Formula 1 is in a phase of very strong change. This year the introduction of ground-effect single-seaters, but also 18-inch tires. A real revolution that will not hint at slowing down, so much so that it will involve the tires again over the next few months.
At the center of attention are the electric blankets. It is no secret that F1 and Pirelli are working to eliminate them altogether. This year the temperatures of the same have been significantly reduced, going from 100 degrees at the front and 80 at the rear used to heat the 13 inches to 70 degrees per axle with the current 18 “.
2023 will see a further reduction in temperatures, with the 4 tires being heated to 50 degrees. The real revolution, however, will take place the following year, in 2024, when Pirelli planned to completely eliminate the electric blankets. This will require the Milanese manufacturer, the sole supplier of tires for Formula 1, to completely redesign the range of compounds.
Current tires could not bear the absence of electric blankets. The design and their structure was not designed to be able to do without them. Mario Isola, Pirelli’s car racing manager, explained well what the current tire problems are and what his company will have to do to prepare for such a big step in the next 24 months.
“If the teams didn’t have the tire warmers it would be completely different, because what is important to understand is that removing the tire warmers doesn’t just mean designing different compounds with a wider working range and better heating. The problem is that these cars. they are so fast that they put a lot of energy into the tire and that causes the pressure to probably rise more than 10-12 psi. “
“10-12 psi means completely changing the tire profile and the footprint. Because you can’t start with very low pressure, you can’t ask a driver: ‘OK, now get out, do 3, 4, 5 low speed laps to increase the pressure. “They are in the race, they have to push immediately. It is the same situation that occurs in Formula 2”.
“In Formula 2 we start at 13, 14, 15 psi, but Formula 2 is a different car, which stresses the tires much less. This means that we can accept starting with this level of pressure to reach 20-21 psi, stabilize there, we are talking about 5-6 psi, not double. And we have designed a tire with a construction and compounds that can perform in these conditions. pressure is double compared to Formula 2, or in any case much greater, you can’t start from 15 psi, but you have to start from 20-21 psi or something like that “.
“Then it goes up to 30, 31, 32. And the footprint with this high pressure is completely different. The delta is excessive. So we have to completely redesign the tires. A step was taken last year. As you remember, we had the Tire warmers at 100 degrees at the front and 80 degrees at the rear. We are now at 70 degrees at both the front and rear. When we started designing 18-inch tires, we used 70-degree electric blankets right from the start, because it was important to design a structure capable of working on these foundations. “
“Next year, therefore, the plan is to move to 50 degrees. This means that we will have a pressure delta which represents a further step forward. The decision was therefore to proceed step by step, to avoid having something wrong. and damage the show, which we clearly don’t want to do. “
“This year, in particular, we have a great show. We have a lot of cars fighting for top positions or for victory. We have action on the track and we want to keep that aspect. We want our tires to be able to guarantee that, so we want to proceed step by step to reach the goal of removing the electric blankets, but without damaging the show “.
Pirelli 2024: the plan to eliminate tire warmers is confirmed
Isola then went into the specifics of Pirelli’s programs, which match those of the FIA, the FOM and which have been accepted by the teams. The farewell to tire warmers will take place in the 2024 season, but 2023 will be extremely important for the preparation of tires that will not need pre-heating before being fitted to the single-seaters.
“We have already discussed this in the past with the FIA, the FOM and the teams. We are doing our job and the plan is to remove the tire warmers in 2024. We will see step by step if this goal is achievable and what the reasons for removing the tire warmers will be. We will discuss it with all interested parties. But, at the moment, the plan is confirmed. So next year the tire warmers will be aimed at 50 degrees both at the front and at the rear, then they will be removed from 2024 “.
“With a 2023 calendar of 24 races I can imagine that the availability of the teams to do the tests is not unlimited. So we need to do it though. That’s for sure. We can do some indoor simulations to understand how the construction works under a certain pressure. , what is the distribution of temperatures and so on. But the final validation is on the track. To do the final validation on the track you need to have current cars with new tires, without tire warmers, then run and see what happens “.
“In different conditions, when going on a high or low gravity track, because the pressure delta is also different. There are many elements to take into consideration. Of course I’m not saying that we have to test on all 24 tracks on the calendar. , those in which we are going to race. But at least we will need to do tests on 3-4 tracks, the most representative ones, to understand what the final result will be “.
“To do these tests we will certainly also need different cars, because we have to design the best possible tire, which is the best compromise between all cars. Not all single-seaters stress the tires in the same way. The fastest cars stress the tires more. compared to slower ones, but we can’t have a tire that slower teams may not be able to heat properly or a tire that faster teams heat up a lot. So we need to design a tire that is capable of running anywhere, with 10 cars different, with 20 different drivers, different circuits and asphalts and so on. It won’t be easy. “
The current test plan
The Pirelli car racing manager then unveiled the test plans for this season, which will be very important. At Suzuka and Austin, the locations of the Japanese and United States Grand Prix respectively, Free Practice 2 will be longer than 30 minutes to allow the teams to try out the new tires.
The work programs designed will be very similar for everyone, so as not to give unintended advantages to anyone and to have as much data as possible to understand where to direct the design and any changes to be made to the prototype tires.
“At the moment we have another test with Red Bull on the Tuesday after the Italian Grand Prix, in Monza. And then we asked about the event tests. Basically we will use Free Practice 2 at Suzuka, at the Japanese Grand Prix; in Austin, home to the US Grand Prix and Mexico City. The latter will be a reserve event in case of rain in Suzuka or Texas. It will be a test for all 20 cars. “
“Each car will have a different test plan. Each single-seater can have different prototypes. We will make run plans with the same number of laps, because we don’t want to give any advantages to anyone. So let’s say very similar run plans, but with different prototypes. Practice 2 will be 90 minutes, not 60. So we will have a little more flexibility. In terms of session, for the teams it will be similar to a normal practice session, because then it is clear that we have to take into account the mileage of the power units. that will be used “.
“We can’t increase the mileage of the power units compared to their systems and so on. It’s complicated, because every time you find a solution, you also find problems in the solutions themselves. The idea of using Free 2 is a good idea. . You don’t force the teams to move to a different place, you don’t force them to stay longer like Tuesdays and Wednesdays on the circuit, but then you have to use the same car they use for the rest of the weekend, with the same engine. So mileage is a problem. “
“Whenever we have an idea we have to discuss it for weeks to find a definitive solution that works. I believe that with the current plan we have a good solution, at least for the moment. Obviously this is the first time. So we will have to check whether it will work or not. The idea is to have all these types of tests available for the future, so when we have the European season, after a few races, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays we can use some teams available for tire tests, devote all day to testing. “.
“The problem, however, is that if it rains in Free 2, it’s over. When you have a day, it may rain, I don’t know, in the morning, but then the track is dry and you can use at least part of the day. Or, if a mechanical problem occurs during the 90 minutes, the machine will not be able to run for the rest of the test. It is not possible to plan the mechanical problem, or predict it. So we have to work on different solutions. For the future, therefore, I said. that we will have dedicated tests. We have a longer period for testing. At the moment we can test until mid-December and from 1 February with the 2022 car, not with a new car, of course. And we will also keep the tests in the race “, concluded Island.
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