Scuderia Ferrari 2014

[Pierce89]

Lets be honest, its not the fault of the drivers, the car is simply bad (again), thats why they sometimes overdrive it, like Kimi in Montreal.

It is simply embarrassing to be only 9th with your best car (pure speed, Lewis, Massas & Perez mishaps ignored).
So if they want to win,they need 8 faster cars to DNF

Not to speak of Rosberg, who managed to get second without ERS power and limited rear breaks, if they can't even challenge such wounded car, its looking really bad performance wise.

I just hope that at least they know internally how and why they are going backwards, so that someone hopefully can fix it. [-o<

Let's be honest, this is a good chassis let down by a pathic PU. With the Merc PU, this chassis would win multiple races. They've been very close to Red Bull, which is a much better comparison, because the Renault and Ferrari PUs seem to have very similar performance.

[diffuser]

Should change your name to optimistPrime! I like it but don't share in it. Hope you're right.

Don't forget 5 races per engine. You toast an engine that 4 more races for the remaining engines. I'm presuming they were running a brand new engine for MTL.

Honestly believe that if ferrari had run the full update package, they would have been contesting with rbs and hence had a shot at the win.

Yes, of course you don't want to over heat, but isn't their current position the right one in which to take risks? What did they have to lose? Answer is a 6th that would have been 8th without the final crash. Is that really why they're racing? I'd honestly rather have seen them show some pace - enjoyed that promise as a fan - and have it come to nothing than this playing it safe.

And yes, it does seem as if the update at the rear really was a big benefit. Alonso reported more rear downforce and, by removing much of the blockage that's been in that zone ever since the acer ducts (coincidentally exactly the period in which rear adhesion has been an issue) it seems like a very logical step.

Plus side is that hopefully there's more to come in austria.

[diffuser]

I thought that was part of the conversation we were having back in Mid April on Ferrari F14T Forum. When I looked back... the Ratios look the same ......so I could be wrong.

...I believe they've already used their 1 gear change and I believe they made the gear ratio higher (lower top speed) to compensate for lack of PU power...

Any source for that?

No and nobody is gonna find a source for that, because it didn't happen. If Ferrari's simulation couldn't even get the gearing right, then they probably wouldn't even make the grid, much less build the 3rd quickest chassis.

[Cam]

Let's be honest, this is a good chassis let down by a pathic PU. With the Merc PU, this chassis would win multiple races. They've been very close to Red Bull, which is a much better comparison, because the Renault and Ferrari PUs seem to have very similar performance.

Really? It seems like it's probably the chassis as well. Kimi might not be top shelf, but he's no dope. His words suggest chassis issues more than anything. What makes you think the chassis is as good as the RB?

"It's very difficult to really understand what is going on," Raikkonen said, when asked by AUTOSPORT whether the balance of his car shifted through a race.

"It seems to change. It can feel very difficult one lap, then suddenly for some reason a few laps later it's like the tyres work better.

"I cannot explain the reason, otherwise we would know. At the end of the race it seemed to be OK again. We have to look into things.

"There is potential in the car and the package. We have to just find out what we can do to get it on every lap."

[f1316]

I get the impression - backed up by nothing other than my own observations/assumptions - that the Merc, RB and Ferrari chassis are actually very closely matched. I also get the impression that the Ferrari is slightly slower than the other two (and Allison stated that it was "generous" to call the F14T one of Ferrari's better recent chassis) but given the exact same power/power delivery I'd think the three cars would be within 2 or 3 tenths.

Like I say, no great basis for that, other than that we know the problems Renault/Ferrari have with their PUs and, considering that, the gap isn't much more than I'd expect them to be losing from the PUs.

[WaikeCU]

To me it feels like the Ferrari has a similar syndrome to the Williams in 1994. If I could recall it correctly, I remember Senna stating that the car seems fast, but is unpredictable at times. Sometimes the car has great balance, but sometimes it can change dramatically with oversteering at a certain moment en understeering some other time all during the course of couple of laps. This all made the car very hard to handle.

[Kiril Varbanov]

To me it feels like the Ferrari has a similar syndrome to the Williams in 1994. If I could recall it correctly, I remember Senna stating that the car seems fast, but is unpredictable at times. Sometimes the car has great balance, but sometimes it can change dramatically with oversteering at a certain moment en understeering some other time all during the course of couple of laps. This all made the car's very hard to handle.

FW16 has indeed been a nervous car. Senna:

"I have a very negative feeling about driving the car and driving it on the limit and so on. Therefore I didn't have a single run or a single lap that I felt comfortable or reasonably confident."
"I am uncomfortable in the car, it all feels wrong.

Later throughout the season, the car has improved.

In Ferrari's case, one has to wonder just how much of this unpredictability is given to the power unit torque distribution, weight transfer, immature BBW system or overall disintegration between chassis and PU. I wouldn't personally speculate too much about that at this stage of the season, but it is a curious case to dissect.

[Frafer]

Here we go http://online.wsj.com/articles/ferrari- ... ding_now_2
LCDM stated that ferrari is likely to retire from f1 by 2020

[MOWOG]

Here's what he actually said:

Earlier this week, with Fernando Alonso heading to Le Mans on Saturday to flag off the famous 24 hour endurance race, reports suggested the Maranello marque might be planning a prototype sports car project. But president Luca di Montezemolo, whose criticism of F1's rules often accompanies a quit warning, said that a Le Mans project would mean the end of Ferrari's long association with formula one.

"Formula one isn't working," he told the Wall Street Journal. "It's declining because (the FIA) have forgotten that people watch the racing for the excitement. Nobody watches racing for the efficiency, come on."

Also on Friday, Ferrari said on its official website that it is "a bit of a stretch" for the media to be suggesting the team is threatening to quit the sport after 2020 to focus on Le Mans.

But Montezemolo told the Wall Street Journal: "Of course, we cannot do sports car racing and formula one. It's not possible."

The Ferrari website post, however, said Ferrari can juggle both Le Mans and F1, insisting "there's nothing to stop Ferrari upping the ante and competing in both disciplines".

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Well, that makes it all perfectly clear, doesn't it?

[f1universe]

Lets be honest, its not the fault of the drivers, the car is simply bad (again), thats why they sometimes overdrive it, like Kimi in Montreal.

I[-o<

The car is bad is not an excuse the get the most of it.

[charlex]

Lets be honest, its not the fault of the drivers, the car is simply bad (again), thats why they sometimes overdrive it, like Kimi in Montreal.

I[-o<

The car is bad is not an excuse the get the most of it.

bad compared to whom? Even an empty brain is able to make the best engine if it invests half billion €

[Constructr]

For me I have a hunch that the root of Ferrari's issues the past several years lie in it's front suspension geometry. For example, compare the front geometry of the F14T to the Mercedes and you can see that the mounting points at the chassis are MUCH higher on the Ferrari and thus the arms are more angled downward. The Mercedes are more close to being level. Same with the RB10. The FW36 has slightly more than the Mercedes and RB.

Just a thought.

[f1universe]

Lets be honest, its not the fault of the drivers, the car is simply bad (again), thats why they sometimes overdrive it, like Kimi in Montreal.

I[-o<

The car is bad is not an excuse the get the most of it.

bad compared to whom? Even an empty brain is able to make the best engine if it invests half billion €

Are you kidding, not all the money in the world will help you if you don't have the tools and the talent and compared to whom?, I don't know Mercedes, RB, sometimes williams, sometimes FI.

[Kiril Varbanov]

LdM calls Donald and Bernie over the future of F1 - http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/114462

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has asked Bernie Ecclestone to call Formula 1's key figures together to discuss its future, amid concerns the sport has lost its way.

AUTOSPORT can reveal that di Montezemolo has written to Ecclestone and Donald McKenzie, of F1's owner CVC, to express his 'worries' that grand prix racing is neglecting fans and sponsors and needs to react to the decline in interest.

With recent discussions between teams and F1's stakeholders having been dominated by cost issues, di Montezemolo thinks that other aspects of F1 have been ignored.

He writes that he is especially fearful that F1 is failing to embrace the new generation of younger fans, and is not maintaining the interest of sponsors.

But rather than just criticise the areas where he thinks F1 has gone wrong, di Montezemolo wants a meeting to agree a path of recovery.

In the letter, di Montezemolo suggests Ecclestone brings together F1's main stakeholders - including teams, media, television companies, and race promoters - for an open workshop to establish what is wrong and how it should be fixed.

He also believes that companies that are not directly involved in F1 - such as social media platforms and companies like Google and Apple - should be invited too.

Di Montezemolo has offered to make available Ferrari's Maranello factory for the meeting, and suggests it happens in the week before the Italian Grand Prix in September.

Ferrari spokesman Renato Bisignani told AUTOSPORT that the Italian outfit was eager to work together with all interested parties to try to improve F1's long term future.

"It is natural for Ferrari to exercise a proactive approach and discussions are ongoing at the appropriate levels," he said.

"There is a need to act collectively with the sport's key stakeholders and to reflect on the bigger picture, with constructive critics in the interests of the sport, with an eye towards technology and another one towards the show.

"Formula 1 has been built over the years into a unique marketing and sporting platform and it must now consolidate its ability to attract global sponsors, engage with fans and make racing more exciting."

FERRARI COMMITTED TO F1

Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, Canadian GP 2014, Montreal
Di Montezemolo's ongoing criticisms of current F1, and a potential future interest in sportscars, prompted speculation in recent days that Ferrari could even turn its back on grand prix racing.

However, the Italian outfit is wholly committed to F1 - and doing all it can to ensure it had a bright future.

When asked about the reports that Ferrari was thinking of leaving F1, Bisignani explained: "Quite the contrary.

"Le Mans is an attractive platform which we continue to monitor but Formula 1 has been Ferrari's life for over half a century and our present focus is on returning to a consistent winning form.

"Behind the scenes there is much going on and the efforts of Montezemolo, coupled by Marco Mattiacci's new leadership, are concentrated solely on this front."

[diffuser]

For me I have a hunch that the root of Ferrari's issues the past several years lie in it's front suspension geometry. For example, compare the front geometry of the F14T to the Mercedes and you can see that the mounting points at the chassis are MUCH higher on the Ferrari and thus the arms are more angled downward. The Mercedes are more close to being level. Same with the RB10. The FW36 has slightly more than the Mercedes and RB.
http://www.f1technical.net/forum/index.php
Just a thought.

There has been speculation on this before. I don't know enough to comment either way just that Ferrari has said that isn't their problem and that they tend to do better on front limited tracks. That being said... Omnicorse wrote that the 2015 Ferrari challenger is being designed totally by James Allison, will be called 666, has a push-rod front end and will be a total break from this years car. The 5th paragraph http://www.omnicorse.it/magazine/38814/ ... -motoristi