New Safety Car Measures

[Wizzo]

F1 teams are set to test new safety car measures during the practice sessions at the French Grand Prix.

The safety car rules, which prohibit drivers from coming into the pits to refuel, have come under fire as teams complained about incurring a penalty rather than risk running out of fuel before the pit lane opens.

A solution to be tested by FIA would see the standard ECU in each F1 car utilized to help control the speed of the car when the safety car is on the track. A driver would be sent a message on his steering wheel control panel which he would have to acknowledge in order to activate the system, thus ensuring that everyone is running at the same speed as they make their way around the course.

However, Renault sporting manager Steve Nielsen says while the new procedure may prove to be the solution, he doesn't think it should be implemented until 2009.

"I don't think we should rush into anything because what we have now was agreed on the basis that safety should come first," Nielsen explains.

"When the safety car comes out it means there must be some sort of incident on the circuit so there's every reason to slow the cars down.

"(The simulation in France) is purely an experiment to demonstrate to the drivers how the system will work. And if that's successful we will then go on and incorporate it into the rules as a proper regulation. Honestly, I think it's something that should perhaps be done for 2009."

In order for the system to be implemented mid-season, all the F1 teams would have to agree to it.

[johnbull]

In recent GPs, the safety car, coupled with some daft new rules, have caused more chaos than any other factor.

The pit lane restriction rule is unbelievable. What intelligent official opens the pit entrance to allow 8 cars in, then closes the exit at the same time.

There is also the case of inconsistence in dishing out penalties. LH and NR were both penalised for not stopping at the red light. First of all, for accuracies sake, they did stop. LH stopped against Kimi's Ferrari and NR stopped against LH's Mc Laren. Neither of them crossed the red light. They couldn't. Secondly, when Kimi did a suicide dive at Monaco he wasn't penalised. So why were LH and NR?

The FIA is losing credibility by the minute.

[Alianora La Canta]

Lewis Hamilton did cross the red light; the inertia remaining after hitting Kimi Raikkonen's car was enough to send both of them over the line (this does not affect Nico Rosberg). Besides, I thought Hamilton and Rosberg were penalised for careless driving in the pit lane, not for ignoring the light.

Also, there are rules specifically covering pit lane conduct. There aren't any saying "Don't clip puddles on the track".

[Monty]

I'm with John Bull here. As I have said elesewhere, expecting busy drivers with poor visibilty to spot one set of lights is crazy.
Now personally I'm against pit stops all together but let's not go there. If the drivers had been allowed out of the pits (under double yellows and safety car rules) they could simply fall to the back of the snake. If it is essential to close the pit exit then close it with something more obvious than one set of lights.
While I'm ranting, when I raced it seemed to me that the pit lane lights were always doing something (flashing amber, blue, I even saw both red and green on at the same time). Now I'm sure there is more control in an F1 race but my point is; could it be that drivers get to a point where they almost ignore the pit lane lights?

[cosworth151]

How about a string of lights across the pit lane? Even some of the little, quarter mile dirt oval tracks I used to race on had those.

Maybe the pit exit closure could be put on the steering wheel display, too.

[Steven Roy]

Drivers normally only see lights when the car is static at the start of the race.  Since they started karting they have trained themselves to spot flags when the car is moving.  Even in a brightly coloured crowd they can pick out a flag signal.  So the question has to be why is there not a flag marshal at the end of the pit lane.  They could also put multiple lights at the line and down the length of the wall.

[johnbull]

I agree with Steven on having a flag marshall at the end of the pit lane.

He would only need to wave the flag in extreme cases if the pit lane exits were designed sensibly. The Canada one is OK and really doesn't need lights.

I also disagree with closing the pit lane at all during a race. As seen, it creates more problems than it avoids.

Same with unnecessary use of the safety car. We've seen so much of it recently. You wonder who is managing all this.

But the most daft rule of the lot is the question of car set up. As things stand you cannot change any set up item except front wing angle between Saturday and Sunday. So you have a dry, sunny and bright Saturday and you set your car up for that. Come Sunday the track is wet, but you are not allowed to alter damper and wing settings, ride height and the million other settings that are available on an F1 car, even if these are going to make your car alot safer. You have to run on your unsafe dry set up in the wet.

What sort of reasoning is that?

[Scott]

How about a wooden parking garage gate.  Then if they blast threw it, they could have one of those jump-up tire shredders.  Or make the drivers wear 3D helmet visors and have the light beamed into their forhead?  Seriously, I think they should put up as many lights as they need.  You'd think placement of a 'safety' signal of any kind should be clear to every driver at every point in front of it! 

Who needs a 10 place grid penalty when your current race is already ruined?  Why not start putting the guys that get punted out (like Sutil) on the pole the next race?  Now that would be fun.  Why take a guy back, when you can take another one forward?  Again, seriously, grid penalties are stupid and ineffective at preventing similar incidents. 

 

[John S]

I like your thinking Scotty, if one driver is guilty the other(s) must be innocent yet have lost out in the race. For natural justice they should move the victims foward if they move the perpetrators back. Sounds like a lot of excitement could be generated from this.

[Steven Roy]

So someone qualifies on pole (possibly the only pole of his career)and loses out because two different drivers had an accident he wasn't involved in?

[Scott]

It was a joke, Steven.  To point out how ridiculous grid penalties are.

[johnbull]

So now we have more lights, and more switches on the steering wheel. As if they don't have enough as it is.

What a daft idea. The last place a driver should be looking when he's racing, is at his steering wheel.

I wonder when the FIA is finally going to come up with some logical rule; some rule that makes sense; some rule that actually reduces the chances of accident instead of increasing it.

I also disagree entirely with closing the pit lane at any time during a race. If a driver has something falling off his car he cannot come in to fix it without being penalised. Now that's what I call encouraging safety.

The safest time to enter the pits is during a safety car period, so why close it then.

[Scott]

I agree John, in any other series I've ever seen, the only time they close the pit lane is when there's an accident in the pit lane.

[Mitch14]

the rule where you can only pit when the pit lane is open is stupid i mean its somebodys fault if the other person has crashed out because what if the cars started to run out of fuel

[Alianora La Canta]

Technically, you can pit when the pit lane is closed as long as you don't refuel. And closing the pit lane exits once a Safety Car lap is the price of having a Safety Car.