This weekend will mark one of the most important moments in Caterham’s history: the company is set to enter a Grand Prix as a standalone team. As a celebration of this, the company has released a teaser video of the new SP/300.R race car as well as historic Caterham racing models, the legendary Caterham Seven and Caterham’s first ever F1 car, the CT-01. The test was performed on the Jerez track in Spain and includes a series of very impressive activities, including a few donuts.
The video is just 1:43 minutes long, but it is still long enough to provide a pretty good idea on just how serious Caterham is about their first F1 racer. Let us know if you believe the company has any chance of success in their new race debut in the comments below!
The Mercedes SLS AMG was first used as a Safety Car back in 2010 shortly after its official debut. Now, for the 2012 racing season, the SLS is returning as the Official F1 Safety Car. The Safety Car is based on the standard SLS AMG, with absolutely no changes made to the standard 571 HP 6.3-liter V8 engine, or its suspension and braking system.
What Mercedes did do was add a newly developed exhaust – designed to provide an even more emotionally-charged sound experience - as a tribute to the Formula 1 fans. Next to this, the Safety Car also received a roof light bar that boasts an aerodynamically efficient profile. The bar’s light functions are handled by LEDs which offer a fast response time and low power consumption. The colors change to green when the Formula 1 drivers can overtake the Safety Car or orange when no overtaking whatsoever is allowed. The roof light bar also incorporates a TV camera and a second camera located next to the rear number plate that allows the driver and co-driver to keep an eye on the Formula 1 cars.
The interior of the Mercedes SLS AMG Safety Car is almost identical to the production car, except of course for the two central monitors placed in the cockpit, which are used to monitor the progress of the race.
Some may consider Red Bull’s Formula One race cars some of the ugliest race cars out there, but no one can deny their abilities. Last year, Red Bull pulled in 12 wins, 27 podiums, and 18 pole positions. They may not be the prettiest, but they deliver, as will the RB7’s successor, the RB8.
The Red Bull RB8 is the continuation of the RB7, but modified to obey the new FIA regulations. The company has only provided a few details for the new racer, such as the addition of a new nose and an updated rear end. The chassis benefits from further aerodynamic refinements and we’re assuming the engine has been tweaked here and there as well.
"The restriction nose height which is a maximum height just in front of the front bulkhead hasn’t really changed the chassis shape very much. We’ve kept more or less the same chassis shape, but had to drop the nose just in front of the front bulkhead. The exhaust allowed us to run a high rear ride height, it’s much more difficult without that to sustain a high rear height so we have to go back down and have to redevelop the car around that lower ride height," said Adrian Newey.
Ayrton Senna won his last world driving championship in 1991, driving the McLaren MP4-6 with a Honda V-12 engine. Senna won seven of 16 races that year, a feat he’d never again duplicate. At the end of the 1991 season, McLaren tore down one of Senna’s MP4-6 cars and gave some of the parts to artist Jay Burridge, who in turn created a sculpture he describes as “the world’s largest Airfix (plastic model) kit.” The art will be offered for sale at an upcoming Coys Auction, to be held at Germany’s Nürburgring on August 13, 2011.
Whether you love or hate the idea of a historically significant race car being transformed into wall art, there’s no denying that the piece is unique and would be a stunning addition to anyone’s collection. Much of the car is missing, such as Senna’s seat and steering wheel, and the Honda V-12 engine is another glaring omission from the sculpture. Coys describes the piece as using “Ayrton Senna’s McLaren MP4-6 from his last season as world champion,” but it’s not clear on whether the chassis used in the display was Senna’s primary car or a backup car.
If you’re interested in bidding, be prepared to part with a significant amount of money to acquire this particular piece of sculpture. Thanks to the success of the Ayrton Senna biopic, “Senna,” any memorabilia relating to the Brazilian driver is in high demand. Pre-auction estimates have the sculpture selling between $50,000 and $80,000, but as anyone who’s ever attended an auction will tell you, there’s no limit in a bidding war.
Strap on those safety harnesses and get your couch ready for the race! Okay, so there won’t be any real racing, but Ferrari has created a 1/1 Scale Full Size 2011 Ferrari 150° Italia steering wheel replica for all you serious collectors out there. The bad news is that there will only be 250 units built and each one of them comes carrying a $ 2,245.97 (€ 1,898) price tag. It’s a big price to pay, but you’ll be the proud owner of a replica of the steering wheel used by Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa in the 2011 F1 Championship.
The 2011 Ferrari 150° Italia is a full size steering wheel replica hand built from genuine carbon fiber. It is fitted with moving buttons, paddles, and switches, and come with a red leather base and a clear dust cover.
The wheel weighs a total of 14.5 kilos and measures 45 x 42 x 42. Each one of the 250 limited edition pieces comes with a certificate of authenticity and a unique numbered plaque on the base.
Once ordered, the 2011 Ferrari 150° Italia steering wheel replica will take 30 days to be delivered.
Many people are only interested - or privy to - the end result of many different things. For example, no one really cares how the cake is made as long as it tastes delicious. The same can be said for Formula One. As fans, we root for our favorite team or driver and hope that they come across that finish line first. Most of the time, we don’t know how they got there or how much it costs to get there.
Our latest installment of our Car Infographics series cracks that mystery right open with a breakdown of Formula One vehicles by numbers. For example, we discovered the engine of a F1 vehicle costs around $214,300 while the monocoque comes in at around $117,900. The tires may only cost $650 per set, but then you have to take into account how many sets the vehicle will go through in its lifetime (it’s about $291,200 worth if you’re wondering). Add the one time purchases to the accruing costs and estimates come in at about $6,868,000 for the lifetime of the F1 car. That’s definitely not chump change in our books.
This infographic also sheds some light on the performance numbers of a typical Formula One car. For example, a typical F1 vehicle can sprint from 0-60 mph in just 1.7 seconds and continue on to 124 mph in just 3.8 seconds. The sprint from 0-186 mph can be achieved in 8.6 seconds. That is all done with a 2.4L V8 maximum engine size.
Check out the rest of the infographic to get a more detailed breakdown of Formula One and remember to check back with us for our next installment in the Car Infographics series.
The special edition timepiece is based on the steel 44mm wide Tag Heuer Formula 1 Big Date watch with a Swiss quartz movement and a time, subsidiary seconds dial. It features a black dial with a light gray cross-hatching pattern and contrasting Gulf racing stripes in orange and blue, as well as the orange and white Gulf logo. The Formula 1 Gulf Edition is available in either a steel or rubber strap.
The Tag Heuer Formula 1 Gulf Edition Watch sells for somewhere in the $1,000 range.
The weekend is here and if you’re looking to find a fun way to spend your time then check out the new game called "Mobil 1 Track Challenge." This has to be the coolest game we have seen in a very long time because it gives players the ability to choose from a list of extraordinary drivers, including F1’s Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton and NASCAR’s Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman.
The graphics aren’t cheesy like a lot of online games and you get to choose from hundreds of tracks to race on. Players can even build their own track and play along with their friends. All they have to do is sign in under the wide range of social sites available and get to work. There’s even personalized clips from the champion drivers!
To start, choose your professional driver and start your engines! The arrow keys are used to navigate the vehicle and the space bar is used for the brake. Maneuvering the up arrow to accelerate and the left and right arrows to turn at the same time is a bit tricky, but you get the hang of it once you really get going.
Luxury timepiece-maker Girard Perregaux needs no introduction when it comes to creating some of the most lust-worthy watches in the world. Just like a lot of other luxury timepieces, the company has close ties to auto racing, probably even more than most considering that since 1992 until 2010, the Swiss company has had the late Luigi Macaluso as its president.
The 1972 European Rally Champion and later president of both the Italian Motorsport Federation and the International Karting Federation, Luigi Macaluso had oil and petroleum running through his veins. As one of the most influential figures in auto racing before his passing last year, Macaluso was also fond of high-end driver’s watches, none more so than the products of Girard-Perregaux.
The Swiss watchmaker’s latest creation, the R&D 01, is a chronograph that features inverted push-buttons, dials styled after a car’s gauges, a tough rotating internal bezel, and a crown field that takes the look of a Formula One air intake. The watch actually took more than a few years to build with lengthy time given to research, development, and feedback given by Formula 1 drivers.
In the end, the R&D 01 is exactly what Luigi Macaluso wanted for the perfect driver’s watch: sporty, classy, and functional with a touch of subtle luxury.
The long and arduous task of building the new world-class, 3.4-mile racetrack in Austin, Texas took a positive turn after track officials officially unveiled the circuit’s name. From here on out, the racetrack will be called the ‘Circuit of the Americas’.
Now that that’s been settled, the important part of actually building the track before it hosts the 2012 Formula One U.S. Grand Prix continues on. Earlier this year, the site from where the track will rise officially broke ground, kicking off a tight and busy 18 months to build the track before it opens to racing.
The Circuit of the Americas will be the latest race track to open in the US, one that is expected to host other racing events apart from Formula One. In fact, executives announced that the track will also host MotoGP starting in 2013. It is still unclear whether the Circuit of the Americas will be the third US track on the MotoGP schedule, or if it will replace the Indianapolis Motor Speedway which does not have a contract set up for 2012 or 2013.
In addition to running 3.4 miles, the circuit also features 20 turns, a 133-feet elevation change, and most importantly for stability and business reasons, a 10-year contract with Formula One.
Seeing as the 2011 F1 seasons just kicked off, it seems like there’s plenty of time for the Circuit of the Americas to be completed. But given how a Formula One season runs as fast as the cars that compete in them, 2012 will be just around the corner in no time.
Let’s just hope that by then, the Circuit of the Americas will have more than just an official name to show for it.
