Dodgy Wing Mirrors

Always thought they looked a bit less than secure on the cars & Brundle was critical of Alonso's Mirrors in Melbourne (turn 1, lap 1).

No doubt later in the season some aero geek will manage to find a way of getting the 0.05 a second back...

But as they look the equivalent of those mirrors you see on a Ford Focus towing a caravan, I'll be glad to see the back of them as I would imagine will the drivers....

[www.formula1.com]

Andy

They should put great big slabs of glass there, mounted on great big slabs of carbon fibre to stop them bouncing around.

I've never understood why the mirrors and the view they give haven't been more rigorously regulated. They're critical devices, ones which you wouldn't dream about restricting on a family car, yet in 200mph open-wheelers they're deemed to be nothing but a nuisance.

I disagree with much of the cotton-wool around in F1, but this is something so simple that it's beyond belief that the teams are not more restricted.

Decent-sized mirrors in a less than ideal location would be another easy way of killing off some more efficiency in the aero package too, which is never a bad thing.

Good call by the FIA, it must be difficult enough to see things in the mirrors, but with them all the way out there, they must be next to useless. No good when, like Gav pointed out, they are very important.

ATL11, to answer your question, click on control center on the top of the page, the signature options you'll need are in there.





Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/04/2010 09:32AM by Team CLR.

The mirror size has been increased in 2002

2001


2002


But yeh, the problem is how these mirrors are mounted on the car. I remember that, in 2006, McLaren had some problems and both Juan Pablo and Kimi lost a mirror more than once during the season (Spain FP2 and China race spring to mind). Also, who forgot Montreal 2003. Both Montoya and Ralf Schumacher lost their camera mirror, due to both vibration and camera weight. Nothing had been done since then.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/06/2010 02:28PM by Briere.

Get rid of the bloody things and replace them with a rear-facing camera that displays on the driver's steering wheel or cockpit sides. The technology is out there, why not use it?

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Because you won't be able to see anything on the screen if you're facing the sun.

How is that any different from the mirrors as they are currently?

(BTW my SatNav has some special technology in the screen that makes it visible even in direct sunlight... I'm afraid I don't get much more technical than that!)

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Locke Cole Schreef:
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> How is that any different from the mirrors as they
> are currently?

Let's say you can see something in those when you're facing the sun?

> (BTW my SatNav has some special technology in the
> screen that makes it visible even in direct
> sunlight... I'm afraid I don't get much more
> technical than that!)

Even if that screen would be used, it'd be highly impractical. If you put it on the steering wheel, you'd have a huge steering wheel in order to fit the screen on and the screen would tilt when you turn, which makes it very hard to judge. Also you'll have to look down so you'll take your eyes off the track. When you look in a mirror (when it's next to you, rather than on the sidepod) you'll only have to move your eyes. I can't see why fitting a screen somewhere would benefit this situation in any way. If you can have simple mirrors, why go through the hassle of developing a screen? Especially now everybody is saying that costs need to be reduced.

How about in-helmet displays then? Not beyond the realms of possibility, surely....

And what about something like this?





talking seriously, I think that the mirrors cant be used properly because the shape of the cars... I think until 1993 drivers could see better than today