Formula One’s most important feeder collection, the FIA Formula 2 Championship has proven off the brand new 2024 F2 car that has gone by means of key technical adjustments forward of the brand new season.
The new car, which options the newest FIA security improvements, is powered by a 3.4 litre turbo-charged Mecachrome engine, and consists of some new options to accommodate the Aramco artificial sustainable gas that will likely be launched in 2025. For 2024, the F2 car will proceed to run on Aramco 55% bio-sourced sustainable gas, which was efficiently launched in 2023.
The F2 2024 has additionally been designed to adjust to the FIA 2024 specs in phrases of braking, steering effort and ergonomics to accommodate a variety of drivers and make the championship as accessible as potential.
The car programs will nonetheless embody marshalling resembling Virtual Safety Car (VSC), and optimised Drag Reduction System (DRS), while the electronics have been enhanced with a brand new Marelli Vehicle Control Unit (VCU).
Featuring absolutely revamped bodywork, overhauled cockpit ergonomics to improve driver security, the 2024 car has been put by means of its paces around the globe, with a shakedown in Italy, an preliminary take a look at round Magny-Cours, France after which efficiency runs on the Circuito de Jerez in Spain.
A four-day take a look at in Bahrain across the Sakhir International Circuit adopted and was massively optimistic from an engineering and driver perspective. F2 Deputy Technical Director Pierre-Alain Michot explains what the take a look at entailed and why there are many optimistic indicators forward of aggressive racing subsequent 12 months.
“The take a look at in Bahrain was all about ensuring the car was compliant with all our expectations in phrases of efficiency, behaviours, simply ticking all of the containers in the event programme. We did practically 5000km, ending simply 7km in need of that determine, which is a disgrace, however to give you the option to obtain that throughout a number of totally different classes round Magny-Cours, Jerez and Bahrain is nice.
“In the tests, we’ve made sure that when the car is running, it is keeping cool enough for all the systems to be in the working range. In Bahrain, we didn’t have less than 30 degrees and the car was behaving and responding as expected.”
One of the drivers on the wheel throughout the take a look at in Sakhir, Tatiana Calderon was all smiles as she put the F2 2024 machine by means of its paces.
Beyond the aesthetics of the brand new F2 car, there was an enormous quantity of labor on the internals, notably specializing in the driving force cockpit.
Moved in line with the newest FIA security specs, the brand new 2024 cockpit is designed to match drivers of all sizes. Extensive work at Dallara has gone into producing a driving atmosphere that fits the shortest and tallest of drivers which will enter the Championship in the approaching years.
February 11-13… 🗓️👀
The dates once we’ll lastly get to give our brand-new F2 automobiles a go! 🙌#F2 #F2Testing pic.twitter.com/MFVRh29UP5
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) January 8, 2024
It‘s instantly obvious on the wheel in accordance to Calderon, who says that the adjustments have introduced a serious improve to driver confidence inside the cockpit, enabling them to attain absolutely the limits of efficiency extra shortly.
“The feeling in the car has improved a lot. It’s been really good to work with F2 and Dallara in the development of the car,” says Calderon. “It’s easy to fit in, steer well and once the performance is there, explore the maximum. It’s been hugely positive and is a big step forward for women drivers.”
Having had latest expertise with the present technology of F2 car, Calderon is expertly positioned to present suggestions in phrases of driving traits and comparisons between outdated and new.
It’s the much less seen adjustments which can be the most important for the drivers in accordance to the Colombian, who says that all of it feeds into how shortly a driver feels comfy sufficient to push the car, and due to this fact enhance their efficiency. It ought to all mix to make for a fair nearer wheel-to-wheel spectacle she says.
“It’s massively vital as a result of if you happen to’re not comfy, you’re by no means going to be on the restrict. You want to be centered on the setup of the car, not about your seat and being comfy or worrying about your coaching. Once that’s occurring, it’s too late, you’ll be able to’t simply give attention to the vital stuff.
“The second step is the physicality of the car. Usually, you’ll be able to’t extract the utmost efficiency immediately, however the brand new car may be very totally different. It normally takes me a day or two to really feel out the car correctly, however with this one it took two hours, and I used to be already specializing in areas to maximise efficiency. That’s going to be big.
“It felt very comparable to the earlier car in phrases of pure efficiency, however the feeling of the steering and the best way the car steers in the totally different configurations makes this the most important space of enchancment in contrast to the outdated car.
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Likewise, from an engineering and technical perspective, guaranteeing the car is corresponding appropriately to expectation is vitally vital, particularly round a circuit that the Championship visits in-season.
The assessments included operating the totally different downforce configurations that will likely be in motion subsequent season, from the high-downforce profile used round probably the most aerodynamically demanding venues on the calendar, to the low downforce specification reserved for locations like Baku and Monza. All the gathered knowledge matched up to expectations.
Michot added: “It’s fairly vital as a result of Bahrain is sort of consultant for lots of parameters we’ll see throughout the season. We’ve been ready to validate the behaviour of the car, which is all the time probably the most tough factor to do with a brand new car.
“We mainly ran the medium and high-downforce specifications, but we did do a couple of runs with the low downforce configuration, Baku and Monza spec. It all went as expected and the car is balanced, correlating with our expectations.”
Calderon was joined by 2022 Formula 2 Champion, Felipe Drugovich, because the Brazilian carried out a number of days of testing additionally.
With three season’s value of expertise in the 2018-2023 technology of F2 car, the newest of which coming in his crowning marketing campaign, Drugovich says the brand new car is comparable in phrases of feeling behind the wheel however ought to promote even nearer racing.
“I think it feels very similar, the chassis is close, also the aero levels. It’s a new way of producing downforce, so the teams need to study that more and how to get more downforce with the car, running the ride height in the right spot. The car is probably going to be as fast as the 2022 car. Hopefully the racing will be a bit better. Normally you lose a bit less downforce with this type of aero, so it should race a bit better.”
