How F1 will sound with new team radio restrictions

2014 F1 season

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The FIA’s sweeping new restrictions on what types of radio messages teams are allowed to send during races will render many of the communications they have been using illegal.

A review of the radio messages sent during last week’s Italian Grand Prix indicates over a third of them are likely to contravene the FIA’s new guidelines.

The new restrictions will be felt most when it comes to managing the power units, which drivers received many messages about during the last race. Prohibitions on driving style information, fuel saving, tyre condition and race start modes will also be affected.

Most of the FIA’s new limits on radio traffic will be introduced at this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix. Further restrictions on messages concerning the state of tyres and gearboxes and the learning of gears will be imposed from the following round in Japan.

The Italian Grand Prix under the new restrictions

The following table shows all the radio messages that were broadcast by FOM during the Italian Grand Prix with all the messages that could be outlawed struck out.

This sheds some light on how enforcing the limits is not going to be straightforward. In the case of any grey areas a strict interpretation of the restrictions has been applied.

For example, “other car reporting rear tyres going off” has been deemed illegal on the grounds that drivers may not receive “information on tyre pressures or temperatures”. The stewards may take a more lenient view, but there are potentially many cases like this where the teams will want to define exactly what constitutes a legal and illegal message.

By stating that coded messages are forbidden, the FIA has given teams a clear disincentive to try to get around the rules. However they will still want to communicate as much information as they can to their drivers, and ways could remain for them to do that.

For example, drivers already hear audio tones which tell them when the lift the throttle when heading into braking zones in order to optimise their fuel saving. There appears to be nothing in the rules clarification to stop teams from extending this practice and creating a range of alarms for other warnings – such as poor fuel economy, low battery charge and so on.

The 74 messages broadcast during the Italian Grand Prix was considerably lower than that seen at many other rounds this year. Of those, 27 (36.5%) would be affected by the new rules.

That does not necessarily mean we will hear fewer messages in the broadcasts. One team indicated the number of their messages which were broadcast represented only 10% of all the messages they gave their drivers. Therefore we may simply hear more of the messages which were legal to begin with. As the limits apply to practice and qualifying as well, we’ll get the first indication of their impact on Friday.

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Lap*FromToMessage
PRPeter BonningtonLewis HamiltonAdjustment of power unit settings.
Just to reiterate: The opening laps of the race, overtake is free until we tell you.
FLPeter BonningtonLewis HamiltonLearning of gears of the gearbox. Start maps related to clutch position for race start.
So if we can learn all gears, please, all the way up to eighth. RS modes cancel.
FLUnknownSebastian VettelAdjustment of gearbox settings, balancing the state of charge.
Gearbox is good. Charge is good.
FLAyao KomatsuRomain GrosjeanAdjustment of power unit settings.
Try to shift up at higher engine speed, please.
1Lewis HamiltonPeter BonningtonMy RS modes won’t [censored by FOM] work.
1Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonStart maps related to clutch position for race start, adjustment of gearbox settings.
Yeah copy that Lewis we see it. So torque mode three.
2Lewis HamiltonPeter BonningtonRS mode lights are on.
2Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonStart maps related to clutch position for race start, adjustment of power unit settings.
OK we’re showing RS modes off, looks like everything’s in a muddle. Just leave it where it is for the minute.
3Andrew MurdochFelipe MassaAdjustment of power unit settings.
DRS enabled. Use overtake if you need to.
4Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonAdjustment of power unit settings.
DRS has been enabled. We’ll get the pack up to full charge, then we can make an attack.
6Andrew MurdochFelipe MassaAdjustment of power unit settings.
Do not use overtake at the minute.
6Brad JoyceNico HulkenbergAdjustment of power unit settings.
You’ve got Ricciardo behind. Chassis four, P4.
7Max ChiltonGary GannonYeah I’m just a bit winded.
8Nico RosbergTony RossOK I lifted a lot, I lifted off a lot.
8Tony RossNico RosbergInformation on tyre pressures or temperatures
Copy that Nico we can see that. So other car reporting rear tyres going off so just be aware. Gap to Massa is four seconds. He is matching your lap times at the moment.
9Tony RossNico RosbergInformation on tyre pressures or temperatures
So Nico looks like you locked front and rears together there.
10Lewis HamiltonPeter BonningtonTell me when I have enough power for strat two.
10Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonAdjustment of power unit settings.
OK Lewis you may use strat two on the main straight only, exit turn eleven to turn one, strat two only for two laps.
10Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonAdjustment of power unit settings.
Nice work Lewis. Right, let’s get those strat modes under control.
12Guillaume RocquelinSebastian VettelStatus update if you can.
12Sebastian VettelGuillaume RocquelinNot that much quicker. Traffic probably half a second quicker in clean air.
13Tony RossNico RosbergDetail of where a competitor is faster.
Try an earlier apex in turn 11, Parabolica. Try and open the steering on exit for scrubbing.
13Nico RosbergTony RossDo not tell me the gap.
15Andrew MurdochFelipe MassaDetail of where a competitor is faster.
You’re pressing the brakes when on throttle into turn five.
15Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonDetail of where a competitor is faster.
OK Lewis two-tenths faster last lap. Gap now 1.8. Nico carrying more speed entry apex turn 11.
18Jonathan EddolllsValtteri BottasAnother great move. You are in the window.
18Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonDetail of where a competitor is faster or slower.
It now looks like you’re picking up a tow so you’re slower in corners, faster on the straights.
19Tony RossNico RosbergAnd let us know how the tyres are on the HPP switch.
19Tony RossNico RosbergInformation on tyre pressures or temperatures
Copy that. All cars are getting degradation like yourself.
21Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonSo you’re getting close to DRS.
21Lewis HamiltonPeter BonningtonHow far?
21Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonSo it’s around the two-tenths mark, just keep it up.
23Tony RossNico RosbergPush hard now, two more timed laps.
24Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezPerfect. So we’ve jumped Alonso and Button, Checo. Just keep on Magnussen’s tail. Really good job, mate, really good job.
24Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonAdjustment of power unit settings.
Go strat mode four, it’s hammer time.
26Tony RossNico RosbergAdjustment of power unit settings.
So suggest you go back to strat three to recharge the battery. Gap to Lewis is two seconds. We will need some Hoagys for fuel to the end.
27Peter BonningtonLewis HamiltonInformation on level of fuel saving needed.
I reckon the race is going to be at the end, the race will be at the end. So suggestion is we sit two, two-and-a-half seconds, get the benefit of the tow without losing the downforce. So we’re going to need the tyres at the end.
28Guillaume RocquelinSebastian VettelSebastian, Magnussen is within DRS range.
30Peter BonningtonLewis Hamilton24 laps to go, let’s just get into the rhythm.
30Tony RossNico RosbergInformation on level of fuel saving needed.
So it’s going to be important to look after these tyres to be able to attack at the end, Nico. Save a bit of fuel when we can and attack at the end.
33Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezAdjustment of power unit settings.
Try to push up to the guys ahead if you can, Checo. Do not use the overtake button.
34Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezInformation on level of fuel saving needed.
Just keep it clean, Checo. Keep it clean. Jenson wasn’t as close this time around, just keep it clean. We hope to give you the fuel performance back soon. Let’s get back to the DRS, the two guys ahead are fighting.
34Simon RennieDaniel RicciardoOK mate, excellent job, Right let’s get into them ahead.
35Tom StallardJenson ButtonJenson car behind now Ricciardo. Ricciardo stopped four laps after us.
35Simon RennieDaniel RicciardoOK mate it’s going to get pretty tasty ahead of you. There’s a lot of changing of places going. Let’s get amongst it.
37Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezInformation on tyre pressures or temperatures.
Checo I can’t say enough what a good job you’re doing. Just keep it up. I know I’m asking the impossible, but just control the rear tyre slip and as long as we’re in this DRS train we’re OK, OK?
37Jonathan EddolllsValtteri BottasAdjustment of power unit settings.
That’s brilliant job, brilliant. So try to limit the use of the overtake now, good work.
39Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezOK Magnussen has a five second penalty added to his race time. So stick with his DRS and we have his position, OK?
40Sergio PerezGianpiero LambiaseYou saw what he did to me?
40Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezI saw it, but that was brilliant! Brilliant. Get back up to Magnussen, settle down mate.
41Jenson ButtonTom StallardHe just cut the chicane. Perez just cut the chicane.
42Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezAdjustment of power unit settings.
And use the overtake button if you need to to defend. Only on the start/finish straight.
44Sergio PerezGianpiero LambiaseI need more power.
44Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezOK Checo we just need to keep it tidy and make sure we get to the end now.
44Guillaume RocquelinSebastian VettelInformation on tyre pressures or temperatures.
You’re doing a good job with your tyres, your pace is good. Ten laps to go.
46Simon RennieDaniel RicciardoAlright then Daniel, Nine laps to go. Vettel doing 29.6s, you are eight tenths quicker than him. Let’s get him.
46Mark TempleKevin MagnussenAnd Kevin we’ve been given a five-second penalty for forcing Bottas off at turn two. We are racing Raikkonen behind so we need good pace all the way to the end to get good points.
47Marco MatassaDaniil KvyatGreat mate. Keep going. The next is Raikkonen. He is seven seconds in front. We will fight for P10.
48Antonio SpagnoloKimi RaikkonenWe expect Kvyat will be to us in two laps to the end. You should push if you can to close on Button.
48Gianpiero LambiaseSergio PerezAdjustment of power unit settings.
OK Checo we want to test using the overtake button on the exit of Ascari as well. Continue with the start/finish straight.
51Esteban GutierrezCraig GardinerI think I have a flat tyre.
51Craig GardinerEsteban GutierrezAdjustment of gearbox settings.
Which corner? Preload 12. Esteban is it flat or you can continue?
51Esteban GutierrezCraig GardinerI can continue but…
51Craig GardinerEsteban GutierrezUnderstood.
53Daniil KvyatMarco MatassaI got no brakes. Is it last lap?
53Marco MatassaDaniil KvyatNo, two laps to go. Keep pushing, keep pushing mate.
53Daniil KvyatMarco MatassaI cannot manage.
PRPeter BonningtonLewis HamiltonNice work Lewis, get in there pal. Beautifully recovered, mate.
PRLewis HamiltonPeter BonningtonThanks for all the efforts, guys. Great result, great recovery. So happy for everyone.
PRAndrew MurdochFelipe MassaOK Felipe great race, great race. We need…
PRFelipe MassaAndrew MurdochThank you guys. Very good, very good result. I’m so happy, I’m so happy for this result. Especially to be here in Italy.
PRNico RosbergTony RossOK good job guys on a deserved one-two. That’s a great result for the team. I’m sorry for my side of the garage. Real shame.
PRMarco MatassaDaniil KvyatAgain, very good drive, very good race. Bravissimo, bravo.
PRDaniil KvyatMarco MatassaGrazie a tutto [Thanks to all].

2014 F1 season

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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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81 comments on “How F1 will sound with new team radio restrictions”

  1. What’s the punishment for breaking this? I imagine it might be very easy to do so.

    1. Formula Indonesia (@)
      17th September 2014, 12:51

      In my opinion, its Likely a reprimand

      1. @f1indofans Infringements would come under article 20.1 of the Sporting Regulations, which states:

        20.1 The driver must drive the car alone and unaided.

        The penalties available therefore include the normal range for incidents defined in the rules:

        a) A five second time penalty
        b) A drive-through penalty
        c) A ten second time penalty
        d) A time penalty
        e) A reprimand
        f) A drop of any number of grid positions at the driver’s next event
        g) Exclusion from the results
        h) Suspension from the driver’s next event

        Note that (a) to (e) are not subject to appeal. The stewards can also stipulate a penalty under the International Sporting Code, but the list above will probably prove sufficient.

        In the case of minor infringements I wouldn’t be surprised to see them use reprimands to begin with.

        1. Formula Indonesia (@)
          17th September 2014, 13:18

          Wow, that was too harsh, i said reprimand because it was fair punishment, anyway thanks @keithcollantine for the info

        2. Suspect strongly chaos to follow. Surely it won’t be as smooth with 13 races gone by. Expect some form of stammering from the crew. Hoping for some hilarious and screw ups along the way. Main concern will be safety issues. Also hoping teams will use safety messages as a tactic masking it and confuse FIA.

          Keith, does this mean FIA must now make sure 22 of their staff will be diligently monitoring team radio? Just wondering how many were used before.

      2. a reprimand is not a punishment. and rules will be broken if there are no real consequences.

  2. I feel sorry for the race engineers. With next to no preparation, they have to tread very carefully or risk penalising their own driver. Why this can’t be brought in for 2015 I don’t know, other than to introduce a random element to make the show more exciting. Makes me angry.

    1. Totally agree.

  3. I don’t know about the message 27 “So we’re going to need the tyres at the end.” that you left out.
    It sounds like a normal sensible (obvious) message but I suspect something like that won’t be allowed as well anymore.

    1. And from the HPP switch it would seem that an engineer can ask a question & a driver can give an answer/feedback via the switch & could tactical decisions based on that. Are we endorsing texting while racing?
      I’m up for seeing what ban does to the racing but I don’t think it’s been thought out very well & has been implemented hastily. I quite enjoy listening & gaining insight from the radio communication that we’ve had in recent times. Has also been subject to some highlights of a few seasons now i.e. Alonso’s; “I give up!” or Hamilton at Korea 2013; “Anybody got any ideas?”. So I hope that they don’t ban radios all together.

  4. 1 Lewis Hamilton Peter Bonnington My RS modes won’t [censored by FOM] work.
    1 Peter Bonnington Lewis Hamilton Start maps related to clutch position for race start, adjustment of gearbox settings.
    Yeah copy that Lewis we see it. So torque mode three.
    2 Lewis Hamilton Peter Bonnington RS mode lights are on.
    2 Peter Bonnington Lewis Hamilton Start maps related to clutch position for race start, adjustment of power unit settings.
    OK we’re showing RS modes off, looks like everything’s in a muddle. Just leave it where it is for the minute.

    I have a question on this. In this case it was clear that what Lewis saw in the car wasn’t the same as what the pit wall saw, so clearly there was a problem with the cars software. Should the team not be able to tell the driver there’s a problem? Won’t this constitute a safety problem? For example the teams will likely put something that warns the driver that temps are high in the brakes and that would give them the cue to change brake bias and do more lift and coast to cool the brakes, but say a software glitch causes that warning not to show up on the dash, should the team not say anything to the driver?

    24 Peter Bonnington Lewis Hamilton Adjustment of power unit settings.
    Go strat mode four, it’s hammer time.

    A coded message here could be just Its Hammer time, which will always mean a predetermined strat mode. How will the FIA be able to distinguish whether a message was a coded message or a message of encouragement.

    1. Overtly coded messages might be judged to fall foul of Article 8.7 of the Technical Regulations on driver radio: “All such communications must be open and accessible to both the FIA and broadcasters.”

      How they will deal with messages that on the face of it are normal permitted traffic but actually contain something coded is another matter.

    2. I think Hammertime is ok because it is the same as push, not specifically telling a driver to go to a setting, just go as fast as they can with changing the setting common sense.

      1. But who knows what it could mean from now?

        It could be that HAM and his engineers it means strat mode x, torque setting y, etc… Whereas push now could mean a slightly lower setting.

        It would be up to the stewards to decide, and it is likely that they will have to stop using it just in case.

  5. Wouldn’t using “tones” to communicate information fall under the category of “coded messages”?

    1. Nope because its the same thing as the message on the dash telling the driver how much fuel they have, which is allowed. The tones are not communicated by the team to driver, its car to driver.

    2. God help them if they get a Cantonese driver/engineer combination then! Try and police that, FIA! ;)

      1. Don’t give Fernando any ideas! He’s already trying to learn Aramaic to get around these rule ;)

      2. One word.

        Klingon.

  6. If the tones are permitted then the only thing the drivers need to learn is MORS code… so for examble :

    This from From SPA in lap 16 from Rosberg to pits
    …. . ? … / -.-. …. . .- – .. -. –. / .- – / – ..- .-. -. / .—- ….. ? / …. . ? … / -.-. …. . .- – .. -. –. ?
    means
    He’s cheating at turn 15! He’s cheating!

    1. Whao! that’s a long code for a message. Lol.

  7. The drivers are allowed to say whatever they want over the radio right ? So by definition the new interpretation does not affect those messages. If we look at the percentage of messages coming from the team that would be affected, we get 27 out of 55 (49%).

    If we assume the FOM sample is representative (stupid assumption, I know), then half of the usual radio traffic from pit to car is now banned under the new interpretation of the rule. That’s a lot!!

    1. @antonis Indeed, and some of the comments from drivers above simply won’t be made now as they’ll know they can’t be replied to.

      1. But such messages can help during a debrief as the team can tell the driver how to handle that situation in future since it serves as a marker

        1. I remember heading a message from a driver one – might have been Riccardo – referring to the fact he’d pressed a button which puts a marked the car’s data feed so he could refer to something he had experienced in a lap with his engineers.

    2. Maybe the team can reply in coded form like “Understood” or “We’ll discuss this after the race” etc to mean different answers.

  8. All sounds great to me, really don’t know why some people are against it. Sounds like more onus is on the driver and not the team to drive the car.

    1. If this was the 1980’s it would have been fine, but time has moved on and so should the FIA, the one’s to blame here is FOM for airing all these messages in the 1st place. If the FIA wants to do something they should hold the radio ban until after the 1st three laps.

      1. Yeah, let’s blame the FIA for enforcing the rules…

        1. The rules are not in tune with the times. The equipment is too complicated for a single engineer now we want drivers to have electronic and engineering degrees just to keep the ERS and ES in working condition?
          The PU is still in need of refinement to get it to be operated by the throttle only without needing to adjust the BBW mode and brake bias mode modes and the infinite effect on energy release.

          Coaching drivers I can understand but telling a student to look at a microprocessor and state the currect registers storing the instruction being processed is a ridiculous ask. These are discrete systems that are not directly obvious to the engineers without some kind of probing which the get from the telemetry.

          1. Why should a driver be required to look at microprocessor registers, that’s an entirely overly exaggerated analogy.

            There is absolutely no reason for the settings to be so overly complicated so as for a driver to not understand them. There are hardly any settings that can’t be understood and decided upon by the driver in this very clear article. The majority of the banned messages are how to manage some aspect of the car re: tyres or driving style that the driver should be deciding.

            Using complex settings to argue against these restrictions is entirely unreasonable and the teams themselves can design the settings interface such that it is easier for a driver to manage…

          2. @skipgamer

            Using complex settings to argue against these restrictions is entirely unreasonable and the teams themselves can design the settings interface such that it is easier for a driver to manage…

            They could. However, the systems are already designed. What you are talking about is a major redesign of key systems part way through a season.

            Point is, although this is a sporting regulation, it has affected the design of the car. Changing it’s interpretation now means that several key systems are no longer fit for purpose. It is, in effect, a major regulation change, even more so than the FRIC ban, and should have been left to next season (if it was ever brought in in this form).

          3. That’s a fair point, but then the complaints should be regarding changing interpretations of rules mid-season. Not specifically the new interpretations, which is what I’ve seen more of.

            It’s not the first time the FIA have radically changed interpretations of rules during a season, and I’m surprised it’s such an accepted practice, but without channels such as FOTA, how are the teams to do anything about it?

        2. The FIA deserves blame for ridiculously reinterpreting the rules mid season.

          It’s disingenous, it’s annoying and it doesn’t fix anything.

          Just like that FRIC malarky. They are so desperate to create a “show” that they will grasp at anything. Apart from actually improving the problems like massive budget differences and a poor rule set for effective racing.

    2. But the drivers were still the one’s driving the car even when they were been given this information.

      Even when a team informed a driver he was losing time in a certain sector/corner or that his team mate was braking a bit later at corner x, It was still 100% upto the driver to take that information & try & go faster.
      Likewise with the various engine/ERS/brake & other settings they were instructed to change, Its still the driver that needs to do it & its still the driver that has to drive the car.

      I also think banning these messages in practice is stupid as even during football/tennis or whatever practice/training the coaches/managers are allowed to give instructions to help improve whatever.
      I fear all were going to see in practice now is cars spending more time in the pits either going over data or coming in every few laps in order to change settings.

      1. Even when a team informed a driver he was losing time in a certain sector/corner or that his team mate was braking a bit later at corner x, It was still 100% upto the driver to take that information & try & go faster.
        Likewise with the various engine/ERS/brake & other settings they were instructed to change, Its still the driver that needs to do it & its still the driver that has to drive the car.

        I disagree whole-heartedly that following instructions on what buttons to press and what techniques to use during certain corners is driving. Traditionally it has been the job of any racer to feel themselves the characteristics themselves and make adjustments.

        Football and Tennis aren’t motorsports, but you’re correct it’s still a sport, and it’s entirely up to each specific sport to determine within it’s rules how much “coaching” the players can receive during a game. In tennis for example they actually limit quite heavily how much they can talk to coaches during the game, and you’re right in others it’s much more open, it entirely depends on the sport and I’m glad as I said in my original comment that the FIA has decided to place more of the onus on the driver rather than the team.

  9. I still find this measure very stupid. And I would imagine how empty other sports would be without the help of the technical team. Like football. “Hey, Mr. Coach, you’re forbidden to talk with your players during a match. You may tell them that the weather is fine. But only if they don’t ask you that! If they do, you’re not allowed to respond. And God forbid if you tell them to surprise the adversary by the flank. No, no, no! And no, you cannot tell them to score goals!!!!! If you do that, the goal will be disallowed. I mean it!”
    It’s too stupid for me to accept.

    1. At first I was excited about this ban but now I agree that it’s way over-the-top and ridiculous to implement such extreme prohibitions in such a pathetic, reactionary fashion, especially when the fault was w/ FOM broadcaster world feed in first place for airing messages that allegedly compromised “the Show”.

      The drivers STILL have been the ones driving the cars out there…

    2. And of course you can not train them in your practice sessions either!

  10. FIA is becoming like external auditors or consultants that identify problems nobody complained about, and do not exist, and then offer solutions that are costly to implement (in theory need a lot more people listening to all messages in real time) and most likely will have damaging results…

    1. @bakano I can’t wait for them to miss something important which affects the championship or some such just because they are now trying to police the team radios.. some would say that already happened at Spa though.

      1. @fastiesty Even worse if they don’t miss something which affects the championship.

        Imagine if Nico or Lewis lost the championship at Abu Double because an engineer accidentally said something from the banned list – the culmination of two stupid FIA rules affecting the championship.

        1. @jerseyf1 and the backlash that that would cause… they are asking for it really. Or does Bernie want publicity at any cost?

    2. I was more thinking in the lines of DNFs and off-tracks excursions due to the lack of feedback, and then correct management of the Power Unit, brakes and tyres. On the other hand one of the reasons F1 became a bit boring was the excellent reliability achieved in the last years, and albeit the introduction of new technical rules, things are not so bad this year. Some uncertainty about the ability to go the distance might be good, but its never good to have DNFs deciding the title (although its an integral part of racing) and of course even worse due to the penalties (or lack of) for inflicting these rules…

      1. I have a feeling that they wish to get less optimal usage of the cars to get more action/overtakes/retirements/less moaning from long time fans, and that this is likely to achieve that.

  11. “Push hard” possibly should be struck as well if it is stated in response to a question about the pace or position of another driver. Otherwise, things get too cute too quickly with apparently indirect comments, don’t they? This is going to be a hot mess.

    Also, I didn’t know about the beeping alerts for drivers, other than for the DRS zone. I suppose that teams could go further and just implement a kind of “siri” system that answers drivers questions directly, based on on-board data. E.g., “Siri, what is my fuel consumption, absolute and relative to target?” (Of course, Sebastian Vettel would have some more creative and tawdry name for his on-board data valet.)

    I would also forsee the teams adding more sensors and processing facilities on the car, so that the driver can summon the data directly via his or her visual or auditory equipment. This would be coming from the car, not the pits, so there would be no complaints from the FIA. In general, I forsee this dumb rule setting off another minor technical arms race to bypass the restrictions. In the end, the supposedly impure engineering aspect of piloting the car simply will be shifted to the driver, futher diluting the hoped-for tableau of brave gladiators.

    1. … all adding to the costs the FIA pretends it is trying to reduce.

  12. I expect that those teams with the large McLaren displays can implement some sort of Codemasters F1 game style graphics for things like the tyres where it would show all four corners and the colours would change as the tyres and brakes change temperature with an audible warning tone and a message to show if there are issues.

    The most pertinent information would be:

    Tyre Temperatures + Slip
    Brake Temperatures + Lock
    State of Charge
    Fuel available/remaining

    Of course those without the new displays are going to be severely disadvantaged (e.g. Red Bull, Toro Rosso, Lotus etc.)

    1. Yes exactly @smfreegard. Plus one imagines the big teams will have been able to get engineers & coders on it and will be arriving in Singapore with updated driver info systems.

      But I’ve always thought they should have this data displayed.

      Now we just need someone at FOM to realise we need a camera on the display, or a virtual copy on our screens.

      1. I have a theory about that – I suspect they haven’t done so already for two reasons:

        1) Keep the driver focussed on driving only.

        Up to now they haven’t *had* to have this information themselves as the pitwall and their race engineers deal with this and tell them over the radio.

        2) The onboard cameras might be good enough to read some of this data which would allow other teams to see potentially sensitive data. I’m sure teams would love to know their oppositions tyre and brake temperatures, tyre pressures, SoC or Fuel targets.

        And for those reasons – that’s why they haven’t done this already and why the FOM feeds don’t show this either.

        It will be fascinating to see what all the teams come up with this weekend.

        1. @smfreegard Indeed, teams will only show the data to us if they’re forced, of course, and FOM are too clueless even to give us battery state never mind interesting stuff like temperatures!

          It was a big setback for the sport when the Germans failed to lock Bernie up IMO ;)

          Yes I daresay teams wanted to use the audio channel to spread the load for the driver. They’ll need some seriously good design for the displays. Something else we’re unlikely to see much about I fear.

    2. I’m pretty sure most of the information on temps, fuel and charge is available on the steering wheel displays. In fact didn’t Rosberg spend most of the Chinese GP relaying fuel readings to the pit wall when his telemetry failed?

      Its possible that by Japan the cars could be programmed to give advice/instructions on managing fuel, brakes and charge directly, effectively cutting out the middle-man on the pit-wall.

    3. I would assume they would be allowed to have the car send spoken messages to the drivers. Perhaps a bit safer. The car would “know” it’s on a straight so as to not disturb the driver.

  13. Is this right??

    27 Peter Bonnington Lewis Hamilton Information on level of fuel saving needed.
    I reckon the race is going to be at the end, the race will be at the end. So suggestion is we sit two, two-and-a-half seconds, get the benefit of the tow without losing the downforce. So we’re going to need the tyres at the end.

    1. Ah, not quite copied right…the line is through, get the benefit of the tow without losing downforce. I don’t see how that is fuel saving related?

    2. Isn’t it too explicit an instruction to the driver on what to do?

      Drivers know that already anyway since they do it almost in every race. Then lewis decided that he wasn’t going to follow the advice anyway.

  14. One of the most unpopular things this year was the excessive penalties given to drivers when the team release the driver unsafely. Surely the same thing is going to happen now – there will be an outcry when a driver receives a penalty because the team accidentally give the driver a reasonable but illegal instruction. Let chaos ensue.

    1. Can I get a driver penalised by displaying forbidden information to him from the grandstand? It would be a kind of reverse FanBoost. This rule interpretation is just as stupid as FanBoost but a lot less lucrative for the organisers.

  15. Will we get better pitboard shots now?

    1. When was the last time we saw pit boards from F1? Ages ago I think.

  16. I think coded messages will reach a whole new level! Perhaps they will learn some lesser-known/used language and use that.

  17. So if the amount of messages broadcast during the race is only 10% perhaps the issue of driver coaching is a lot more prevalent than we realise. In which case a ban on this type of communication seems justified, IF it does not impact on the reliability of the cars due to the complicated systems needing adjustment by the driver in the race. The timing of the ban halfway through the season may give the teams time to make whatever adjustments are required for next season. We’ll just have to hope that potential car failures and drivers being overly cautious will not deprive us of the great racing we have seen so far in 2014.

    1. I should say two thirds through the season not half way of course…

  18. This is another example of how F1 and all those managing it don’t seem to understand why we watch. It’s the spectacular symphony of driver, car, engineers, designers, pit crew, etc. Silencing radio is going to reduce the pleasure because we’re not going to hear all the notes. Why else do the announcers stop in mid-sentence to hear the radio transmissions? Because it’s what we want to hear. It’s as if we had a mike on every football player, it would be awesome. Instead we’re going to be reduced to watching silent cars race around while the commentators tell us how the cars are racing around the circuit.

    1. Can you imagine playing a piano but restricted to the black keys only.

  19. Does this only cover what the public hears? Could the driver ask a question to the team and then the team could send the answer/instructions to the steering wheel? That way the drivers can be assisted and the public is none the wiser.

    1. Could the driver ask a question to the team and then the team could send the answer/instructions to the steering wheel?

      No data (Other than voice via the radio) can be sent from pits to car so the teams cannot send messages to the wheel display.

  20. So, as it turns out, “Push hard” is not forbidden.
    I am in total confusion now. If push hard is permitted, what about “Push harder”.
    The stupidity of this rule is so big I think it will not endure more than some races.

  21. I’m actually half surprised there seems to be so many fans (Even perhaps the majority) against these restrictions as I was kinda expecting to be one of the only people who disliked it.

    Yet it seems on every site i’ve been on the past week the majority of comments have been against the restrictions.

  22. “For example, drivers already hear audio tones which tell them when the lift the throttle when heading into braking zones in order to optimise their fuel saving.”

    Jeez..the get told when to lift?!!

    1. Hows bout a ‘sneeze’ or ‘cough’ or a throat clearing effect. The more I read I see comedy in action.
      And for this new rule I bet other situations will arise and stewards might miss it as FIA is so hung up on their stupidity.

    2. Yes, it’s been like that for ages. It tells them the optimum time to coast.

  23. Anyone remembered Sutil’s message from his engineer, “Don’t use curbs” and Sutil replied, “Don’t use Kers?” that was quite funny.

    I guess with new radio rules it’ll be a lot quieter and there be hesitation from pit wall as they have to be very careful with what they say with a busy race in Singapore. Can be interesting as fans have to concentrate harder and make some predictions. Commentators too will be second guessing too, but their opinions might be better especially from Brundle.

  24. It’s going to be a farce. how the hell will they police this if they couldn’t deal with “Alonso is faster than you”?

    Secondly, given the huge quantity of messages the engineers send, how can one expect them to get it right all the time? And if they don’t punish mistakes, then the rule will break down that way.

  25. What about

    After 10 laps, drivers says “What’s the gap?” Team says, ” 2 seconds push, hard. Push mate”
    After 15 laps, drivers says “What’s the gap?” Team says “2 seconds”.

    After 30 laps, drivers says “What’s the difference?” Team says, ” 2 seconds push, hard. Push mate”
    After 45 laps, drivers says “What’s the difference?” Team says “2 seconds”.

    Will that be investigated?

  26. I want the team to be able to control all the boring stuff like engine maps, diff settings and the like. It would effectively make all the radio chatter telling the driver to change something redundant. What you would get however is driver’s pleading for a more aggressive setting, which would be entertaining.

    I can just imagine Lewis chucking a hissy fit at his engineers when they won’t give him all the power. “C’mon guys, I’m trying to fricken race here!” Hilarious…

    1. Part of the reason they did away with that was to stop a team deliberately hobbling one driver, or the impression that they were or could be.

      Fans didn’t like it. There were discussions about whether Ferrari, for instance, were turning one driver’s engine down to stop him challenging their team mate. We didn’t know, and couldn’t really know, and the lack of transparency caused conspiracy theories*.

      * For all I know, they may have been correct, it sounds like a very Ferrari thing to do!

  27. When I heard Hamilton being told in Brazil to “avoid locking his front tyres” to control the tyre wear I thought this would fall into this restriction. I expected the commentators to pick up on it but they didn’t. Any guesses why?

    1. For clarity it occurred around lap 18

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