The DeltaWing

[.M.]

I think we all are wondering the same thing.

Not when or if, but how will the Deltawing crash?

My concern for this is that it tracks a little too wide and that it will be cutting people off around corners towards a gravel trap and force them inwards thus resulting in a crash.

[henk4]

Originally Posted by .M.

I think we all are wondering the same thing.

Not when or if, but how will the Deltawing crash?

My concern for this is that it tracks a little too wide and that it will be cutting people off around corners towards a gravel trap and force them inwards thus resulting in a crash.

you can put up a poll for all racing cars with the same question.

Will the R18 crash? No, but two them went terminally during last year's 24 Hour race....

[faksta]

DeltaWing is not there to win, it is to drive through the whole race, I'd even say, not necessarily faster than LMP2 winner. If they make it to the finish, the theory works, if they crash - the effort was useless. Who would like a useless effort? They would hardly push too hard, I think.

[RacingManiac]

Originally Posted by faksta

DeltaWing is not there to win, it is to drive through the whole race, I'd even say, not necessarily faster than LMP2 winner. If they make it to the finish, the theory works, if they crash - the effort was useless. Who would like a useless effort? They would hardly push too hard, I think.

Whats the "theory" though? That a car running on no rule can be as fast as a car with the existing rule package?

Yes the car has a unconventional layout, but that was the only reason why ACO lets it run. In most cases, if I go to ACO ans say I will build a car that has half the weight, half the power, bespoke tires, active diff, unregulated aero and can run as fast as the current LMP car, they will probably tell me to take a hike....

[NSXType-R]

Not to be trolling or anything, but what's so special or advantageous about the layout anyway?

It has a smaller frontal area I get, but what was so wrong about conventional layouts that they resorted to this?

It looks weird. But if it wins races, why not?

And is Nissan in on this?

I'm behind on motorsports.

And Murphy's law states, if it can go wrong it will go wrong. So possibly every car fielded could crash in one race, it doesn't make this car any different.

[Dino Scuderia]

The question is what will Audi allow in the end and who will they have to bribe.

[Sledgehammer]

Originally Posted by NSXType-R

And is Nissan in on this?

They are responsible for the engine, not sure what else. The engine however, is not the aspect of the vehicle which is appealing, not the hp/weight figure. These things can be calculated easily and an easy hypothesis made on performance. The attracting thing of the vehicle is the unconventional layout which creates new problems not solved by current Motorsport. Will it work? Will it crash? Speculation at this point.

[faksta]

Originally Posted by RacingManiac

Whats the "theory" though? That a car running on no rule can be as fast as a car with the existing rule package?

A conventional layout, which you have also mentioned. If you don't like the work 'theory', let's go with 'idea' expression then.

DeltaWing basically still is an IndyCar, i.e. the car designed as a single seater and then rebuilt into LMP-like vehicle with a new tub, new engine etc., but the general layout is still not for curvy tracks in most people's minds - when they first showed it I thought it could do OK on ovals, but on road tracks...well... Now when I saw the onboard video I'm curious about how did they make it turn.

[henk4]

Originally Posted by RacingManiac

Whats the "theory" though? That a car running on no rule can be as fast as a car with the existing rule package?

Yes the car has a unconventional layout, but that was the only reason why ACO lets it run. In most cases, if I go to ACO ans say I will build a car that has half the weight, half the power, bespoke tires, active diff, unregulated aero and can run as fast as the current LMP car, they will probably tell me to take a hike....

the theory is that a car with 300 bhp can run as fast as one with 500 bhp, so you save about 50% of energy. This is all in the context of the "world" engine, that will be used in all sorts of motorsports, including F1.

[faksta]

Originally Posted by faksta

A conventional layout, which you have also mentioned. If you don't like the work 'theory', let's go with 'idea' expression then.

I meant non-conventional, of course

[Mugen_Ferio]

I still think its brilliant and cant wait to see this thing at the Le Mans 24h

[RacingManiac]

Originally Posted by henk4

the theory is that a car with 300 bhp can run as fast as one with 500 bhp, so you save about 50% of energy. This is all in the context of the "world" engine, that will be used in all sorts of motorsports, including F1.

I don't think it was ever said it was impossible...but many of the concession made for the the Delta Wing can well be applied to a normal car. The old Formula Atlantic cars, in its Swift guise was a car very much in that vein. It had sticky tires and LOTS of downforce, the size of the tunnel on those car dwarf even the its contemperary CART cars. And they can hold their own on slower tracks where power is less important. Given they have a quarter of the power of the CART car at the time, given twice of their regulated power they can probably match Indy car's speed....

Matra did say in the Delta Wing thread in multimedia that it might be cheaper to run, which might well be true. But thats not an advantage inherit in the shape of the car, more to the fact that it was allowed to do many things that the current cars aren't allowed to do...

Comparing apples to oranges is still comparing apples to oranges....in this case I am sure all the parties will like the publicity, but actual conclusion drawn from this is largely meaningless...

This line of thinking though largely is in the context of the Delta Wing as a LMP car, if it was actually bidding for IRL it has more merit, in that they have a clear defined performance target that is the old cars, and plenty of other design it has to beat.....all based on the same premise of being used in Indy Car.

[henk4]

Originally Posted by RacingManiac

I don't think it was ever said it was impossible...but many of the concession made for the the Delta Wing can well be applied to a normal car. The old Formula Atlantic cars, in its Swift guise was a car very much in that vein. It had sticky tires and LOTS of downforce, the size of the tunnel on those car dwarf even the its contemperary CART cars. And they can hold their own on slower tracks where power is less important. Given they have a quarter of the power of the CART car at the time, given twice of their regulated power they can probably match Indy car's speed....

I think what sets out the Deltawing concept, is that using aerodynamics also to get een significant straight line speed, in combination with the downfroce that is needed for fast cornering may require about half the energy that is needed for a lap at say a track like Le Mans, Spa or even Monza. And there will be an increasing pressure on motorsport to economise on the use of fossile fuels, but at the same time the "public" wants to see fast cars.

[RacingManiac]

If ACO wants to, they can probably achieve the same result redoing the rule to do the same thing with a normal "rectangular" shape cars. But if they are afraid the cost might spiral out of control to do the cars now, it'll be way worse when that happens....

[henk4]

Originally Posted by RacingManiac

If ACO wants to, they can probably achieve the same result redoing the rule to do the same thing with a normal "rectangular" shape cars. But if they are afraid the cost might spiral out of control to do the cars now, it'll be way worse when that happens....

perhaps ACO wants to do some "out of the box" thinking?