Red Bull RB7 Launch

This one's been a quiet one. Red Bull unveil their RB7 tomorrow. If Adrian Newey can match last year's car then RBR have another serious contender. What are you guys expecting in terms of innovations?

Pictures to be added when they become available from Valencia.

It's been as quiet as all the other ones bar the Merc before the launches, nobody's making a fuss about it as there isn't anything to fuss about yet.

Part of me wonders if they might change the livery a bit, the blue has gotten a bit old fashioned these days, maybe increase the silver and red streaks a bit?

I'm really excited for this one! I wonder what special enhancements Mr. Newey has added to this years car. Of course, with Adrian Newey behind the drawing board, it's almost pointless to speculate that RBR will be a contender again this year. It's essentially fact at this point. Can't wait to see that number 1 on the car!

This one's predictable. Same livery and nothing to mad sticking out from the car.(maybe a shark fin) Red Bull's good stuff is inside the car.

The car will be launched at 7:30am GMT.

I'm expecting at least ONE team to try a split/twin nose design, jeez lol, or something close to a gym instructor's bumchin, but I guess the real front wings are kept under wraps until testing.
Looking forward to this one, although from memory they said it would be an adjusted RB6, since they spent a lot of last year focussing on winning the titles.

I'm hoping they do at least 1 strange thing to the car, make something rounded that's usually squared, a dip or upwards bump in the adjustable rear wing (it would flex more, no?! )
Are there any specific parameters as to how the rear wing must tilt?

RTSolvalou

Looking forward to this one, although from memory they said it would be an adjusted RB6, since they spent a lot of last year focussing on winning the titles.

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I don't think it was so much an adjusted RB6 as an upgraded one. Adrian Newey said we should expect evolution, not revolution.

RTSolvalou

I'm hoping they do at least 1 strange thing to the car, make something rounded that's usually squared, a dip or upwards bump in the adjustable rear wing (it would flex more, no?! )

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The ARW does not flex. The entire wing moves - the front lip is puled up, creating a gap through the rear wing that negats downforce.

RTSolvalou

Are there any specific parameters as to how the rear wing must tilt?

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Yes. The are designed in such a way that the front of the wing lifts up; that way if it breaks, the wing will drop back into position (any damage that does more than this will likely be race-ending). The size of the opening in the rear wing will likely be identical on all cars as per the regulations.

I was thinking if they put a bump in the wing (like an arch), it would extend the overall length of material used in the wing, but without adjusting the width between endplates, making it a bit weaker and giving the possibility of flexing a bit, which could be advantageous.

The FIA will have moved to stamp that out. ARWs can only move in certain ways.



You can't see it in this photo, but the rear end is very impressive - it tapers away to almost nothing.

Looks very neat and tidy!

I don't like it. With the trim little bum and the shortened shark fin, I can't help but feel like I'm looking at half a car. And that stubby little shark fin makes me think it's only been kept on so that Red Bull can have a bigger corporate logo on the engine cowling.

While we're at it, here's the Toro Rosso STR6:

The front wing has a very Ferrari F60-ish look to it. One look which I'm not a fan of.
I really hope Webber does well this season. 👍

Seb looks ecstatic in that picture whereas Webber looks miserable, maybe he's not happy with the car

As for the livery I think its uglier than last year and way too 'samey'. They should have gone for something totally different.

Red Bull, to me it looks like last year's car with minor tweak... They've been doing this since the RB5 anyway. But I really do like the rear wing...

Nothing much has changed in the Toro Rosso either, apart from the lost of shark fin...

I like the wheels, Pirelli good logo.

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The Red Bull looks weird... as mentioned, it doesn't look fully finished and I'm surprised at how thin it goes at the back. Should be interesting to see if it's as dominant in qualifying this year as last.

Robin.

As for the livery I think its uglier than last year and way too 'samey'. They should have gone for something totally different.

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Agreed! But, atleast they've done what Renault should have done to the Total stickers on the wing endplates.

No more Puma for RBR then.

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I don't like it. With the trim little bum and the shortened shark fin, I can't help but feel like I'm looking at half a car. And that stubby little shark fin makes me think it's only been kept on so that Red Bull can have a bigger corporate logo on the engine cowling.

While we're at it, here's the Toro Rosso STR6:

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I am glad the huge 'rocket' fin has been diminished; look more like a race car and not a billboard 👍

Robin.

Seb looks ecstatic in that picture whereas Webber looks miserable, maybe he's not happy with the car

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Or maybe he's just realising the irony of the fact that his overralls have the number 2 on them after his famous outburst

Mark Webber

"Not bad for a number 2 driver."

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Am i the only one that likes the rbr livery? Then again, I am a little biased.

F1 fan

Am i the only one that likes the rbr livery? Then again, I am a little biased.

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I find that with the shrunken rear end, everything is just crammed in there. It was nice last year, but now it's a bit of a mess.

There are talks on F1technical that the STR6 has a double floor like that famous ferrari from the 90s. Look at how the sidepods dont merge into the floor like in other cars.

Also rumors that the R31 style exhaust will come quickly for RB7. And that the RB7 has a second deck on the difuser.

F1 fan

Or maybe he's just realising the irony of the fact that his overralls have the number 2 on them after his famous outburst

Am i the only one that likes the rbr livery? Then again, I am a little biased.

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👍 I didn't like it at first but it has grown on me.

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I find that with the shrunken rear end, everything is just crammed in there. It was nice last year, but now it's a bit of a mess.

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I like the slim waist, very unique looking. I wonder what kind of aerodynamic benefits it provides?

crazedmodder

I like the slim waist, very unique looking. I wonder what kind of aerodynamic benefits it provides?

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I'd say it allows more air out over the diffuser. Double-layer diffusers are banned this year, so the challenge is to get as much air over the diffuser as possible to try and recapture some of the downforce that was sacrificed. Red Bull and Williams have opted for tight bums (Williams actualy have the smallest gearbox ever developed), whereas Renault have the forward exhaust and McLaren are said to be working on something similar.

Is the shark fin where it's basically squared off? Sicne the F150 reveal I keep trying to look but nothing really resembles a shark fin. On the Toro Rosso it's a bit of a lengthened shark fin where the engine cover is?

Neal

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUI9gC1s6Us">YouTube Link</a>

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Lol! Good video

Btw... It was funny how Ford had a problem with Ferrari naming their car the F150 cuz they didn't want it being confused with their " Ford F150". I can see how some ppl might make that mistake =\

There is still a lot of discussion and speculation around the Red Bull front wing and how it 'flexes', despite the increased loading tests that the FIA have put in place. Well I have a theory:

I do not think Red Bull are cheating.

I do not believe their wing flexes more than other teams. Infact for what I think they are doing, it may be necessary for it to flex less than other teams.

I believe that the main planes and any tiers on the front wing are clevery designed to push air towards the outer edge of the wing, thereby increasing the load on the entire wing relative to the point where it connects to the nose. When I see close up images of other front wings, they appears to only direct air over the car, as the main planes on the wing appear to be level. Whereas the Red Bull wing appears to be curved all the way across, kind of like the rotor on a fan, pushing air toward the outside, to generate more lift (Negative lift, a.k.a downforce) as it is further from the point where it connects to the nose. What Red Bull have done is taken steps to increase the loading on the front wing, thereby allowing it to flex more than the other cars, whilst it maintains the level of rigidity required for the FIA tests.





The gains on downforce alone are small, however due to higher load the wing flexes more, pushing it lower to the ground and reducing the drag. This allows them to run a greater wing angle, thereby producing more downforce for the same drag coefficient.

The FIA regulations allow for a maximum radius of 10mm on the front wing main sections. But this is significantly greater than what is needed to fulfil the length allowed in the regulations. (I'm not saying this is a bad thing, it would suck if all teams had identical specification front wings). Red Bull are utilising the full length allowed to push as much air as possible away from the nose. The 10mm radius limit means they can curve it at a greater angle, as the gains of pushing the air out towards the edge of the wing will be worth the extra drag it incurs. The limit needs lowering significantly.

I have no doubt that this isn't the key to Red Bull's dominance, infact it's probably only 2-3 tenths of their advantage. The RB5 seems to have had the same design philosophy, but it was far less effective. This idea has taken Red Bull a couple of years to develop and refine.

At least, that is my theory on this issue.

I believe a solution to close the gap would be to decrease the maximum width of the front wing, this will significantly decrease the gains that Red Bull are getting as it reduces the distance from the load to the part that connects the front wing to the nose. Also, decrease the length and height as this limits the potential to push air to the outside of the wing.