Four crucial things F1 fans must be told during races in 2009

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Is he using his KERS boost? What tyre compound is he on?

Following Formula 1 is going to get a lot more complicated in 2009.

The nature of F1 inevitably makes it harder to cover on television than other sports such as football. But Formula One Management and the television compaines that broadcast its feed will have to be seriously on the ball this year. Here’s why.

KERS power boost

As we all know drivers running KERS-equipped cars will be able to summon a boost of up to 80bhp for up to six seconds per lap.

When will drivers use KERS? Probably when they’re trying to overtake. But surely they’ll be hitting the button once per lap wherever the longest straight is to begin with? For the viewer, knowing when and where a driver is using his KERS – whether it’s to overtake, defend or set a hot qualifing lap – is essential.

Presumably the activation of KERS is handled by the standard electronic control unit introduced last year. The FIA has access to that device, so it may have the means to let viewers know in real-time who’s got their finger on the magic ‘K’ button.

Simply knowing which drivers are in KERS-equipped cars in the first place would be a helpful start. Several teams have already indicated they won’t be using KERS in the first race.

Wing adjustments

Another innovation for 2009 is adjustable wings. Drivers can change the position of flaps in their front wings by six degrees twice per lap.

As with KERS the thinking is this will provide an opportunity for drivers to overtake – in this case by adjusting their front wing to compensate for lost downforce when following another car. But are they not just as likely to make use of their adjustments even when not in traffic, to reduce drag on a long straight or increase grip in a series of corners?

Again, exactly how the drivers will use it is interesting, but fans will only be able to follow what is going on if they can see who has changed their wing, and how, in real-time. It may be possible to tell from video of the car whether the driver has adjusted his wing flaps, but that’s not clear yet.

Otherwise, how are we to know whether a driver has adjusted his wing up or down? And, as with KERS, will we be able to see what every driver is doing with their wing angles and KERS boosts or just the drivers we’re being shown on screen? Will we have access to more detailed information on the timing screens? Here’s hoping.

Tyre compounds

How will we tell prime and option slick tyres apart?

The rule requiring drivers to use each of the two compounds of dry-weather tyres during the race remains in 2009 (Sporting Regulations Article 25.4d). And the regulations also state that the two different compounds must be “visibly distinguishable from one another when a car is on the track” (Article 25.1).

But exactly how that will be put into practice isn’t clear. When then two-compounds rule was introduced in 2007 Bridgestone first tried to differentiate between the compounds using white marks on the tyre sidewalls. The problem was they were near-impossible to see when the car was in motion.

That led to Bridgestone adopting the practice of painting one of the grooves white to signify the softer compound. With slick tyres returning this year that will not be possible, so what will they do instead?

It will be especially important to know as Bridgestone plans to bring tyre compounds with greater performance differences in 2009.

In Champ Car (R.I.P.) they used to paint the sidewall of the softer tyre red. The problem with that solution in image-conscious F1 is that teams whose colours do not include red would probably object. Perhaps painting the sidewall in white and stencilling the ‘Bridgestone’ lettering in black would be a better solution?

Or they could just axe the two-compounds rule, as it doesn’t really add anything to the racing and is entirely artificial.

Engines

As discussed last week, the engines situation is going to get more complicated in 2009.

Drivers have eight engines to use during the season and can use whichever they choose in third practice, qualifying and race. How will the fans watching the sessions be told which engine their driver is using? Will the teams be required to declare their choice at the start of each session?

Formula 1 has taken some bold and controversial steps to improve the quality of racing in 2009. But if it fails to keep fans up-to-date with what’s going on in each of these areas during races it will only create more confusion.

Of course we’ll do everything possible to keep track of what the drivers are doing during the sessions in the live blogs, but like everyone else we’re dependent on FOM, the FIA and the teams getting it right.

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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62 comments on “Four crucial things F1 fans must be told during races in 2009”

  1. How great it was when they started and…just let’s see.
    I think we are really going too far.

    Anyway i don’t believe we really need all those information regarding cars current configuration. I remember during turbo era there was the chance to boost the engine, and sometimes you could recognize that by fires and flames fllowing the rupture…anyway it really didn’t add anything to know if the driver had boosted the engine or not. So the same is with KERS or wings. Do we really need to know?

    1. Yes. Taking the tyres as an example, in a situation where one tyre is very quick and the other isn’t, you’ll never understand what’s going on if you don’t know what drivers are using which tyres. Like when Sato passed Alonso at Montreal in 2007.

    2. No. Tyres aside we don’t really need to know. With regard to wings it’s a similar situation to say brake balance or engine mapping. In recent seasons from on-board cameras we’ve seen drivers twisting nobs or pressing buttons and not really known what they’re doing, it hasn’t affected the general appreciation of the sport significantly. The only thing you really need to know about the engines is if a driver has gone over their quota. Sure if a driver has blown up all but one of his engines and is forced to use a less than perfect one it’ll be of some interest but generally I don’t think it’s that important to know. As for KERS it may be obvious or as Raikkonen points out “The KERS gives you more power but it’s for such a short time that I don’t think it will change things much”.

  2. schumi the greatest
    22nd January 2009, 12:16

    Some good points keith, something i hadnt really thought about either.

    i think the kers situation wont be too much of a problem because withe standard ecu the fia will be able to see whos doing what etc. I Think the adjustable wings will be very hard to implement during tv viewing.

    also if your watchin the race on tv, what if 10 of the cars on the track are using kers at the same time, there’s going to be alot of information on the screen all at once

  3. schumi the greatest
    22nd January 2009, 12:27

    to answer your question david i think most people will want to know.

    imagine the following scenario:

    Alonso suddenly overtakes massa well before the 1st round of pit stops, your not going to know whether he got past because of kers because he was light on fuel or if he’s just quicker. I think unless the fia provide this info during the races no-one will ever be able to follow exactly whats happening. And they need to do it in a subtle way, pop ups and flashing lights in the corner of the screen will just look bad

    1. Thanks SO much for bringing this up.

      As it stands, what are peoples current recommendations for web sites that are the most detail orientated in regards to live timing?

  4. I thought with KERS that it was possible, rather than using the button for a short boost of maximal power, to instead use a much smaller boost of power for a much longer time – and indeed had been shown by a team (can’t remember who) that that was in race conditions more likely to be done, as it worked out faster.

    If it was a simple case of “you’ve got X shots of Y length for Z horsepower” like A1GP, that would be straightforward enough to do on-screen graphics-wise, but if it’s not (and I’ll admit so many people have said so many different things about KERS it’s hard to know what’s true), and it’s more variable than that, that could be harder to indicate.

    Hopefully the KERS boost and wing modifications can be added to the sort of HUD-screens they have for revs etc., and also the acceleration/brake comparisons they do between two drivers.

    Definitely agree about the engine situation – that’s more complicated than last year, and hopefully we’ll get pre-race graphics indicating that sort of thing.

    I’d actually not that bothered knowing about the tyre compounds, even if the performance difference is a bit larger than last year. Would maintain a bit of suspense and introduce a (small) tactical element, although I suppose from the point of view of having to run both it is neccessary to see that that has indeed happened.

    I do like that we’re getting all these extra layers of complexity, but for it to really work I think it has to be fairly visible to the viewers. I think we might see some stuff on-screen but don’t hold your hopes out for anything extra interesting on live timing.

  5. And just to add that it’s important to know these things if we ARE going to see more overtaking – we’ll want to know how it was done. Did the driver hit KERS and change the wing angle at the same time to get the pass done, did they do only one of those, did they do none, and what was the driver being passed doing to defend?

  6. the other example is “infamous” Glock vs Hamilton in Brasil. I think those who claimed that Timo let Lewis pass him to make him world champion just didnt knew whats was going on: that the Toyota driver was on dry tires in wet weather and Mclaren one – on wets. I personaly – and i believe lots of you – dont need such information displayed for example on tv screen cause i follow every race very closely and -more or less- know whats going on, but if F1 wants to attract more viewers no one can be sure that they will understand what is clear to us. With Kers its easy – just add some kind of indicator, flashing K or whatever to that on screen display which we see sometimes in tv (the one which shows speed, gear, throttle and so on) and show this view more often. But with tires – why its not possible anymore to just paint a white line on soft ones?
    Other thing is every F1 fan need to learn a little about the rules to enjoy the race more; for example i dont get american football at all so i cant watch it and enjoy it, i need to learn the rules first. And F1 basic rules are very clear and easy to understand but there need to be a will to know them.

    1. Watch the Superbowl next weekend. You’ll see that you don’t need to understand the rules to enjoy it. You find you pick up the basics very quickly. That’s how I got into American Football 4 years ago (and I’ve had one sleepless night every year since).

    2. Terry Fabulous
      22nd January 2009, 21:38

      Yeah Mate, Just think of it as Rugby League but with as many tackles as you want provided you go further then 10 yards every 4 attempts.
      Plus you can forward pass.
      And the big fellas can block.
      And there is 45 seconds between tackles.

      And you will have it!

  7. Apart from the tyres I hadn’t really thought about the points raised in your article Keith. I agree they have to come up with an effective way to display the information during races.
    As someone who has only ever watched races via the UK terrestrial broadcast, could someone tell me what extra information you can currently get on other channels and on the internet, such as timing data etc.

  8. I think as everyone has recognised, broadcasters face a real challenge in displaying this raft of new information. Indeed, the commentators are going to have fun keeping up also.

    For me, as long as the information is available online, I will continue to “top-up” my F1 experience using a laptop and Formula1.com; that already goes some way to compensate for the lack of detailed timing information displayed on my TV.

    Horses for courses: geeks can play with all the numbers, while Average Joe can make do with being spoon-fed by the director / commentary team

  9. keepF1technical
    22nd January 2009, 13:43

    surely like all performance enhancing devices its a balance between gain and reliability.

    it wouldn’t surprise me if the teams just calculate when best to use kers / wing throughout the lap and stick to it each lap. Although it could be telling of the engine characteristics when each manufacturer would choose to use it in this instance – a function of the power curve, gear, etc hence which bend being exited for max advantage.

    Alternatively, given the 8 engine rule, the kers could be used to protect the engine a little, being used at the most stressed moment throughout the lap.

  10. The best site for live timing data is the official one – http://www.f1.com.

    Those of you who weren’t with us during last season won’t have sampled the delights of the F1 Fanatic live blog. Here’s the one from the Brazilian Grand Prix last year:

    https://www.racefans.net/2008/11/02/brazilian-grand-prix-live-blog/

    (If you’ve not read the live blog from the final few laps in that race, make sure you do!)

    Basically we all watch the race together and share all the live information we have access to from a variety of sources, whether it’s sites like Autosport or different TV feeds around the world like Speed, RAI and, in 2009, the BBC.

    We will of course be doing all that again this year and there will be new features on the system which I’ll fill you all in on later.

    1. Thanks Keith!

      I wasn’t in the “know” about your live blog last season. I’m a relatively new F1 fan, and am excited to follow along during upcoming races.

  11. I personally don’t care if I don’t know these things.

    If I see a car pass another car, I’ll just be happy that I’ve seen an overtake. Whether it was because of the KERS boost, a lower wing angle, or combination of the two, it doesn’t matter, I’ll have a go at working it out in my own head if I’m that worried.

    Tyre compounds… I still don’t get the ‘use both in the race’ rule. Just hulk a load of different tyres to each race and let the team choose which they want to run with all weekend. But even so, just paint the wall of the tyre. If teams are worried about colours, just have Bridgestone paint the walls with a different colour for each team to match their livery. The tyres are already pre-designated to each of the teams anyway.

    As far as the engines go, once again, it matters not to me which of their 8 engines they’re using, AS LONG AS I’m told when a driver is onto his 9th.

    So it may not be equal. A driver overtakes another whilst using KERS, and viewers may choose to see that as down to the technology rather than the driver. But then, in F1, all things are not equal, and I believe that is the point of F1.

    If you have F1 with everything being equal, leaving the only difference down to the driver, then you have a spec series. And from what I’ve seen here over the past 6 months, nobody wants that.

    Let the lights go out at the start, lets have some great, close racing, and not worry about the buttons and boosts and wing adjustments, and end up with the drivers crossing the finish line within tenths of a second of each other, and let the top 3 stand on the podium at the end.

    With medals around their necks. Maybe.

    1. Why are the teams having to use two tyre compounds at all? Surely there ought to be enough overtaking with the return of slicks, the absence of aerodynamics and KERS? The two compounds were only introduced to ensure the cars had to pit every so often, but if the tyres are not as good as Bridgestone say they are, the cars will be in the pits quite often anyway!
      If we continue with the daft two compound rule, then I think the choosing of the colours should be down to the teams, although I am also sure a gizmo could be fitted or a button pressed by the pit crew which shows the difference electronically too. There is even the option of a tear off strip similar to that used in Touring Cars.
      I don’t want to see a screen cluttered with information all the time – perhaps something like the NASCAR screen could be used, with arrows highlighting the cars status, especially during overtaking moves…

      1. The two compounds were only introduced to ensure the cars had to pit every so often

        Actually I think it was because Bridgestone wanted it because they realised that after the end of the tyre war there was no reason for anyone to discuss their products.

        1. That too of course And why should anybody be discussing their products? We don’t talk about the steering wheels or the seats do we?

          1. True – except when they fall off or break…

            (Sorry – that was a reply to DG’s comment about us not talking about the steering wheel or seats)

  12. On balance the two compound rule doesn’t add that much. Occasionally it may introduce some action (Sato overtaking Alonso, Candada 2007) but it’s just another complexity for the average F1 fan.

  13. Sorry this message is not straight to point but:

    Too much changes for a way too short time. KERS no needed at all. Allmost every team has said that it has nothing to do with civil cars.
    Wondering even how much it takes money to develop that thing?…gives grey hairs for all the areas from factory to viewers.
    Sometimes it feels like principals of this sports forgot the basics.
    Keep it simple…
    I predict there will be somekind of problems atleast couple of times next season when drivers are using KERS and sametime try to get maximal out of their frontwing and there´s tree cars side by side on straight or corner. They are still only humans and unfotunately our brains can´t do suchs a decission on that speed and time.
    But anyway…very good points from Keith AGAIN, thanks…really enjoying this site..

  14. On balance the two compound rule doesn’t add that much. Occasionally it may introduce some action (Sato overtaking Alonso, Candada 2007) but it’s just another complexity for the average F1 fan.

    The two-compound rule is there for one reason and one reason only – to keep Bridgestone happy. They wanted to have their cake and eat it. With a sole supplier the only reason anyone’s going to talk about tyres is when they fail or if there’s some daft gimmick like this.

    They didn’t want to be involved in a tyre war, but they didn’t want everyone to stop talking about the tyres, so we get this.

  15. Maybe the cars will have to look like police vehicles, flashing these big red, blue, or green lights depending on what they have activated at the moment !
    just joking ….. but it´s good that the issue has been raised

  16. I’m happy I raised such a discussion.
    I liked many of points and I think you got most of my “provocation”,
    The fact is: consider an exciting race, with many overtakes attempts and positions shifting. Do you really want K lights or wing informations to come up on the screen, or you just sit and enjoy?
    To reinforce…rev and gear, or throttle and breaking information it’s something I really look at when I’m bored and nothing else happens. But when a race is really appealing I don’t think you really want to have the screen filled with light spots.

    A question from me: do you know how many times a driver will be able to turn KERS on? Once per race? Once per lap?

    1. Once per lap for a 6-second boost of 60 hp. The other mode of work is to give small boost over whole lap.

  17. As usual this website produces stunning amounts of really intelligent comment from a bunch of guys who really know F1 inside out. I have to admit that I am not up to speed with some of the more advanced technical stuff, but clearly a lot of you guys know a very great deal. Very, very impressive.

    So it just worries me a bit about the average joe and his good lady who tunes in his BBC tv just after lunch on Sunday afternoon to watch ‘that young Hamilton and the other guy from Spain’ ? Will these highly complicated matters just go straight over his head ?

    What proportion of the world TV audience knows what you guys know ?

  18. The two compound rule was introduced in an effort to re-introduce the variability (and excitement) that was lost when Bstone became the single tyre supplier for F1.

    Back before the days of Micelin vs Bstone, there were multiple suppliers supplying multiple teams, much like the engine suppliers. In those days, tyres suited the cars better because they were developed specifically for them, cf Ferrari and Bstone in 2004 and Renault and Michelin in 2005 (to a lesser extent). You got a lot of action when certain brands of tyres reached their optimum at different times in the race, rather than all at the same time (more or less) the way you would have if everyone was allowed to use the compound that suited them. We are now left with a contrived situation, where teams have to use both compounds, rather than the best compound. Another half-baked FIA decision which wil hopefully go the way of grooved tyres one day.

    1. You got a lot of action when certain brands of tyres reached their optimum at different times in the race

      I don’t remember Michelin’s tyres ever reaching their optimum in 2004; I just remember Bridgestone/Ferrari winning everything…

      But I agree with you, the current situation is a contrivance.

    2. He’s referring to those tyres that had to be worn just a little (~3-5 rounds, maybe more) to perform optimal..

  19. What about an indicator of KERS activity on the car itself? That would solve all the problems I guess. Think about it: two sets of small sets of LED lights at the front and rear of the cars, lightning up only when KERS is on. They could be blue or green to differ from the pit and rain lights. A simple idea which an Average Joe, the punters the commentators could follow very easily. The same could apply to the flaps of course.

  20. They could axe the two – compound rule, and how about the qualifying tyres as well ? what is the point if they are the same for everyone ?
    If they still mantain the two tyres, the name Brigestone could be painted in either white or red, as Keith says. Red goes well with everything

  21. I do hope we get better information this year.
    And there is hope, because of the LG deal that’s in place!
    Let’s hope this means a fresh start for us ppl :)

  22. Although I do want KERS in this year, its a shame we can’t see the effect of just the new aero regs (minus adjustable wings) this year. It’d then be good to see the effect KERS has the following year, and adjustable wings joining the other regs the year after that. I think for tyres it would be better if there were many choices on offer with no regulations concerning which compounds to use. Then the cars will just go as fast as they can without worrying about being on a bad tyre later in the race.

  23. With all of these new developments along with the fairly much all new design of the ’09 cars, I’m sooooooo excited about this season. More so than I have been for a while. WOO HOO!!!!

  24. Keith: Has anyone taken this up with Bernie or Max? What’s the Beeb’s take? I would think they’d have some input on this.

    1. Not as far as I’m aware, but if I hear anything of course I’ll write about it here.

  25. Or they could just axe the two-compounds rule, as it doesn’t really add anything to the racing and is entirely artificial.

    That’d be nice.
    I’ve never seen the point of the two compound rule, it adds nothing to the show other than some air time for Bridgestone.

    I was hoping we’d see an improvement to the live timings on the F1 website this season to display the sort of information Keith’s mentioned above.

    I appreciate that some people don’t care about this sort of thing but I like to know what’s going on during the race and find you only get half of the story from the T.V., the current live timings are good but need improving and the more information they could add to it the better.

    Those of you who weren’t with us during last season won’t have sampled the delights of the F1 Fanatic live blog.

    I’d recommend this to everyone.
    Spa was my first Live Blog after finding this site last year and it was brilliant.
    I like meeting up with friends to watch the race but when it’s not possible & for qualifying the Live Blog is just as good, there were many times each race where I was laughing out loud at some of the comments & it’s great getting other people’s perspective on the race & qualifying as it happens.

  26. Why not have the KERS power boost indication on the actual cars? Some kind of light on the back of the car, maybe the ‘danger… danger high voltage’ sign could glow and the stereo could pump out the obvious, soon to be overused, song?

    Why not go all fast and furious with flames or neon under-glow?

    1. I was humming that song to myself while I was editing the image on top of this article: Should KERS be put back to 2010? (Poll)

  27. Anyone knows anything about the 2009 quali system? Is it going to be the same as this year or are they changing it?
    Gr8 work Keith! Also the comments are fantastic!

    P.S. I like the idea of the coloured led lights on the car to indicate KERS on!
    Also, where can you get live timing or filming on the tests?

    1. Qualifying will be the same in 2009. FOTA suggested an elaborate and over-complicated alternative but so far it hasn’t been taken up.

    2. Terry Fabulous
      22nd January 2009, 21:43

      AC/DC

      HIGH!!!!!
      VOLTAGE!!!!!
      RACING CAR!!!!!

      (Exactly 6 Seconds!)

      In all serious, why not have a small device in the car similar to those thingos you see at science fairs that make your hair go all fuzzy.
      Mount it behind the driver and when they hit the KERS button, we get a light flash of blue lightening in a bottle!!
      That would be awesome!!

      1. A Van de Graaf generator? (There’s a good chance I’m not spelling that right).

  28. rule of thumb – if something seems too complicated, then it generally is – and that’s when you lose your audience!

    it’s also by no means inconceivable of even more ludicrous rules whereby the stewards can mess up a perfectly good race scenario. what happens if a driver activates his flaps three times in a lap? who will be counting? what if he pushes the K-button while under a safety car period? or passing a yellow flag?

    point one – we already have paranoid policing of the rules – it is still supposed to be racing after all.

    point two – how much will all of these new fangled tricks (moveable flaps, and counters, KERS, boost buttons and monitors, etc..) cost to implement? is this seriously the best way of “drastically cutting costs”???

    back to basics guys – please!

  29. I would have thought that THE best time for a KERS boost would be accelerating to the first corner as that’s when the most places can be made up.

    Anyone know though whether the KERS is allowed to be charged on the warmup lap?

    If so could we see some aggressive braking during that lap to ensure it’s fully charged?

    Or are the teams allowed to fully charge the KERS batteries on the grid prior to the warm up?

    1. KERS can be charged on the warm-up lap. However we are unlikely to see aggressive braking as teams are also allowed to charge KERS units overnight in parc fermé.

  30. Terry Fabulous has a point – but could it be done in that “T” shaped antenna on top of the upper air intake ? this piece could be transparent and have a quick – flashing light
    Spaceship Enterprise taking off, to the music of AC/DC !

  31. I remember at a GP a few years ago, the Ferrari had pink tyres! I would like to see the softer compounds completely dyed in a colour of the team’s choice. Ferrari, red. McLaren, silver etc. Failing that, get Max to force them to race on white tyres, seems to get his way with things from time to time.

  32. The rain light idea is not a bad one as there is more then enough room for another set of led’s. I think tv graphic should put a KERS indicator while they are showing the drivers name and team, that would be the most elegant solution if they could get real-time data of course…

    As for adjustable flaps – maybe they could show on-board camera from front wing to show flaps moving in slow-motion rerun, I don’t really see a good way to do it real-time…

  33. Or are the teams allowed to fully charge the KERS batteries on the grid prior to the warm up?

    I was wondering the same thing

  34. hi everyone! great website, mr. keith.

    my thoughts on what’s already been brought up:

    it should be pretty easy to add KERS and wing info to the existing telemtry display – a black “K” on a yellow square, and a “W” arrow up or “W” arrow down. it’s been a while since i’ve looked at the live timing (jumbo tv doubles as my pc screen) but i’m sure it could carry the extra info continuously.

    mandating the use of both tire compounds is silly. i like the fact that there are 2 compounds, and that bridgestone will do more to differentiate the 2, but teams/drivers should be free to use each as they like.

    wing adjustments twice per lap (i previously heard once per lap) and KERS once per lap – how will this be controlled, by timer or lap counter? if it is a lap counter, that would violate 1 of the long standing commandments:

    the car must not detect the start of the race
    the car must not detect the start/end of a lap
    the car must not know where it is on the track

    i suppose with an infinite number of presets instantly available, the other 2 are less important.

    it’s my understanding that KERS in f1 is strictly a push-to-pass/knight rider turbo boost, and not a fuel economizer. i believe it was racecar engineering that described f1 KERS as cycling 70ish times per event, and le mans KERS cycling thousands of times per event.

    cheers!

    1. hi everyone! great website, mr. keith.

      Thank you Mr F1 :-)

    2. The control is through the ECU system. Teams can’t use their own detection systems for the race, lap starts and ends or location, but there is nothing stopping the FIA from knowing those things for each car.

  35. Since KERS grabs some energy thrown away when braking presumably, it’ll be used every lap when it’s pedal to the metal on straights

    Perhaps it would be more interesting to see when KERS is not being used as a clue to lap strategy.

  36. Great info and great site. Lookin forward to the 2009 season. Heard you guys do live chat during races?? Would u do it this year too?

    1. Definitely – bigger and better than ever :-)

  37. I’m not worried. We have eagle-eyed Steve Matchett here in the US on Speed TV! \o/

  38. It needs to be on live timing if they want fans following those other than the lead 3 cars. just tyres and engine laps for mine.

  39. For KERS, there will be a bright green light on in the cockpit area when it is not engaged or primed. This is mandated in the Technical Regulations because only when the light is on will the car be considered safe for marshalls to touch. It’s not a perfect solution, but it will help.

    I’ll try to keep track of the engine situation through my blog. As for the rest, I don’t know how or if the information will be provided.

  40. F1 sure has it’s work cut out for this year. I’m still hoping the computer tech heads at F1.com will take a leaf out of A1GP and provide us FREE a ‘dashboard’ type individual car telemetry as well as live timing obviously. But I’m not holding my breath as F1 is good at staying one step behind in this area and equally good at keeping fans in the dark whilst barely drip feeding them enough to keep them frustratedly interested. I hope I’m proved resoundingly wrong in my cynicism…

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