A typhoon was bearing down on Tokyo, east of Suzuka where the F1 Grand Prix of Japan was taking place. Various delays for the fans to arrive meant that the race was delayed half an hour, and started behind the pace car with very heavy spray off the wheels, meaning only the pole position driver could actually see where he was going. The Ferrari died after 3 laps, with the steering wheel, a computer with many buttons, shorted out and died. This is not the first time a computer on an F1 car has died, and the fact that these cars have trouble in wet weather is not exactly a positive advertisement for Hybrid Cars, which was the primary reason for this season's design. Trying to show that Hybrids can be fast. What they've actually shown is that hybrids are unreliable, and require millions of dollars a drive to keep them running. That's NOT a positive spin on Hybrid technology.
Dad had more suggestions, watching cars die in the wet. Lose the battery entirely. No more ERS. Narrower tires so they really have to pay attention to braking on corners. Without the battery, they'll be 400 pounds lighter, so braking should be easier too. Lose the radio. All the telemetry and pit data was fine on pit wall boards hung over the side for decades. Remove distractions so the driver can just drive. Return the clutch, and reduce the number of gears to 4 or 5. With a gear lever. No more paddle shifters. They're a bit too easy, and making a shift properly is part of the challenge. This also requires the driver to be more skilled, managing 3 pedals with 2 feet.
And dropping the engines to 2.0L 4-cylinder Turbo, like all Rally cars, and a V6 normally aspirated 2.5 to 3.0 L would be far more like real cars and real drivers use. And you'd be able to hear them. In this Grand Prix only the pace car engine made any real noise, with its supercharged V8 musclecar sound. Ironic that Ze Germans make cars that sound like the 1970's in Detroit.
No fancy battery braking. Just brakes. The batteries get hot, the electric motor loses grip because the power isn't going into a battery so the dynamo doesn't work and all the brake energy falls onto the front brakes which is why SO MANY CARS are running off at the end of the straights this season. This is a direct result of battery overheating and electrical brake failure. This is a DANGEROUS FLAW. It should not be part of the formula. Eventually this is going to kill a driver, or worse, fans. They're going 160-200 mph on those straightaways, with only partial braking working. That's like a 2000 pound missile. This is an engineering safety catastrophe.
Adjusting front and rear wing is part of the challenge, balancing speed against cornering. Having much narrower tires also makes corners more tricky because you won't get unreal levels of Gee force without using lots of wing, which slows you on the straightaway and makes passing there impossible, but opens passing in the turns instead. The different strategies while staying on the road makes it a lot more fun again. Reducing distractions from driving the car, and making it about actual manual car skill rather than a video game console? That's better.
Also, less extreme, more manual cars wouldn't be shutting down because they got wet in the rain.
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