Formula 1 2009 Season [may contain real time spoilers]

[kingbuxton]

Nice to see it back on the Beeb, never watched a full race, let alone a season, since ITV got it, terrible coverage.

Forgot how good F1 is, still not a lot of overtaking, but there was plenty of stuff going on to compensate (still not keen on races being won in the pit lane)

Question. What was the thing he kept banging on about with the battery level? I forget the name of the tech. Seems like it increased BHP in spurts.

Finally have something to do on Sunday afternoons again.

[Kymmy]

Some of the cars are now running KERS( I think it stands for Kenetic Energy Reclamation System) that stores energy under braking into batteries and then release it as short spurts of powers (a maximum of 6.5 seconds a lap)

It's supposed to help increase overtaking in the sport..

[Stuart]

Kers, or Kinetic Energy Recovery System . A system which enables the cars to recover some of the energy used while braking and use it for other purposes, thus using the energy more efficiently.

[Turkey Machine]

KERS = Kinetic Energy Recovery System. A dynamo recovers the energy from braking, and stores it in a battery or a flywheel. The only KERS in the field at the moment are battery ones. Gives 82 bhp for 6.6 seconds per lap, as the driver sees fit to use it. Possibly worth a row off the startline and half a second a lap in the right places. The downside is the weight of the system (30kg ish), so some drivers are disadvantaged with it, Kubica for instance.

To counter that, one thing I think they could do for 2010 to promote KERS usage in more cars is raise the minimum dry weight of the car including driver to something like 625 kilos.

[Kymmy]

With some drivers it's not just total weight but actually weight distributions... The new design means that the more weight forward the better the car is, as Kubica and webber are quite tall it means a lot more weight further back and the KERS goes in the mid/back part of the car as well..

[kingbuxton]

KERS, that's it.

Can find loads about what it does and how, but not how that 82Bhp is put back, what does the power from battery do when they push the button?

[Kymmy]

A dynamo is basically a motor, if you turn the spindle (i.e. Under braking) it creates electricity, where if you take that electricity and put it back into the dynamo it turn the spindle by itself..

Hence the power you make under braking can be put back in to the drive train..

[kingbuxton]

Hey, I know what a Dynamo does, I am not as thick as I look

I am not Mechanically inclined though, so is it like a clutch, they press the button and the Dynamo grabs the wheel and spins it? Or is it getting the extra power to the wheels in some other way?

Suspect I am as thick as I look

[Kymmy]

Probably via a viscous coupling...

PS..if you were thick then you'd be from somewhere like Manchester

Now can Kymmy sneek away from the thread without admitting that she's a manc!!!

[kingbuxton]

if you were thick then you'd be from somewhere like Manchester

I am about 15mins away

[soicky]

Originally Posted by kingbuxton

I am about 15mins away

close enough.

[CHiLL]

Not only is Kubica tall, but he's the heaviest driver in the championship too. Him & KERS makes the car too heavy for his and BMWs liking. KERS alone weighs 30 kilos.

[kingbuxton]

Close enough

Well I can't find anything to explain how it gets the extra HP to the wheels, just how the tech works. And I have no idea what a viscous coupling is, it sounds rude though.

[Matth]

I see the team got a 50k fine for Vettel's 3 wheels on my wagon driving, was he really trying to sneak to the finish under Safety car no overtaking?

[banjo]

Does anyone know why the teams are forced to use 2 different tyre compounds, I cant see the point ?

If the teams were given a choice if they wanted to use either tyres that would make more sense.