2013 Pirelli's shown today

What's with the white lab coats?

Pirelli introduces modified 2013 F1 tyres - F1technical.net

snippets:


"The defining characteristic of the 2013 Pirelli Formula One tyres is softer compounds all round, which will allow them to reach peak operating temperature faster and deliver lap times that are around 0.5 seconds faster than last year"

"Swift evolution of Pirelli’s tyre technology has allowed the new hard tyre – the PZero Orange – to be roughly equivalent to last year’s medium compound.The tyre sidewalls are softer this year, but the shoulders are stronger. The effect of this is faster thermal degradation while the tyre’s peak performance window is extended. Traction is also improved, which translates into faster lap times, especially on the exit of corners and in combined traction areas, from braking to acceleration and vice versa."

 

Orange makes more sense than that silver they used to have for the mediums. I always got the mediums confused with hards.

 

Aren't the Pirelli's going to be heavier this year? 2KGs - I think they also upped the min weight of the car to compensate.

 

Shouldn't matter. With the softer sidewalls the tire will compress a bit more giving a bit more of aero.

 

You are correct. They initially increased the min. weight by 2kg's to compensate.

However, this seems to have changed again! The latest release of the regs says min weight in 2014 will be 685kg, up from 640 this (2013) season.

Cheers,
Ian

 

Not that there was anything wrong with last year's tires.
Tough to admit that you've fixed a problem that you never acknowledged.

 

I could be wrong, but I'm reading that these could be even more "sensitive"..... Faster heating & thermal degradation, albeit with a wider peak performance window and more traction suggests they could be all over the place.

Hopefully the teams have enough useful history and data to get 'em working properly.

Cheers,
Ian

 

Hilarity ensues.

 

I agree with you. Easier to heat tells me just what it tells you, only I think this may be a good thing for teams who had a difficult time getting good average heat to all 4 tires. Every team had that issue sometime during 2012. But will all this be at the expense of tires falling to pieces at a rediculous pace. Probably

 

"Same for all!"

+1

It was never explicitly "explained", but my understanding was that getting the F-to-R balance right was what did a lot of 'em in over the season. Then they start blasting hot gases at the rears and wondered why they got too hot! Or, more significantly, got too hot compared to the fronts. Then, when they did find a balance it only lasted for a few laps - This should be helped by the wider operating window of course.

I guess the good thing from their perspective is we're at least talking about 'em..... For many years of the sole supplier we simply accepted that they were round and black. Didn't garner much discussion.

Cheers,
Ian

 

F-Pilot there is a real science behind 7 races with 7 winners, those lab coats are a must!!