Quote:
Originally Posted by frankss
well look at the Formula 1 cars... they are like what.... 4-5 L V8's and they make like 700hp?? that is the technology we need....
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Ya this year they are 2.4L v8's, and there's some suggesting that they're approaching 950-1000 hp at 18,000 rpm. (FIA limits the revs to 18K) They never really release true power numbers while they're in use for competitive reasons.
the problem is sometimes they don't even last the 1.5 hrs that a race lasts and the fuel consumption is QUITE large to make the peak power. Although they can adjust the mix on the fly when they're trying to conserve fuel, which is a big plus because this year they are also not allowed to refuel during the race. 1 tank has to last the whole race.
I'm a huge formula 1 fan, I love everything about these cars, but I do not want one of those engines in my car haha. They sound like they're stalling at 5k rpm. One of my professors once told me "the perfect racing engine will blow up as you're crossing the finish line" haha that means it's been worked as hard as it possibly could to get you there.
This type of technology has filtered it's way though to our production cars already. Look at all the small displacement european V8's. But to increase reliability you need to make it spin slower, and to keep the same power you need to increase displacement. It's all tradeoffs.
I'll take a high revving screamer for my race car, and the high displacement atomic bomb in my camaro. An LSA in this car will be like releasing an axe murderer in a summer camp.
