FIA to push limits of the Halo design
- Published on 03 Aug 2017 15:18
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- By: Fergal Walsh
The FIA has revealed that it will push the limits of the Halo to make it more aesthetically pleasing. Many fans and some drivers have criticised the Halo mainly for the way it looks on a Formula 1 car, claiming it takes the DNA of F1 cars away.
"Of course you can't reject the safety argument," Renault driver Nico Hulkenberg wrote in his column for the German broadcaster Sport1. "But must Formula 1 be safer than it is? Should motor racing not be a little dangerous? Is that not part of the attraction and appeal for both drivers and the fans?"
Others have questioned the drivers view from the cockpit, but George Russell, who tested the Mercedes W08 on Tuesday and Wednesday, said that it did not obstruct his view when he ran with it for a handful of laps: "My vision was not restricted at all by the Halo, surprisingly.
"One very funny positive was that at the end of the day, when the sun was coming down, the Halo actually blocked the sun from my eyes, so I actually saw more than I would usually see on circuit at 5.30pm when the sun is low.
"To be honest, from a drivers' perspective, when you're doing a quali lap the visibility is completely fine. The only hindrance could potentially be the start lights, but I was extremely surprised by the Halo and by what I could see."
FIA technical boss Laurent Mekies stated: "At the moment, the central support is 2cm thick, but we believe there is scope to improve the visibility for the drivers. We will carry out tests and reduce the thickness to 16 millimetres. We will push the system to its limits."
Fergal Walsh
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Replies (3)
Login to replyRacetoWin
Posts: 95
i think they can get away with a shark fin infront of the driver. they can even connect it up the the roll bar if needed. drivers can still exit to the left or right.
im not sure how a driver will get out of a car if it rolls upside down with the halo, what if the the driver is knocked out and the car is on fire, can the marshals get to the drivers belts and still pull him out?
the halo might create more safety issues.
f1fan0101
Posts: 1,804
The halo provides more space for the driver to get out, and if the Halo becomes an obstruction marshalls have a device to cut through the Halo in a couple of seconds
krommenaas
Posts: 155
If the front part could just be integrated with the chassis more, so it doesn't look bolted on, it could actually look quite cool.