Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[F1 teams debating introduction of KERS for 2009]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/24/f1-teams-debating-introduction-of-kers-for-2009/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/24/f1-teams-debating-introduction-of-kers-for-2009/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/24/f1-teams-debating-introduction-of-kers-for-2009/#commentsFiled under: ,

Following two incidents in two weeks, it looks like the ballyhooed KERS hybrid system might not make it onto Formula 1 cars for 2009 -- at least, not the first races. Teams have begun to talk about how much difficulty they're having in building a safe system. KERS not only needs to work when the car is racing around the track, it also needs to be engineered properly in the event of a 300-kph accident.

In addition to Red Bull's smoke and fumes and BMW's bolt from the blue, Mark Weber said that teams are struggling to deal with the chemicals in the batteries. Supposedly, the stuff that runs off a blown up KERS battery is poisonous arsenic. Toyota's head of engine development said all the teams are having trouble, and Williams Driver Nico Rosberg appeared to doubt whether his team would have it ready by the first race of '09. The teams have scheduled to discuss the matter at their next Technical Working Group meeting. As for us, we can live with or without KERS. Just keep the slicks, will you?

[Source: F1-Live]

F1 teams debating introduction of KERS for 2009 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 24 Jul 2008 16:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>auto racingAutoRacingf1formula 1formula oneFormula1FormulaOnekersmotorsportmotorsportsracingtechnologyThu, 24 Jul 2008 16:32:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/1266079/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2008/07/24/f1-teams-debating-introduction-of-kers-for-2009/1266079/article-detail.xml 1266079 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2008/07/kers_delayed_f1_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2008/07/kers_delayed_f1.jpg <![CDATA[Anatomy of a race driver proves hardcore required]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/05/01/anatomy-of-a-race-driver-proves-hardcore-required/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/05/01/anatomy-of-a-race-driver-proves-hardcore-required/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/05/01/anatomy-of-a-race-driver-proves-hardcore-required/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Yes, racing is a sport, even NASCAR. Talented people always make difficult things look easy, but wrestling a vehicle traveling well in excess of one-hundred miles an hour would beat down most mortals in short order. Wired has put up an informative rollover-fest that gives credence to the idea that while us auto writers might be the walking embodiment of a Boston Creme donut, professional racers don't share our gooey center. Driving race cars to win takes dedication on many levels -- time and money are biggies -- and success is unlikely if the mind and body are not as finely tuned as the chassis.

To capture the checkered flag, drivers toil in an environment that's hot and loud, and controls require strong, sure inputs. This ain't your two-finger cruise up the interstate in air-conditioned pleasantness. A regimen of weight training is necessary for the physical performance, while we really like the fact that gaming helps train the eyes and brain to process high speeds. What we don't like is that crunches are apparently necessary. How are we going to be taken seriously in a room full of auto journos if we're all trim and good-drivery? Thanks for all the tips!

[Source: Wired]

Anatomy of a race driver proves hardcore required originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 01 May 2008 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>anatomy of a racerAnatomyOfARacerauto racingAutoRacingmotorsportsrace carrace driverRaceCarRaceDriverracing anatomyRacingAnatomywiredwired magazinewired racingwired scienceWiredMagazineWiredRacingWiredScienceThu, 01 May 2008 19:30:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/1182338/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2008/05/01/anatomy-of-a-race-driver-proves-hardcore-required/1182338/article-detail.xml 1182338 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2008/04/anatomy_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2008/04/anatomy.jpg <![CDATA[Renault CEO pledges support for Formula 1 team]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/31/renault-ceo-pledges-support-for-formula-1-team/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/31/renault-ceo-pledges-support-for-formula-1-team/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/31/renault-ceo-pledges-support-for-formula-1-team/#commentsFiled under:

Win on Sunday, get a budget boost on Monday - that's the way it seems to be working for Renault's Formula 1 team. The team has been operating under a cloud of uncertainty about its future ever since Carlos Ghosn (right), renowned cost-cutter, took the reins as president and CEO of Renault. Indeed, many attribute the pending loss of 2005 world champion (and 2006 points leader) Fernando Alonso at the end of the season to his possible concerns about the future of the team.

Ghosn, in attendance at Renault's dominating performance in this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix, moved to affirm his support for Renault's F1 effort, saying, "There are a lot of cars arriving in the next three years that will benefit directly from the halo effect of our Formula 1 victories." (The team's F1 drivers figure prominently in PR shots for its newly-launched Clio Renault Sport model, for example.)

More importantly (certainly to the team), the famously frugal Ghosn confirmed that the team would have the "necessary funding" to compete "at the top level." He did take a dig at some of Renault's more, um, free-spending rivals in Formula 1 (read, Toyota), saying, "We are achieving the best results on one of the smallest budgets... It would be embarassing if things were the other way round, and we had the biggest budget with no results." (Ouch!)

[Source: RenaultF1.com]

Renault CEO pledges support for Formula 1 team originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 31 May 2006 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>auto racingcarlos ghosnf1formula 1formula onegrand prixmonacorenaultWed, 31 May 2006 18:58:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/623198/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2006/05/31/renault-ceo-pledges-support-for-formula-1-team/623198/article-detail.xml 623198 http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/05/ghosnf1_thumbnail.jpg http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/05/ghosnf1.jpg <![CDATA[[Not TiVoSafe] Motorsports Highlights: May 13-14]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/15/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-may-13-14/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/15/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-may-13-14/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/15/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-may-13-14/#commentsFiled under:

Formula 1: Spanish Grand Prix, Valencia
World champion Fernando Alonso added to his 2006 championship lead this weekend, in the process becoming the first Spaniard ever to win the Spanish GP. Renault teammate Giancarlo Fisichella failed to hold off Michael Schumacher's Ferrari, losing his P2 starting slot to Schumacher during the first round of pit stops. Fisi finished third, ahead of Ferrari's Felipe Massa, who scored the fastest lap of the race. Next up: the always entertaining Monaco GP. Full race info at grandprix.com or formula1.com. Photo courtesy Renault.

Lots more after the jump...

Continue reading [Not TiVoSafe] Motorsports Highlights: May 13-14

[Not TiVoSafe] Motorsports Highlights: May 13-14 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 15 May 2006 17:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>american le mansauto racingchamp carindycarmotogpmotor racingnascarracingMon, 15 May 2006 17:52:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/618599/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2006/05/15/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-may-13-14/618599/article-detail.xml 618599 http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/05/alonsospangp_thumbnail.jpg http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/05/alonsospangp.jpg <![CDATA[[Not TiVoSafe] Motorsports Highlights: February 25-26]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2006/02/27/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-february-25-26/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/02/27/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-february-25-26/http://www.autoblog.com/2006/02/27/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-february-25-26/#commentsFiled under:

NASCAR: Matt Kenseth (at right) handed Ford its first NASCAR victory for its new Fusion model Sunday, winning the Auto Club 500 in Fontana, California. Jack Roush's Ford teams ran at the front all day, and on the restart for another green-white-checker finish, Kenseth had no trouble pulling away from the Chevy of runner-up Jimmie Johnson. Carl Edwards put his Roush Ford Fusion in third, with Kasey Kahne (Dodge) and Jeff Burton (Chevrolet) rounding out the top five. Check out www.nascar.com for full coverage.

NHRA: Melanie Troxel just missed notching her second Top Fuel victory at the Kragen Nationals in Arizona, Sunday, losing in the final round to Rod Fuller, who turned 4.563 seconds at 321.42 mph. Troxel's spouse, Tommy Johnson, had better luck, beating out John Force in the final round of Funny Car competition. Warren "The Professor" Johnson won Pro Stock for a record 96th time. Details at www.nhra.com

A1GP: A clean sweep for France this weekend, as the team returned to its winning ways with Alexandre Premat claiming both the Sprint Race and the Feature Race, as well as the bonus point for fastest race lap. Premat was joined on the feature race podium by second-place Jos Verstappen (Netherlands) and Neel Jani (Switzerland). Total points for the weekend saw France on top, followed by Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Italy, with Germany and the Czech Repulbic tied for fifth. Heading into the penultimate round of the championship, France holds a commanding lead over Switzerland. The two teams are guaranteed the top two spots on the Championship podium, but the final podium spot will be a battle, with Great Britain holding a slim lead over Brazil, Netherlands and New Zealand. Full coverage, including a complete online video replay of the Mexico races, at www.a1gp.com

[Not TiVoSafe] Motorsports Highlights: February 25-26 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 27 Feb 2006 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>a1gpauto racingAutoRacingmotorsportsnascarnhraracingMon, 27 Feb 2006 12:30:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/594808/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2006/02/27/not-tivosafe-motorsports-highlights-february-25-26/594808/article-detail.xml 594808 http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/02/kensethcali500_thumbnail.jpg http://www.autoblog.com/media/2006/02/kensethcali500.jpg -1 2