Ferrari has pushed the development of its car’s Halo into new areas by incorporated its wing mirrors and other aerodynamic deflectors onto the structure.
The SF71H is the first car to feature either such device on its Halo. It has been pictured with them ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix weekend.The Halo is a mandatory structure which is fitted to the cars for safety purposes. Teams are allowed to incorporate aerodynamic devices onto it but until now none have gone further than adding a simple fairing to the top.
The striking detail has been added at part of the car where Ferrari has already innovated this year with its novel vented wing mirrors. it shows the team is aggressively pursuing every opportunity to optimise the airflow around the Halo and improve the flow in the critical area around the power unit’s air intake and ahead of the rear wing.
Most teams are expected to bring aerodynamic updates to this weekend’s race as it is the first round which takes place in Europe within easy distance of the teams’ factories. However Haas team principal Guenther Steiner said his team will not have many upgrades this weekend as it is building up its stock of parts ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix.
Pictures: Ferrari Halo mirrors and wings
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marksch (@marksch)
10th May 2018, 15:47
It’s all a bad dream… please someone wake me up!!
#FormulaStupid
ColdFly (@)
10th May 2018, 16:00
Mounting the mirrors (and freeing up the line of sight for the driver) is a great improvement IMO.
The rest I can do without, @marksch.
Sigit
10th May 2018, 16:53
I hope you never wake up… f1 always awesome, never look back, just enjoy every era…
Damon (@damon)
10th May 2018, 15:58
GREAT! It makes the halo look more like an integral part of the car.
#haloMadeSmarter
Darko
10th May 2018, 16:02
Exactly.
This looks so badass!
Macca (@macca)
10th May 2018, 23:41
@damon – My thoughts exactly. It breaks up the boring lines of the halo and helps it look more like a part of the car rather than just stuck on at the last minute.
marksch (@marksch)
10th May 2018, 16:04
@damon So now we have pigs ears and the cars look smarter?!?!?
#FormulaOinkOink
Savage_Baboon (@savagebaboon)
10th May 2018, 21:18
It is smarter. It’s about pushing the boundaries to gain just a bit of advantage. I’m glad Ferrari are on top of this. Even if the gain is 0.001 sec it’s worth it. That’s what F1 is all about.
Engineers, drivers & constructors are paid to go fast, not on what looks nice.
marksch (@marksch)
11th May 2018, 4:31
I agree. The halo however is not an option. no team would have voluntarily put that stupid thing in thier car. it gains nothing, puts the cog much higher which reduces the performance of the car… and looks absurd.
toto said he would saw it off with a chainsaw, i think he knows a lot more about the sport then all of us.
Strontium (@strontium)
10th May 2018, 16:04
Too many jokes to write, I couldn’t pick one
Matteo (@m-bagattini)
11th May 2018, 8:28
@strontium go with number 3
marksch (@marksch)
10th May 2018, 16:07
@coldfly What would “free up the drivers LINE of sight” is not having a ridiculous POLE in front of their face.
ColdFly (@)
10th May 2018, 16:15
didn’t know Kubica was confirmed to race :p
more seriously, @marksch:
1) the front strut doesn’t impact the line of sight – ‘two eyes’ helps you to look around it – especially when looking in the distance (there are already many antennas etc in front of them).
2) drivers look hardly straight ahead (I think it was the Hulk who mentioned that), they focus on corners/apexes.
nase
10th May 2018, 18:02
I’ve been making that joke for over ten years, glad to see I’m not the only one to have that silly association. :p
steve
10th May 2018, 22:53
You do know the halo is here to stay right? So might as well tolerate it instead of continually bitxhing about it. Personally I have come to accept the halo and it no longer annoys me at all.
marksch (@marksch)
11th May 2018, 4:35
Good for you. I have not, nor will i ever.
those in car shots are brilliant aren’t they? how bout those over the shoulder shots… oh wait those are just gone. and now ridiculous playstation graphics to hide the horrible thing? vommit.
no thanks, ill keep complaining and not spending my cash on anything f1.
Dutchguy (@justarandomdutchguy)
11th May 2018, 9:29
Personally, I don’t think so. they’ll probably always keep some protection for the drivers, but the HALO very much like a stop-gap solution to me.
Not to mention it probably isn’t even that effective at stopping smaller parts that could hit drivers (Massa 2009)
RB14
10th May 2018, 16:17
Surely the FIA won’t let this stand. The mirror mounting amendment specifically mandated structural mountings only and those dumbo ears clearly do not need to be that shape to function as a mount?
Fair play to Ferrari for painting them red though, they are showing they are confident that it is within the rules.
grat
10th May 2018, 17:34
I thought the FIA cleared the use of the halo for mounting mirrors?
Not sure they’ll allow the winglets, though.
Markp
10th May 2018, 22:09
Winglet is on the mirror so allowed. Just so happens the mirror is part of the halo. Brilliant. Expect whining Williams to protest, they probably are protesting something during last weeks 6 hours of Spa.
Andy
11th May 2018, 12:46
It’s funny you are complaining about whining by…. whining!
Protesting is a way of getting the FIA to make a judgement call on something – part of F1. Once the judgement is made everyone else can use it.
Todfod (@todfod)
11th May 2018, 9:57
I would think that this would have some safety repercussions. For example, a side impact of a tyre against the halo could now dislodge the mirror right in to the cockpit. Maybe I’m just being paranoid.. but I would think that the FIA should take the legality of this solution more seriously.. purely from a safety perspective. If they deem it legal, they should be prepared for similar solutions by rival teams that might not be all that sad either.
Joao (@johnmilk)
10th May 2018, 16:18
it’s like those people who get addicted in tattoos and can’t stop adding ink to their bodies
Nigel
10th May 2018, 16:22
No idea why they didn’t design the halo to have two side columns (instead of the central column) and mount the mirrors on them…
Sundar Srinivas Harish (@sundark)
11th May 2018, 1:47
Probably because the drivers need to look at the sides to focus on corners. As @coldfly mentioned in one of the comments above, they are focusing on apexes, not looking straight ahead. Even when they are on straights, the drivers divert their attention to the steering wheel controls to adjust settings.
KaIIe (@kaiie)
10th May 2018, 16:45
Interesting development. Pretty sure they get banned, like the “X Wings” of 1998.
Velocityboy (@velocityboy)
10th May 2018, 16:50
Fill In Team Name Here, begin the process to have it banned in 5, 4, 3, 2….
Matteo (@m-bagattini)
11th May 2018, 8:38
@velocityboy Williams
Todfod (@todfod)
11th May 2018, 8:50
Let’s add Williams in there .. since they got nothing better to do these days.
But seriously, I don’t see how the winglets will be deemed legal. If that’s the case, I expect the Halo to become more of an aerodynamic contraption than a safety device over the years. It’s going to be used really smartly to divert airflow towards the rear wing and diffuser area as well.
I can understand the mirrors.. that’s a smart idea. Hats off to Ferrari for that. It might look ugly, but if it gets results, everyone else will incorporate it as well.
Sigit
10th May 2018, 16:57
f1 always awesome, never look back, just enjoy every era…
Maybe if my son look at the senna’s car, he will say thats the ugly car..
Kenny Schachat (@partofthepuzzle)
10th May 2018, 18:27
The first rule of F1 car design: if they can, they will.
This was inevitable. This is hideous looking. This is F1.
This is also F1: We can get used to *anything*.
Jere (@jerejj)
10th May 2018, 18:43
LOL.
Jimmi Cynic (@jimmi-cynic)
10th May 2018, 19:47
The Todt Thong – now available with flaps. And mirrors!
Kenny Schachat (@partofthepuzzle)
10th May 2018, 19:49
Maybe they could attach some dangling wind activated sound devices to the halo. Whistles, sirens…wait…how about a wind activated V10 engine sound simulator! The faster you go, the louder and higher the pitch. F1 sound problem solved!
juan fanger (@juan-fanger)
10th May 2018, 22:35
With a great sound system it’s gotta have fluffy dice
marksch (@marksch)
11th May 2018, 4:36
brilliant!!
Kevin
10th May 2018, 22:59
Reminds me of the Mutt Cutts van in Dumb and Dumber.
ajay
11th May 2018, 5:19
if this has any impact on aero stuff in turn adding to the performance positvely.. as much as i dislike ferrari… hats off to them.. !!!
DrD
11th May 2018, 7:01
Drivers already spend a lot of time looking into mirrors for vanity purposes. F1 tech should have visor huds, screens, cameras or the like. Wing mirrors are a poor reflection of what could be achieved.
Zad (@)
11th May 2018, 14:43
looks dope
ferrari are the only ones who take halo seriously. hope it pays off big time.