Open-wheel car

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Open-wheel car
sports
Fuel sourceGasoline, electric, hydrogen
PoweredYes
Self-propelledYes
Wheels4–6
AerofoilsOptional
Axles2–4
InventorRay Harroun

An open-wheel car is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have their wheels below the body or inside fenders. Open-wheel cars are built both for road racing and oval track racing. Open-wheel cars licensed for use on public roads (street legal), such as the Ariel Atom, are uncommon, as they are often impractical for everyday use.[1]

History

American racecar driver and constructor

AAA National Championship in 1910. He was then hired by the Marmon Motor Car Company as chief engineer, charged with building a racecar intended to race at the first Indianapolis 500, which he went on to win. He developed a revolutionary concept which would become the originator and forefather of the single-seater (i.e. monoposto) racecar design.[3][4] Harroun has also been credited by some as pioneering the rear-view mirror which appeared on his 1911 Indianapolis 500 winning car, though he himself claimed he got the idea from seeing a mirror used for a similar purpose on a horse-drawn vehicle in 1904.[5]

A Ford Model T, one of the most popular road-legal cars of the early 20th century. Note how the wheels are well outside the main body of the car, as was typical for the era.

Prior to

unibody vehicle construction, the desire to maximise interior space, to improve aerodynamics, and aircraft-inspired styling trends of the era, by the end of the 1950s the majority of new road-registerable vehicles had wheels that were under the main body of the car, and thus the open-wheel design became almost exclusively associated with racing vehicles.

A 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL
which featured wheels under the main body of the vehicle, primarily for aerodynamic drag reduction

Formula One cars have almost exclusively used the open-wheel design throughout the history of the championship. The only notable exception was the "Monza body" variation of the Mercedes-Benz W196 racer of 1954–55, which covered the wheels with bodywork for aerodynamic reasons. Modern Formula One regulations mandate the open-wheel configuration.

Design

A typical open-wheeler has a minimal cockpit, sufficient only to enclose the driver's body, with the head exposed to the air. In the

wings at the front and rear of the vehicle, as well as a very low and virtually flat undertray that helps achieve additional aerodynamic downforce pushing the car onto the road. While many other categories of racing cars produce downforce, the top categories of open-wheel racing cars (particularly Formula One and IndyCar
) produce far more downforce relative to their mass than any other racing category, allowing much higher corner speeds on comparable tracks.

Some major races, such as the

Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium and Silverstone in Great Britain. In the United States, some top-level open-wheel events are held on ovals, of both short track and superspeedway variety, with emphasis more on speed and endurance than the maneuverability required for road and street course events. The Whelen Modified Tour is the only opened wheeled race car series endorsed by NASCAR. This series races on most of NASCAR's most famous tracks in the United States. Other asphalt modified series race on short tracks in the United States and Canada, such as Wyoming County International Speedway in New York. The best-attended oval race in the world is the annual Indianapolis 500 (Indy 500) in Speedway, Indiana
, sanctioned by IndyCar; in the United States it is quite common to refer to open-wheel cars as IndyCars, because of their recognizable appearance and widespread popularity across America at the Indy 500. Compared to covered-wheel race cars, open-wheeled cars allow more precise placement of the front wheels on the race course, as the tires are clearly visible to the driver. This allows the maximum potential of the cars to be achieved during cornering and passing. Furthermore, open-wheeled cars are less tolerant of vehicle-to-vehicle contact, which usually results in vehicle damage and retiring, whereas some level of contact is expected in covered-wheel racing, as for example in NASCAR. Open-wheeled drivers must be extremely precise to avoid contact.

Regulations tend to permit much lower open-wheel car weights than in categories that more closely resemble street-legal vehicles, such as sports, touring, and stock cars. For instance, a Formula One car must weigh at least 798 kilograms (1,759 lb);[6] the minimum weight for NASCAR is 1,500 kilograms (3,200 lb).[7]

Driving

Open-wheeled racing is among the fastest in the world. Formula One cars can reach speeds in excess of 360 kilometres per hour (220 mph). At

Indy Cars
attain speeds of 190 miles per hour (310 km/h).

Regardless of top speeds, Formula One open-wheel race cars hold the outright lap record at the circuits where they race due to their combination of top speed, acceleration, and cornering abilities. For example, at the Monza Circuit the fastest lap in the 2021 Grand Prix (Daniel Ricciardo 1:24.812) is more than six seconds per lap faster than the fastest closed-wheel racing car, an LMP1 sports car, and more than 20 seconds per lap faster than the DTM touring car lap record.

Driving an open-wheel car is substantially different from driving a car with fenders. Virtually all Formula One and IndyCar drivers spend some time in various open-wheel categories before joining either top series. Open-wheel vehicles, due to their light weight,

Alex Barron
.

Advantages

The lower weight of an open-wheel racecar enables better performance. While the exposure of the wheels to the airstream causes a very high aerodynamic drag at high speeds, it allows improved cooling of the brakes, which is important on road courses with their frequent changes of pace.[10]

Gallery

  • Caterham open wheeled sports car, derived from Lotus 7
    Caterham open wheeled sports car, derived from Lotus 7
  • Electric Formula E racing car (Spark SRT05e) racing for HWA Racelab
    Electric
    HWA Racelab
  • 2023 Red Bull Racing RB19, driven by Max Verstappen
    2023 Red Bull Racing RB19, driven by Max Verstappen
  • 1994 Penske Indy Car
    1994 Penske Indy Car
  • Ariel Atom sports car from UK
    Ariel Atom sports car from UK
  • KTM X-Bow, road legal open wheeled sportscar
    KTM X-Bow, road legal open wheeled sportscar
  • Asphalt Modified Short Track Race Car
    Asphalt Modified Short Track Race Car
  • Sprint cars
    Sprint cars
  • A Barlotti go-kart: a low-end open-wheel car
    A
    go-kart
    : a low-end open-wheel car
  • Nigel Mansell in a CART car at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, 1993
    CART
    car at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, 1993

Safety

In 2018, several single seater series such as Formula One,

Charles Leclerc, thereby saving the Monegasque driver from a visor strike.[11]

In 2019, the newly-formed FIA Formula 3 Championship introduced a halo to their new chassis which was unveiled at the 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

In 2020, the IndyCar Series adopted a halo combined with an aeroscreen, built by Red Bull Advanced Technologies.

At the start of the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, Romain Grosjean collided with Daniil Kvyat in which his car broke in two and burst into flames as it split the barrier. The halo helped prevent Grosjean from possible decapitation while it allowed him to escape from the fire.

References

  1. ^ Eric Brandt (11 July 2018). "Ariel Atom 4 Roadster Unveiled Packing 320-HP Honda Type R Engine". The Drive. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  2. ^ swatson. "Harroun, Ray - Historic - 2000". Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  3. ^ "Ray Harroun Checks his Rear View Mirror". Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  4. ^ "1911 Marmon Wasp - Conceptcarz". conceptcarz.com. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  5. ^ Davidson, Donald The Talk of Gasoline Alley (radio program). Accessed via WIBC (FM), 28 May 200
  6. ^ Koch, Matt (2022-03-17). "Minimum weight increase for 2022 F1 cars". Speedcafe. Retrieved 2022-04-20.
  7. ^ Weaver, Matt (2021-05-06). "Everything You Need to Know About NASCAR Next Gen". Autoweek. Retrieved 2022-04-20.
  8. ^ "Drivers hit record speeds in Mexico". Formula One Digital Media. Formula1.com. Oct 30, 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  9. ^ "De Ferran wins pole, sets record". Las Vegas Sun. October 28, 2000. Archived from the original on November 10, 2013.
  10. ISBN 9781622851010
    . Retrieved 2023-03-23.
  11. ^ Noble, Jonathan (6 December 2018). "Halo saved Charles Leclerc from visor strike in Spa start crash". Autosport.com. Retrieved 2019-09-25.


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