Formula E

EKE_38BPM

Anyone watching it? I'm watching it now and it seems a bit gimmicky to me.
Fan boost - fans vote to give their favourite driver a boost of about 30 horse power.
Car changing - instead of pit stops the driver changes from one car to another.
Bespoke music -crowd and paddock interative music?
City circuits - its a 10 race series held on short (3km max) city circuits.

The fan boost seems desperate, before its even started. I can imagine a meeting where someone mentioned using social media and some idiot said "Get fans to use Twatter to give the drivers a more powerful car" and some other idiot said "Yeah, thats a good idea!"
Car changing is hopefully a temporary measure. The cars don't recharge the batteries. If they did then changing cars might not be necessary, but pitstops are interesting so they have had to be artificially shoe-horned in.
Bespoke music. Well, thats just bollocksennit?
City circuits. The last few F1 races have been brilliant because they were on established, evolved circuits. Silverstone, Spa, Monza - all brilliant. City circuits generally turn into a precession as it is so hard to overtake.

Ah well, this is all pre-race whinging, it may turn out to be brilliant. Either way, I think electric cars are the future and motorsport does drive technology so maybe F1 is a dinosaur and Formula E is a little critter scurrying through the undergrowth.

rjsterry

Have you found Robert Llewellyn's Fully Charged YouTube show? Not had a chance yet myself, but if CarClub is anything to go by, they should be very good.

EKE_38BPM

No, I'll look out for it.

I was wrong about recharging though.

It sounds like a collection of milk floats!

danlikesbikes

Undecided on it myself, I got bored this morning as every expert I saw basically said words to the effect of "well we don't really know.......... Were still learning ................. We find something new ever time we drive" understand it's all new & what they were saying was factually correct but it felt odd hearing the same from everyone. Perhaps the TV producers to gain interest should have moved away from the oh this is all new and we don't really know what's going to happen story to concentrating of the speed, acceleration & closeness of racing to get people hooked.

Glad they went with City racing though as hopefully should be more interesting to look at over some of the newer boring circuits

adam0bmx0

It was pretty dull to be honest wasn't it!

And yes, they will always have to change cars as the batteries do not have the capacity to last the whole race.

Having cars just buzz past does not excite compared to a combustion engine screaming at Xrpm!

EKE_38BPM

adam0bmx0 wrote:

It was pretty dull to be honest wasn't it!

Yeah, right up until the last corner of the last lap! Prost deserves to get his wrist slapped.

Why are they using treaded tyres?
What was with that music during the race? MrsEKE says it is an attempt to distract the viewer from how silly the cars sound.
The aerodynamics - how much of it is functional and how much is to get a particular look?
The pit stops - why are they not as fast as possible. They seem very contrived and artificial.

I won't go out of my way to watch the rest of the races but I wish it well.

navt

More like Formula Zzzz. I'd sooner watch bicycles racing around unique cities.

cjcp

/\/\/\ +1 billion.

Cars going around a track. Zzzzz.

peat

Why are they using treaded tyres?

Because they don't have enough power to warrant the grip. It would make for even duller racing.

What was with that music during the race? MrsEKE says it is an attempt to distract the viewer from how silly the cars sound.

That, my good man, was the 'Formula EJ' (Yes, i am serious). He is tasked with DJ'ing during the race to build tension etc as an when required. Yep.... *facepalm*

The aerodynamics - how much of it is functional and how much is to get a particular look?

At the speeds they achieve, naff all. They are more for brand logos than downforce.

The pit stops - why are they not as fast as possible. They seem very contrived and artificial.

They don't want people tripping or going out without their belts being fully tight. The whole 2-car thing is bogus anyway. Hardly 'green' is it? Why they couldn't have pioneered/developed hotswap batteries, I do not know.

EKE_38BPM

EKE wrote:

Why are they using treaded tyres?

Peat wrote:

Because they don't have enough power to warrant the grip. It would make for even duller racing.

What would look worse: narrower slick tyres or wider treaded tyres? I think I'd prefer to see them rolling on slick biscuits than treaded swiss rolls.

EKE wrote:

What was with that music during the race? MrsEKE says it is an attempt to distract the viewer from how silly the cars sound.

Peat wrote:

That, my good man, was the 'Formula EJ' (Yes, i am serious). He is tasked with DJ'ing during the race to build tension etc as an when required. Yep.... *facepalm*

I know, but it is bloody awful.

EKE wrote:

The aerodynamics - how much of it is functional and how much is to get a particular look?

Peat wrote:

At the speeds they achieve, naff all. They are more for brand logos than downforce.

Top speed is currently 150mph plus. Enough to generate usable downforce, so the wings are necessary (just), but the fairing in front of the front wheels grate a little.

EKE wrote:

The pit stops - why are they not as fast as possible. They seem very contrived and artificial.

Peat wrote:

They don't want people tripping or going out without their belts being fully tight. The whole 2-car thing is bogus anyway. Hardly 'green' is it? Why they couldn't have pioneered/developed hotswap batteries, I do not know.

Hot swappable batteries would be better than two cars.

Michael Andretti wrote:

Right now, we are going to be going about 25 to 30 minutes with the battery at 130 to 140 miles an hour, five years from now, we'll probably be going 200 miles an hour with a battery that is half the weight that goes two or three times farther. That is what competition does."

I agree with him, lets just hope that the rules are revised often enough to keep pace with the development of the cars as what the engineers are allowed to do in this series WILL lead to improvements for electric road cars.
Hot swappable is a prime example of this. I can forsee people leasing batteries and having a contract for x amount of replacements.
When you're running low on juice you'll go to a 'petrol station' and just replace the batteries in your car rather than charging them at home/work/on the street.

If the FIA don't change the rules to keep pace with or even lead development, this series will be an opportunity wasted and rightly seen as a joke.

I want it to work, but it has to be real racing and relevant (unlike A1GP).

peat

A1GP turned out some great racing and became my winter motorsport-staple. Shame it was just one great big money laundering exercise. I wasn't a fan of the 'nations' thing but I do miss it.

I agree and hope to see the rules relaxed and see some genuinely interesting technical development. At the moment, the product is a tad underwhelming. Lacks the WOW factor of the sophisticated Le Mans hybrid-prototypes and now, F1 cars. I will probably go and see the London event out of curiosity.

EKE_38BPM

Peat wrote:

A1GP turned out some great racing and became my winter motorsport-staple. Shame it was just one great big money laundering exercise. I wasn't a fan of the 'nations' thing but I do miss it.

Maybe I gave up too early on it. The 'nations' thing was just a gimmick, a bit like the Formula EJ.

Peat wrote:

I will probably go and see the London event out of curiosity.

Same here. I've just had a look and tickets don't seem to be available yet.

EKE_38BPM

rjsterry wrote:

Have you found Robert Llewellyn's Fully Charged YouTube show? Not had a chance yet myself, but if CarClub is anything to go by, they should be very good.

EKE_38BPM wrote:

No, I'll look out for it.

I have now watched a few and I like it.
One bloke and a camera talking about cars which just happen to be electric. Top Gear/Fifth Gear isn't the only way to do car shows.

Kryten has come a long way and it may even lead to me getting cheaper electricity at home.

peat

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Top Gear/Fifth Gear isn't the only way to do car shows.

Top Gear is a car show? Ok.....

EKE_38BPM

Peat wrote:

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Top Gear/Fifth Gear isn't the only way to do car shows.

Top Gear is a car show? Ok.....

Exactly.

EKE_38BPM

EKE_38BPM wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

Have you found Robert Llewellyn's Fully Charged YouTube show? Not had a chance yet myself, but if CarClub is anything to go by, they should be very good.

EKE_38BPM wrote:

No, I'll look out for it.

I have now watched a few and I like it.

After watching quite a few of these shows, I've now taken a Nissan Leaf for a test drive (just around the block) and am considering signing up for the 7 day trial. I've got no real intention of buying one at the moment, but I'm impressed with it and electric cars in general.

First.Aspect

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Peat wrote:

A1GP turned out some great racing and became my winter motorsport-staple. Shame it was just one great big money laundering exercise. I wasn't a fan of the 'nations' thing but I do miss it.

Maybe I gave up too early on it. The 'nations' thing was just a gimmick, a bit like the Formula EJ.

Peat wrote:

I will probably go and see the London event out of curiosity.

Same here. I've just had a look and tickets don't seem to be available yet.

You might want to brush up on your motor racing history a bit.

EKE_38BPM

First Aspect wrote:

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Peat wrote:

A1GP turned out some great racing and became my winter motorsport-staple. Shame it was just one great big money laundering exercise. I wasn't a fan of the 'nations' thing but I do miss it.

Maybe I gave up too early on it. The 'nations' thing was just a gimmick, a bit like the Formula EJ.

Peat wrote:

I will probably go and see the London event out of curiosity.

Same here. I've just had a look and tickets don't seem to be available yet.

You might want to brush up on your motor racing history a bit.

My motor racing history is reasonably well brushed, but things have changed since the 1920s and the way it was done in A1GP seemed fake and gimmicky (which it was).

HertsG

They need to rethink the warm-up lap!

debeli

They run electric motorcycles round the IoM in TT week. It is less aurally impressive than the internal-combustion stuff, but it still raises the heart rate and these are still real racers taking real risks.

Things move on and Formula E is one of these steps. Back in the days of the mighty 917, who would have imagined that Audi would be winning at Le Mans with a diesel. OK, the rules have been tweaked, but still... a racing diesel winning at Le Mans... Cripes!

I think the first few seasons will be slightly rum, as this one is proving to be. Things like the crash with Prost junior afew days back are about the best publicity thay can expect.

One of the attractions of motorsport (at the track) is the noise/smell thing. There is something visceral about it. A hairdrier with whiney bearings and the smell of a Hornby electric railway set will not evoke the same responses.

The changey-music, choosey-power stuff is evidence of a marketing division unaware of how to use new comms media. I fear we may need to get used to that....

Of course none of this will ever equal the gutsy and dominant (marginal and lucky) world championship of the indomitable (posh and good looking) James Hunt in 1976 over a Teutonic automaton whose supportrs claimed that he lost the championship because of a slight singe he'd received in a race. Pah! The best man won! No batteries in those days!

Daz555

Peat wrote:

The aerodynamics - how much of it is functional and how much is to get a particular look?

The rear wheel fairings look like the ones in Indy cars - introduced for safety reasons to cut down on wheel contact. Front fairings on E cars possibly for the same reason.

Open wheels on F1 are far from optimal - I often wonder why F1 is open wheel and not closed like say sports car racing.

peat

You've quoted the wrong guy there Daz. Nevermind.

Yeah, the rear fairings are very IndyCar-esque. Just as horrible.

The front fairing/endplate will reduce the drag reasonably significantly. Open-wheels are draggy as hell.

Most of he front end aero of an F1 car is designed to get air around the front wheels and into the floor with the minimum of turbulence. Not out and out downforce.

EKE_38BPM

So, I've just watched the second race and I have a couple of observations:
1) The racing is close, but the driving isn't up to F1 standards. Not surprising considering that the drivers are generally F1 wannabes (Bird) or F1 rejects (Senna).
2) It is a lot easier to watch without the Formula EJ!

The camerawork/direction is woeful. Lots of 'moments' missed due to the wrong camera being selected at the vital moment or, even worse, changing away from the right camera at the vital moment.

It was quite funny seeing fan boost (ergh!) leading to too much torque and a crash.

I think I've done quite well not putting any spoilers in this post. Do the cars need spoilers?

meanredspider

Which channel is it on? I might try to catch it with a catch up service. That said, some of the best racing I've watched this year has been some of the classic stuff like the Revival - those 60's cars on cross-ply tyres drifting through the corners.

desweller

ITV 4 according to the Formula E website.

EKE_38BPM

meanredspider wrote:

Which channel is it on? I might try to catch it with a catch up service. That said, some of the best racing I've watched this year has been some of the classic stuff like the Revival - those 60's cars on cross-ply tyres drifting through the corners.

More mechanical grip and less aero leads to nice drifty racing. For me, its not about out and out speed. Perhaps F1 has the aero/mechanical grip ratio too far towards the aero.

Bring back tiny wings and huge tyres in F1.

meanredspider

EKE_38BPM wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

Which channel is it on? I might try to catch it with a catch up service. That said, some of the best racing I've watched this year has been some of the classic stuff like the Revival - those 60's cars on cross-ply tyres drifting through the corners.

More mechanical grip and less aero leads to nice drifty racing. For me, its not about out and out speed. Perhaps F1 has the aero/mechanical grip ratio too far towards the aero.

Bring back tiny wings and huge tyres in F1.

The cross-ply tyres generate much higher slip-angles too - you throw the car into the corner and then sort it all out - it's hilarious fun. I was meant to be racing at Spa in an historic series but then my son was diagnosed with cancer and that suddenly wasn't important. One day...