THE PROS AND CONS OF FORMULA 2’S NEW CAR
Introducing a car packed with new technology is never straightforward. And if it costs north of £1.5million to compete in the series, there’s not going to be much leeway when it goes wrong.
Let’s start with the positives. The new F2 car gave the halo its first test in competition when Nirei Fukuzumi’s car took a swipe towards Tadasuke Makino’s head, leading Makino to claim that the car saved his life. And that happened long before the device got international acclaim following Charles Leclerc’s and Fernando Alonso’s crash at Spa. Bravo F2 and the FIA for introducing it.
The car also followed well at most tracks, producing good overtaking, although the tyres and DRS also played their parts significantly in this.
But any acclaim for the car has to be offset against its many issues. It was a tight turnaround to get it ready and delivered to teams in time, and immediately at the pre-season test multiple engines were blown as the turbocharged Mecachrome powerplant made its debut. That meant the unit had to run at reduced power for the majority of the season.
The clutch was also an immediate problem. The mechanism itself proved difficult to operate, with the bite-point window proving narrow. There was also an issue when the system didn’t read the input correctly. If a driver engaged the clutch 30%, the system might engage 40% and then return to 30% – but by going over, it would cause a stall.
Some teams got on top of the system, but many didn’t, and after multiple attempts to fix it the FIA imposed rolling starts at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone. After that, the series tested hard – credit where it’s due – and brought a new clutch diaphragm and mandated software, which reduced the number of stalls until Abu Dhabi, where it blamed a combination of factors including sticky supersoft tyres allied to the heat of the UAE venue.
Throttle-sensor issues also plagued the first half of the season, but again after the extensive testing following the Silverstone round this was improved.
Ultimately the drivers – some of whom criticised the car’s introduction for being too early, and others who questioned the effect it was having on drivers’ futures and on the safety at starts due to the clutch issues – raced on and still delivered an entertaining season.
But no doubt many feel hard done by thanks to the unreliability, which struck some more than others.