From gpupdate.net: Ferrari was initially unsure of the cause, but post-event investigations at Maranello have attributed it to a software issue at low speed, which ultimately led to a valve failure. "A software failure meant that a problem arose during the formation lap at low revs," a Ferrari spokesman explained to GPUpdate.net, when asked about the problem. I can just imagine it..."let's give this module to the new kid to code. It only runs at low revs and low speeds, so nothing really important..."
LOL that is crasy isn't it! The thing is though with all the secrecy that surounds F1 I wouldn't be surprised if that had absolutely nothing to do with it. It's easy to say slight software glitch, all taken care of!
Not sure it this is the truth or not, but are current F-1 valves pneumatic? I could imagine some computer glitch pumping the valves at the wrong time... etc...
They're definitely pneumatic. However, I don't know enough now to know if a 'computer glitch' could cause a problem. I suspect (but again, don't claim to know) that the entire valve train runs pretty much 'independently' of any computers/the ECU - The ECU will monitor system pressure & flows etc, but I doubt it's fast enough to actually 'control' the system. Anyone want to set us straight? I could certainly be mistaken..... Cheers, Ian
Honestly, I don't really care if it's true or not as long as they take care of it and fix it. I hope it won't happen again..
Actually the only way I can see the computer braking a valve is if it fires the cyl, on the wrong stroke... firing the valve on the compression stroke... I'm assuming the computer can think faster than the valves can react. I know they have sensors imbedded in turbine blades in military aircraft... wonder if its the same in the piston / cyl walls? I guess if you know what is going in and what is coming out not much else to really figure out combustion wise.
Because the software opens and closes the valve directly without a mechanical link (aka not using cams), it's entirely possible that the software shot the valve at the wrong time in the cycle and interference occurred. I'm guessing that to keep this engine running at idle they do all kind of weird tricks to keep it running at lower RPM on the grid, on the warm up and cool down, or in the pits without stalling.
It could be a software issue, but it´s a bit strange that they haven´t find it till the second race of the season. They have run at low revs and made formation laps before.
They change code all the time. They probably change the code between sessions if its legal. This is not a street car. It's got almost nothing in common to what we are used to.
AFAIK, valves still can't be moved by force of will and/or the desire of the S/W! +1 "It ain't easy". Cheers, Ian
As I understand it, the cars are designed to run on a reduced number of cylinders when the car is stationary, and then only on the coolest cylinders, hence why they don't (normally) overheat when they're sat at the end of the pit-lane for minutes at a time waiting for the green light to come on. Given the complexity of the power units these days (combined with how tight an F1 engine is designed to run - When cold, the engines seize solid by design!), it's quite feasible that a software error could have fired a "hot" cylinder just at a critical moment when it shouldn't have, causing damage that eventually destroyed the engine. As others have posted, so long as they have genuinely figured out what happened and have made sure it won't happen again, then that's all that matters now! (Of course, the Anti-Ferrari/conspiracy theory brigade on Fchat's F1 section are going to proclaim this to be a lie from Ferrari and state that what Ferrari claims to have gone wrong simply cannot happen! - All without any explanation as to why it cannot happen, naturally! )
Several of the embedded software engineers travel with the team and yes they will make fixes between sessions. A buddy of mine used to make adjustments all the time.. And yes the problem was with the software which caused the valve to be open at the wrong time as they were making software adjustments to compensate for a lack in the turbo until Honeywell can fix the hardware problem.. Right now they are compensating for Turbo lag since they can spin up the turbo to speed with electric assist and the problem is the PU cannot use the full electric motor assist as some of the power is being used to power the turbo assist. Once Honeywell provide the Turbo, they can apply the difference in power to the ground instead of the Turbo. http://scarbsf1.com/valves.html
This is exactly correct, just like the Chevy V8 can shut down cylinders when not in use, the F1 cars have been doing this for many more years, thus using less fuel during the parade lap, etc.. This is also the reason when there is a restart that Mercedes always have a bad start due to overheating that occurs.. And yes the engines will not turn over when cold, that' why they are plugged in and have running temp coolant and oil flushed through them until they are ready to start and leave the garage. And yes they do know what happened, and yes they have fixed it. They are trying to compensate for Turbo lag due to the hardware design of the turbo and will have to do so until after they receive the new parts from Honeywell.
I wonder if the team just changed the valve or had to change engines and if Seb will receive a grid position penalty? I don't keep up with all the rules any more.
Seb will be on a new engine in China, but no penalty, and yes sometime during the season the team may have to take a penalty for a new engine depending on the wear and tear on the 4 power units left. The best thing is the turbo update will not cost the team any tokens. BTW, as most know Hamilton switched the tranny so he is getting a 5 spot penalty
Rumour has it that some of the customer engined teams on the grid are hoping to get through the season using only 4 engines to help keep their costs down by not having to pay for a 5th engine.
I can't help thinking that if any of them decide to ditch a driver before the end of the season, they might end up having to pay for a 5th engine after all!
About 2.5 to 3 million a piece..., up to 14 million per season for 5 total, depending on the supplier.
