Why Formula 1 current cars length too long?

[theriusDR3]

Ferrari F2004 2004


Ferrari SF-24 2024

In the past the Formula 1 car length is equivalent to compact sedan car and since 2010-present the Formula 1 car length is equivalent to mid to full-size luxury sedan car.

Your opinions?

[Big Tea]

https://www.snaplap.net/wp-content/uplo ... schumi.jpg
Ferrari F2004 2004

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ ... P_2024.jpg
Ferrari SF-24 2024

In the past the Formula 1 car length is equivalent to compact sedan car and since 2010-present the Formula 1 car length is equivalent to mid to full-size luxury sedan car.

Your opinions?

The drivers feet have to be behind the axle line along with protection. To shorten the car they would have to revert to "ordinary seats", which may not be a bad idea as it would improve vision.

[Hoffman900]

https://www.snaplap.net/wp-content/uplo ... schumi.jpg
Ferrari F2004 2004

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ ... P_2024.jpg
Ferrari SF-24 2024

In the past the Formula 1 car length is equivalent to compact sedan car and since 2010-present the Formula 1 car length is equivalent to mid to full-size luxury sedan car.

Your opinions?

The drivers feet have to be behind the axle line along with protection. To shorten the car they would have to revert to "ordinary seats", which may not be a bad idea as it would improve vision.

This is false, this has been a requirement since 1988.

It’s because the rules allow it and a longer car provides more surface / area to manage airflow. The whole rear suspension is spaced back off the transmission. They could be shorter pretty easily if the rules forced it. The hybrid PUs and carrying an entire race’s worth of fuel on board adds to some of it, but it’s mostly aero driven.

They could be the size of the current Indy Cars pretty easily and not give up any safety. The Indy Cars are arguably the safest chassis in motorsports (routinely surviving 40,60,80g+ crashes and letting drivers walk away). It’s rare a F1 car has an impact that big. So the safety argument is moot in my mind.

[Just_a_fan]

They are long because the rules allow them to be long. Long means more floor to create downforce and means more room to control front tyre wake. The teams are involved in rule setting (a bad idea in my view) and they pushed for big cars.

The rules could easily be written to remove 100s of mm of wheelbase from the cars without causing a problem with packaging of the innards of the car.

[jjn9128]

They are long because the rules allow them to be long. Long means more floor to create downforce and means more room to control front tyre wake. The teams are involved in rule setting (a bad idea in my view) and they pushed for big cars.

The rules could easily be written to remove 100s of mm of wheelbase from the cars without causing a problem with packaging of the innards of the car.

This, the plan was to limit to a 3.4m wheelbase in 21 (which became 22) but the teams fought back and it became 3.6m - looks like 26 will now have a 3.4m wheelbase if you believe AMuS. The overhangs are also now longer for the swept wings rather than straight leading edges.

Longer cars make more downforce and are inherently more stable.

[feni_remmen]

The cars are long because in the late 1990's especially, teams realised that they should utilise the larger floor area for aero purposes. Initially they stretched this as much as they could, while trading against the minimum weight. This, plus rules about engine weight and gearbox regulations were used to justify increases in weight year on year, which the teams then used to further stretch the cars. They then pushed to have the minimum weight raised again and again as they found this a compromise constraint and stretched the cars again to suit. This is the long term consequence of 20 years of rule changes where the teams have a say in the rules and the constraints on the cars.

Tubs, engines and gearboxes are heavier for sure, but if the 2026 rules allowed lets say 550kg car +85 for the driver, we would be in the same position, where some teams are just under the weight and ballasting up and some teams are just over the weight and fighting to get down...