Prelude

[René]

Less then two weeks to go before first testing in Barcelona begins so it’s the time of year of the new car and team presentations.

First team to show its new car and livery is HAAS. Here’s the VF-20!

Driver pairing is the same as last year with Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean.

[charleselan]

They have got some stagger on the car there, and good to see it has returned to the original colour scheme.

A thought, I wonder why they have not gone for a traditional blue and white to capture the American national racing colours?

[René]

Feb 6, 2020 17:27:21 GMT charleselan said:

A thought, I wonder why they have not gone for a traditional blue and white to capture the American national racing colours?

That's a great idea! And given the number of Ferrari parts used in the HAAS, a NART badge would not be out of place.... and look very cool!

We should give Gene a call.

[Carl]

Can we be certain that the blue/white color scheme wasn't to complement the helmet of John Surtees?

[charleselan]

Excellent René, and other American national colour schemes are also available .

Briggs Cunningham's Lightweight 'E' Types at Le Mans in 1963, also a lovely Revell 1/32nd slot car of this a while back which i have,



Then we have the gorgeous Camoradi Birdcage Maserati's, Stirling here.



Masten Gregory in the Maserati 250F from 1957 at the amazing Pescara Grand Prix road circuit.

[Carl]

Dan Gurney continued the tradition with his Eagles, although the blue/white national colors were taken less seriously in America and seen more often overseas, and chose a beautiful dark blue.

                                                                                   

[mikael]

It's interesting to notice the evolution of the so-called rake angle of the cars. Looking at the side-view shot of the Haas VF-20, it seems that it has gotten another few degrees up again this year. It will be interesting to see the other cars, and to see if they (the other teams) are doing the same.

[Carl]

Feb 9, 2020 2:43:56 GMT mikael said:

It's interesting to notice the evolution of the so-called rake angle of the cars. Looking at the side-view shot of the Haas VF-20, it seems that it has gotten another few degrees up again this year. It will be interesting to see the other cars, and to see if they (the other teams) are doing the same.

Yes, good observation. In the simple and not too distant past, I would assume the purpose of increased rake would be more weight on the front tyres to balance handling. In today's complex computerized world, the purpose could come from the dark side of the moon. Even if they announce a reason, it may be to muddy the water and confuse tea readers like Mark Hughes.

[René]

Feb 9, 2020 5:52:37 GMT Carl said:

Feb 9, 2020 2:43:56 GMT mikael said:

It's interesting to notice the evolution of the so-called rake angle of the cars. Looking at the side-view shot of the Haas VF-20, it seems that it has gotten another few degrees up again this year. It will be interesting to see the other cars, and to see if they (the other teams) are doing the same.

Yes, good observation. In the simple and not too distant past, I would assume the purpose of increased rake would be more weight on the front tyres to balance handling. In today's complex computerized world, the purpose could come from the dark side of the moon. Even if they announce a reason, it may be to muddy the water and confuse tea readers like Mark Hughes.

The high rake creates more downforce but also more drag. Another clever concept introduced by aero wizard Newey. It's not just a matter of tilting the car however, it's a complete design philosophy from front wing to rear wing. No team has made it work yet the way it works for the Red Bull. 

[Carl]

Thanks, Rene!

Tea reading [tasseography] is done by fortune tellers around the world to divine the future in the pattern of leaves left in the cup and is unrelated to the enjoyment of "a cuppa".

[René]

Allright here it is, the first big gun of 2020. The Ferrari SF1000! Forza!

[mikael]

At first sight, not much of a difference between the new SF1000 and last years SF90. By the way, it seems that Ferrari's model codes are becoming unpredictable and a bit odd: SF71H in '18, SF90 in '19, and now SF1000 in '20 ...

[Carl]

There is a noticeable resemblance between the Ferrari and Haas, in the structure of the barge boards, the shape of the nose and taper of the rear longitudinal fin. The wing shapes are similar by mandate, but I'm surprised to see clear similarities where design is free. Could the absolute sameness of airflow have led both teams to the same basic shape?

[René]

Obviously all new cars are further developments of last years cars so nothing really spectacular. The Ferrari has visually more rake and more aggressive bargeboards to generate more downforce at low speed.

These are the last iterations of this generation of cars so all we can hope for is a closer battle. They are not going to be any better looking...

Here is the Red Bull RB16.

[René]

Next in line, the new McLaren MCL35. Looks sleek!