TX CART race - 5Gs on turns?

[David]

Check out this article on the decision to cancel this weekend's CART race at TMS. Interesting.
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/cart/2001-04-29-texas.htm

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Don't no nuttin 'bout no NSX;
Don't no nuttin 'bout birthin' no babbies.

 

[justin hall]

CART is taking a lot of heat for cancelling, but imagine the flack if someone would have died....

makes me wonder if they the drivers will start needing g suits like fighter pilots use.

 

[Lud]

I don't really follow CART, but if sustained G forces were the concern, why not just require everyone to run a lower downforce configuration? Sure it would cause some complaining but less than cancelling the whole race!

 

[David]

Originally posted by Lud:
I don't really follow CART, but if sustained G forces were the concern, why not just require everyone to run a lower downforce configuration? Sure it would cause some complaining but less than cancelling the whole race!

My understanding is that the full scope of the problem was not apparant until hours before the race. Not enough time to make rules changes to accomodate.

 

[Brian Bailey]

Originally posted by Lud:
I don't really follow CART, but if sustained G forces were the concern, why not just require everyone to run a lower downforce configuration? Sure it would cause some complaining but less than cancelling the whole race!

If they were to run a lower downforce set-up, the cars would actually go faster which would increase the G-forces the drivers were exposed to.

The thought was to increase the downforce being generated by the cars, and also lowering to turbo boost, to slow the cars down enough to reduce the forces at work. Unfortunately, even with a substantial increase in the size of the Hansford device and a 1" lowering of boost pressure they were only able to slow the cars down about 5 or 6 mph (they figured this out through computer models I am told), less than the 10 they figured they needed to get the G-forces into the acceptable range.

Brian

 

[Lud]

If you decrease downforce enough they cannot sustain Gs through a turn because they cannot take the turn as fast due to reduced lateral grip regardless of how much power they have avaialble. It is a function of speed, tire grip, turn angle and banking angle. You cannot sustain 5 Gs through a turn (even banked) in a car without downforce. If someone tries to draft, they will lose even more downforce. This lets them go even faster on the straights but they will have to brake for the turns or they'll go into the wall. If the only problem is G forces sustained in a turn, this would be a good solution. If they are concerned about top speed down the straights, it would not be.

Adding a bunch more downforce is certainly another way to drop speeds (on the straights as well as in the turns) way to decrease speed is to add a huge amount of downforce which creates more drag. But it is is not as precise for limiting speed through the turns because people can build more speed down the straights by drafting, and since they are set up for more downforce than they need, they can carry that extra speed through the turn. Same for minor adjustments to boost, etc.


[This message has been edited by Lud (edited 04 May 2001).]