their technical and engineering staff deciding life will be better at another team. Hopefully, we will also find out what Ross Brawn will be doing, after his year off from Ferrari.
Once Christmas is out the way, the teams begin to launch their new cars, either in small press and invitation only gatherings, or enormous street parties with demonstrations and music and fireworks. Either way, there’s plenty to look at on the cars – what has changed and what development has taken place. McLaren’s 2008 car will also be subject to an external investigation, to ensure no Ferrari intelligence has been used in it’s build.
More testing will take place in the new year, and then there is maybe a quiet month to rest, before the season starts properly. Whilst you may think it seems like an awfully long time until we see those cars lined up on the grid again, there is still plenty to keep your eye on. It’s never a quiet time in Formula 1!
Because you can't get enough Sidepodcast, we're now bringing you little sneak peeks into life behind the scenes.
Transcript
Christine: Welcome to Sidepodcast TV. We're on the road.
Me: Where are we on the road? Christine: We're on the motorway, heading towards London. Me: Nice day, isn't it? Christine: It's a lovely day and once again we're stuck in the car. Me: Okay, and why are we going to London today? Christine: We're going to London to network with some international media types. Me: Right! Christine: Get our name out there. Me: Okay. Christine: Make sure we're known. Me: Right. Christine: We're spreading the Sidepodcast brand is what we're doing. Me: Is that right? Oh, it's a brand now is it? Christine: Sidepodcast Media, watch this space.
Christine: We've hit a bit of traffic now which is rubbish. Me: What are we hoping to achieve today? Christine: What I just said! All that stuff I just said, all that good stuff. Spreading the Sidepodcast name, getting the brand out there, making sure people are, you know, liking our stuff, specifically the videos. Me: I cannot take the Sidepodcast brand seriously. Christine: Sidepodcast Media. Me: Sidepodcast Media. Christine: What's wrong with that? Me: Nothing. Christine: I'd like to see you come up with a better name.
Me: What's news in the world of Formula 1 at the moment? Christine: Not a hell of a lot, really. The only thing I read yester... I haven't checked my news today, to be honest. But yesterday all I read was that someone was doing something, setting up an academy or something. Me: That's a great bit of news. Christine: Yea. Someone was doing something. Me: That's great journalism. Christine: It was great. Me: It was great. Christine: No, someone's setting up a motor academy. Is it Fisichella or Heidfeld or someone? Me: Okay. Christine: But that was it, it was the only bit of news I could find, it was rubbish. Me: I heard the FIA have awarded the first contract to a British company. Christine: What contract? Me: For creating a CVT renewable energy type mechanism. There's a company that makes these things, like a research and development company, and they've been awarded the contract for the FIA to start developing the FIA's green initiative projects. Christine: Right. Me: So things are underway, even though no one's agreed to nothing. Christine: I don't understand, why is it an outside company developing something? Me: I think the FIA, because, I guess the FIA have to become impartial. They might have chosen those rather than a manufacturer, or these guys might... Christine: So they're just developing the technology and then the other teams will, like, buy it. Me: Hold on, bit of traffic here. Christine: Honestly, tell us your news, don't drive. Stop paying attention to the road. Me: Well, the thing is, it's a difficult one. I don't know. No one's saying what the plan is but I think it might become a standard part in which case the FIA could put it out to tender, like they've done with the ECU for 2008 with McLaren or a subsidiary of McLaren have designed and built it. All the teams will then run it. So maybe the plan is for this renewable energy source to be built by one company and then it will be given to all the teams. Or it might just be that they're doing research. Christine: So eventually, all the teams are going to end up exactly the same because they'll all be running the same parts. Me: Well, hopefully Formula 1 won't become a one make series like GP2 but I guess it could happen. Certainly it's getting nearer to that fate isn't it?
Christine: Also I read that Ferrari aren't completely miserable. Me: Are they? Why? Christine: They're looking forward to... they think they're going to do really well at the next race. Me: Because they got trounced in Monaco? Christine: Yea. Me: They should do well here. They've never gone badly as far as I recall in Canada. They have the brake technology Christine: Because Canada is heavy on braking, you know. Me: It's heavy on braking, and they have better brake technology, I think, than McLaren do at the moment. So I would expect to see the McLaren suffering from two thirds distance on brakes, especially with Alonso not being too chuffed with his choice of brake material. So I guess the Canadian race is going to come alive about lap 35. That's when things are going to start getting interesting. That's when things start wearing out. Christine: So it's kind of different to all the other races because usually you're looking forward to the first lap, the first corner. Me: Yea, well, the first lap is bound to be good because the first corner's a bit crazy. But it's going to be a race of attrition, I think. It's gonna be a race of worn out parts. Christine: Do you think anyone's going to suffer in the Wall of Champions? Me: Ooh, that's a good question. Yes, is the answer. Christine: Who? Me: Oh. Christine: Make some predictions, go on. I dare you. Me: Oh lordy, okay. Who is looking a bit ragged? Christine: Hamilton. Me: Yea, but he made a mistake last race. Christine: I'd love that. Me: Would ya? But then everyone's going to suggest he's going to be some kind of future champion because he hit the Wall of Champions. Christine: True. I think that's a given anyway, isn't it? Me: Yea, I suppose so. No, I don't think Hamilton will, not this time. Alonso's already done it so he'll be wary. Button's done it so he'll be wary. Christine: Button the champion, he's done it. Me: Button the champion. Jenson Button. How is Jenson by the way? Christine: Not too bad. Me: Good. Good to hear. Christine: Don't forget to buy your Honda tickets for the charity day. Me: Oh s***. Christine: Family friendly show! I wasn't telling you, I was telling them.
Christine: They went on sale yesterday, didn't they? Me: Why didn't we buy them? Christine: Because I forgot. Me: Did we not want to go? Christine: Yes, we did want to go, because we'd get to see Jenson Button. Me: **** Christine: Well, we'll see if there are any left and if not, you know, we'll get some contributors to tell us what happened. Me: Obviously not meant to be. I can't believe it. Christine: It's not like we're not busy enough. Me: No. Christine: When is it anyway? Isn't it July? Me: Week before Silverstone. Christine: July is our busy month. Me: It's not, is it? Christine:Yes. Me: I thought this month was our busy month. Christine: All months are busy months in Sidepodcastland. Me: What are we doing in July that makes it so busy? Christine: Well, we also have a wedding to go to. Me: When? Christine: Pardon? Me: When? Christine: In July. Me: Whose? Christine: Do you want to fall out on camera?
