Sauber C31 – cooling assymetry in Sepang

 

Another interesting point on C31 at Sepang was the asymmetric  cooling gills at cockpit sides . The right sidepod tunnels  accommodate the oil tank and thus need extra cooling care .

 

 

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Sauber C31 – ducted rear floor

ducted floor , additional gills are pointed with yellow arrow . It was tested also at Barcelona on March

       Sauber  rushed to optimize further the rear end of the C31 and raced at Melbourne a ducted floor in front of the tyre profile . Ducted rear floor is not a new idea in Formula 1 and was a common feature a couple years ago . The duct is within FIA technical regulations because it is situated outside of the area of the  900 mm wide floor continuous surface , something that  article 3.7.6  imposes . It is believed that the duct feeds the diffuser with air coming above the floor level , air that is strengthened further  by exhaust gases that bent downwards due to the special shape of the bodywork behind the exhaust pipes (down-wash effect) .

 A logical step forward to enhance the effect of the design would be the following

–          two channeled sculpted bodywork ,behind the pipe , with the outer channel to expand further outwards .The expansion of the channel without dividing it into two would ruin somehow the direction control of the dpwnwash effect

–          new vertical floor fence with a benting inwards leading edge

likely development scenario

       Finally Sauber paid extra attention to the car’s cooling efficiency at very hot and moist Sepang circuit and added two slits close to the exhaust area , pointed with a yellow arrow in first illustration .

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Sauber duo maintain different set up at Malaysia

 

   The set up difference between Sauber drivers was maintained for Malaysia but this time Kobayashi reverted to a revised wing, similar to the one raced by Perez but having a more intense gurney tab . The revised wing ensured  better top speed at long stretches of Sepang circuit than the Australian wing  .

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Different set up for Sauber drivers in Australia

 

In Australia Sauber drivers preferred to race with  different car set up and different wing specs . Kobayashi raced with the higher downforce launch front wing spec and the additional beam mini plane that guarantee a more stable car especially when braking late , something suitable to Kobayashi’s  driving style and his appeal of overtaking . On the contrary Perez raced with the lower downforce front wing , that was first seen at Jerez on February,  having also the beam mini plane removed , a configuration  more appropriate to his “velvet” driving style which is to prioritize conservation of tires in good condition . The later is reflected on Perez different pit stop strategy to Kobayashi .

 

Pit stop strategy

Sergio Perez	Medium -Lap24 ,			Soft –Lap 34
Kamui Kobayashi		Soft –Lap 13 ,	Soft –Lap 23  ,			Medium –Lap 22

 

 

Lastly Australian rainy weather was not enough and Sauber  run both cars  having the large engine cover funnel  .

 

Kobayashi beam mini plane in yellow , large engine cover funnel in red

Perez large engine cover funnel in red

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Sauber C31 – Steering wheel

 

see C30 steering wheel analysis

 

credit : Sauber F1 team

Many updates on Sauber C31 before Melbourne

The blue labels in the photos above are temperature indication stickers , used by teams to track down temperature along the route of the hot gases .

       In addition to changes concerning C31 cooling, many other revisions took place on the car before Melbourne . The rear silhouette of the sidepod  tunnels was heavily modified after launch at Jerez test . The new longer tunnels expand smoothly to reach floor level  in a such way to guide more drastically the exhaust gases towards the  inside area of  the rear wheel profile and reach the diffuser . To enhance the effect further,  a channel is sculpted behind the periscope exhausts and later at Barcelona test on February   a vertical fence was added on the floor along the route of the hot gases.

         Speaking for the rear floor morphology , it was reshaped twice with the first revision to take place at Jerez alongside with the sidepod expansion to the rear and the second revision at Barcelona on March with the trapezoid channel in front of the rear wheel to be replaced by a small duct .

Launch,
trapezoid channel in front of the rear wheel

Barcelona on February,
Floor vertical fence in orange

Barcelona on March, ducted floor   

 

 

      A promising update for the team which took place also at Barcelona on March , was the connection of the sidepod panel  to the chassis via  a wavy winglet to force air flowing  above the  sidepod profile to follow the shape outline of the sidepod  stronger  and increase the downwash effect of exhaust gases to the diffuser .

 

Sidepod panel winglets

    Some interesting but important details on C31 are also the following

-a small duct , already present since launch , permits a small portion of air flowing under the floor to find exit above the floor level instead of bleeding to the sides .In some occasions the duct was partially covered with tape

– a  cooling duct for KERS components is spotted at left side only of the sidepod bottoms

-briefly Sauber tested a set of gills around the launch spec periscope exhausts

floor duct

KERS cooling duct

gills around periscope exhaust area

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Sauber C31 – Rear end improvements at Jerez test

mini plane on beam wing and floor supporters are shown in yellow

       To strengthen the stiffness of the diffuser and rear floor , Sauber  connected the later  to the rear crash structure via a pair of cable supporters . Their task is to eliminate possible vibrations that would potentially harm the aero behavior of the rear end . To even increase rear end stability an extra mini plane was added on the beam wing ( in yellow) .

 

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Sauber C31 – Australian front wing

Front wing specs comparison , differences are pointed out with yellow arrows

   By the time C31 made its track debut at Jerez  two front wing specs were evaluated till now . Initially C31 at its studio images had a wing with a larger and a more boxy second flap with a gurney tab . At Jerez and Barcelona  test on February Sauber tried a modified wing  with a new second flap of smaller profile without the gurney tab. Finally the launch spec  was evaluated for the first time at second Barcelona test on March and it is the wing  that Sauber decided to bring at the opening race of the 2012 season at Australia.

   The launch spec which provides  higher downforce , will help the team to ensure a better grip level on dusty and slippery pavement of Melbourne’s city roads . Nonetheless most of teams work hard to revise their front wings before Melbourne .

 

 

Sauber C31 – cooling options tested during Winter testing

     Winter testing gives the opportunity to teams not only to understand the new car but also to check reliability and to improve performance as much as they can . Part of the program is also to evaluate the cooling efficiency of the car, having in mind  a wide range of possible weather conditions , for instance from cold  to very hot conditions( Bahrain , Malaysia , summer races etc ) . A significant handicap is that 2012 winter tests  took place in Spain under the cold winter time , which forces teams only to figured out which are the  most appropriate cooling options at very hot races .

    C31 at its launch version had large outlets at the back end of the sidepod tunnels , through which hot air from radiators escaped .Additionally a series of gills at both cockpit sides contributed to cool down the car internal components .

Launch , sidepod end outlets (in red) and gills at cockpit sides

At the very first test at Jerez Sauber featured an extra outlet for the hot air located at the end of engine cover .

Jerez test and Barcelona test on February , additional outlet at engine cover’s end , gills at cockpit sides were retained

The later concept seemed to be insufficient for even hotter conditions and thus Sauber moved a step forward and tested a Red Bull style engine cover funnel in Barcelona test on March . Of course the large funnel harms overall aerodynamic efficiency of the car and it is expected as an option only for few races ( such as Bahrain , Monaco , Malaysia , Hungary , Singapore , Abu Dhabi ) where high temperatures and low average speed will be a threat to reliability .

Barcelona test on March , a very large engine cover funnel replaced the former smaller outlet

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Sauber C31 – rear end details

 

      Sauber shares the same Ferrari engine and gearbox casting with Scuderia Ferrari and because of that C31 has a pull rod rear suspension for the first time ( in yellow ) .In front of the rear wheel there is pointing outwards trapezoid channel  (in orange) to aid drag cut .The later detail was also seen last season on Lotus Renault R31 .

      The area in front of the rear wheel is very crucial and usually teams develop structures of different philosophy to exploit it . Some of the most memorable recent examples are that of Benetton’s B199 back in 1999 which used a floor movable extension to reduce the gap between the floor and the tire and Jaguar’s R4 in 2004 which placed an upwards shaped flap in this area .

 

Sauber C31 – Rear beam wing

       Exhaust blown diffuser ban had a big negative impact on rear downforce production . Thus Sauber optimized as possible the rear zone  to gain some of the lost rear grip by making the rear zone even tighter and shorter  . One element that was redesigned carefully is the beam wing which has a more aggressive attack angle . That alone pushed the team to develop top mountings (in yellow) to clean from airflow disruption the lower pressure undersurface of the wing which is more sensitive and crucial for downforce production .The Sauber C30 of last season  had a more conventional configuration with the beam plane being connected from its under surface onto the top of the rear structure . Williams had last season an even more radical approach , a central mount-less beam wing which was only attached on the endplates .

      Top mountings is not something new and are already seen on other forms of racing and also on Marussia Virgin’s car the previous  season .

 

 

Sauber C31-Sidepod panels

        The sidepod panel has an interesting wavy shape which gives it a significant key role on overall aerodynamic efficiency of rhe rear end of C31 . The middle section is leaning inwards to divert air around the panel surface and sidepod sides . The portion of air coming from the inner bargeboard zone flows around the sidepod bottoms with the help of the lower section of the panel which acts as fence . Additionally the outer leaning outwards mini fence (in yellow)  has a double role : the upper section acts  as a vortex generator across the vertical axis while the lower section diverts away from the car  the airflow coming  from the outer surface of the bargeboard , with both functions aiming drag reduction .

Sauber C31 – diffuser launch spec details

 

    C31 diffuser may  lack any eye-catching innovations but is nevertheless full of interesting details . The roof tab is slotted to allow portions of air bleed through hence reducing drag, a trend carried over last season and pioneered by Toro Rosso STR6 . There are three vertical fences , two of the same height and an outer shorter , at both diffuser sides symmetrically placed to allow not any  interaction between the air flows travelling through the  channels formed by the fences . The centre part ( magnified ,in the inset above ) looks very interesting and totally different than that of C30 -2011 car . It clearly exploits aerodynamically  the motor access hole to gain extra downforce . The flow travelling around sidepods bottoms reaches the slim rear end and penetrates through the starter hole to rich the diffuser zone to increase diffuser ability to pull air from under the floor. The contribution is enhanced by the warm air escaping from holes in the area of the gearbox and aided by a little flap . That flap apart from its aerodynamic role reduces the overall size of the engine starter entrance to comply with the  article 3.12.7  of the FIA technical regulations . Not far in the past that hole raised significant protests against Mc Laren which forced FIA to further clarifications about the size of the hole .

 

Sauber C31 – Specifications

Sauber C31-Ferrari
Chassis	carbon-fibre monocoque
Front suspension	upper and lower wishbones, inboard springs and dampers (Sachs Race Engineering) actuated by pushrods
Rear suspension	upper and lower wishbones, inboard springs and dampers (Sachs Race Engineering) actuated by pullrods
Brakes	six-piston brake callipers (Brembo), carbon-fibre pads and discs (Brembo)
Transmission	Ferrari 7-speed quick-shift carbon gearbox, longitudinally mounted, carbon-fibre clutch
Chassis electronics	MES
KERS	Ferrari
Steering wheel	Sauber F1 Team
Tyres	Pirelli
Wheels	OZ
Dimensions	Length               5.195 mm width                1.800 mm height                 1.000 mm track width, front          1.495 mm track width, rear      1.410 mm
Weight	640 kg (incl. driver, tank empty)
Ferrari 056 Motor
Type	naturally aspirated V8, 90° cylinder angle
Engine block	sand-cast aluminium
Valves / valve train	32 / pneumatic
Displacement	2,398 ccm
Bore	98 mm
Weight	> 95 kg
Electronic injection and ignition

credit : Sauber F1 Team

Sauber F1 Team launches C31 in Jerez

Unveiling & Roll-out

Hinwil/Jerez de la Frontera, 6th February 2012 – Today, Monday, the Sauber F1 Team launches its new car for the 2012 FIA Formula One World Championship. Drivers Kamui Kobayashi (25) and Sergio Pérez (22) unveil the Sauber C31-Ferrari at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in Spain, where on Tuesday official Formula One pre-season testing will get underway. For filming purposes the C31 will cover its initial laps today.

Goals & paths

The Sauber F1 Team will enter its 20th season in the FIA Formula One World Championship spearheaded by an unchanged driver line-up. With Kamui Kobayashi, Sergio Pérez and reserve driver Esteban Gutiérrez piloting the new Sauber C31-Ferrari, the Swiss outfit will be looking to further improve in 2012. “We’re aiming to start the new season as strongly as we did in 2011, but then also to maintain this level of performance throughout the year,” explains Team Principal Peter Sauber. “Our goal is to finish regularly in the points so as to put ourselves in a significantly better position in the World Championship.”

Only three of their rivals on this year’s grid have been in Formula One longer than Peter Sauber’s team. After an excellent start to 2011, the team’s form fell away mid-way through the season following the decision to cease development of a controversial technology. “The Sauber C31-Ferrari boasts a large number of promising new developments, but in other areas it is a systematic further development of last year’s car,” says Sauber.

“We are looking forward to another season working with our young and talented drivers,” adds the Team Principal. “Kamui will be competing in his third full season in F1. Last year we asked him to take on leadership responsibilities within the team and he has grown into the role. With his rookie season behind him Sergio is now approaching his second season, which is often the most difficult in a driver’s Formula One career. Both drivers have huge potential and will work with the same race engineers as in 2011 to continue developing that promise. Esteban will be competing full-time in GP2 in his second season in the category and has shown – most recently in the November test – that he could also step into the car for a Grand Prix, if required.”

Young & quick

The personable Kamui Kobayashi (25) became an instant favourite of Formula One fans on his arrival in the sport, not least with his daring but fair overtaking moves. “2012 will be not only my third season in Formula One, but also my third with the same team,” says the young Japanese. “We’ve been through a lot together and can benefit from our shared experiences. In my first year with the team we had a bad start but a good second half to the season. The second year was the exact reverse. In our third year together we should be a reliable bet to finish consistently in the points. I’m really looking forward to the new season with the Sauber F1 Team.”

In 2012 Sergio Pérez (22) is setting out to put the lessons from a turbulent but impressive rookie season in 2011 into practice. “My first year in Formula One felt like three years, there were so many new things to take in,” admits the Mexican. “But now I feel like I’ve arrived in Formula One and I’m determined to take a step up in 2012 and achieve better results for the team on a regular basis.”

20-year-old Esteban Gutiérrez will be focusing on the races in the GP2 Series. “At the same time,” says the team’s other Mexican driver, “I’m looking forward to working more with the Sauber F1 Team. I’m learning a lot by being able to experience and analyse the professionalism and intensity of the team’s work from the inside. It’s good preparation for me.”

Fresh & evolutionary

Summarising all the efforts put into developing the new Sauber C31-Ferrari, Chief Designer Matt Morris says: “The C31 is revolutionary where we had fresh ideas, particularly at the rear of the car, and it is an evolution where we knew we could carry over certain approaches. We had to improve on the weaknesses we identified on the C30, but at the same time we wanted to maintain its strengths.”

The engineers opted again to go with a high chassis design. However, according to the new 2012 regulations, the nose cone needs to be lower, which is a safety requirement. As a result, the nose cone has quite a different shape to how it was in the past. The chassis itself shows absolute minimum cross sections all the way to the cockpit.

By an overall tidier design, the front suspension has been optimised for integration with the chassis and the upright. Otherwise it’s a traditional layout with a pushrod and a high-level wishbone.

Packaging was further optimised under the side pods in order to open up more aerodynamic development scope in that area. The cooling layout is based around a similar philosophy to the C30, because that proved to be effective. It helps to get the volume of the coolers forward and allows the design of very compact rear bodywork.

A familiar element of the car is the Ferrari engine, onto which an all-new carbon transmission is bolted – also supplied by Ferrari. The longitudinally mounted transmission is a very tidy, neat unit. The entire rear of the car is much more tightly packaged, helped by the gearbox design, and in addition the engineers have gone in some new directions around the floor at the back of the car. The exhaust tailpipe positions are regulated in 2012, which has had a further effect on how the bodywork design has been set out.

The rear suspension is now a pullrod design. It shows a long pullrod towards the front of the gearbox and wide angled wishbones. This design allows improved packaging of the rear spring and damper elements. Despite the change from pushrod to pullrod, in terms of kinematics the engineers maintained a similar direction to the one they went in for the C30.

Finally, Morris casts a glance at the next steps after the roll-out of the Sauber C31-Ferrari: “The current plan is to launch a fairly basic roll-out version of the car, which was defined quite some time ago. We will then be testing development parts during the upcoming weeks with a late upgrade for the first race on 18th March in Australia. Therefore the car will look quite different in Melbourne compared to the roll-out car.”

Current images and video material are available for downloading from the team’s media website:

http://media.sauberf1team.com (registration required)

 

Sauber C31-Ferrari 3508 x 2480 – 2.17 MB

Sauber C31-Ferrari 3508 x 2480 – 2.1 MB

Sauber C31-Ferrari 3508 x 2480 – 1.08 MB

 

credit : Sauber F1 Team