The teams seem to be working hard to hide the secret parts of their new F1 cars but that did not stop some curious photographers from getting closer shots of Red Bull's mysterious little air vent. It could be not that mysterious... But our passion for this sport makes us thirsty for details!
Could it be the key element of the new RB8's design? Adrian Newey admitted that last year, they built their car around the exhaust position. This year, with the blown diffuser solution banned, the world champions might want to find another trick that'll make their car the fastest on the grid.
I guess we'll have to wait a little bit more to get a clearer view of the RB8. One thing is sure however, the car does feature the same stepped nose solution as the other teams, though it looks to be smoother and more elegant just like they have predicted..
Polyphony digital, the company behind the Gran Turismo series, is no stranger to cooperating with car manufacturers and racing teams. Some of the most noticeable accomplishements by Kazunori Yamauchi's team are the dashboard display graphics for the R35 Nissan GT-R and designing the famous GT By Citroën supercar concept in cooperation with the French automaker. Now it's time for Adrian Newey's X1 Prototype to take shape in the real world. There is no word if they will actually build a working model of Newey's dream racer as the car you are seeing above is just a model. However, it's a good step towards making this car a reality. And if you want to see it in the flesh, the model will be unveiled to the public at the official GT5 Launch Party in Madrid.
Last week we could see the first leaked pictures of the much anticipated X1 Prototype for the upcoming Gran Turismo 5 racing simulation. Now Polyphony Digital have released a full set of pictures, a video of the car lapping the Nürburgring Gran Prix Circuit as well as the full technical specifications.
Design
The X1 Prototype is simply a design master piece. It's a cross between a jet fighter and a formula 1 car but it has its very own personality. It has a very smooth body designed for maximum aerodynamic effciency. And best of all, it has been imagined by master aerodynamic engineer and Red Bull Racing's chief technical officer, Adrian Newey which means in real life it would be winning races...
Performance
With a wet weight of 615 Kg and a twin turbocharged 3.0L V6 producing 1483 Hp the X1 prototype can theorically achieve a 0 to 96 km/h (60 mph) time of 1.4 seconds, with the 193 Km/h (120 mph) mark coming right after another 1.4 sconds and by the time a Camaro V6 reaches 60 mph in nearly 6.1 seconds, the X1 protype would already be at 320 km/h (200 mph). At that speed, the car is capable of achieving as much as 960 kilograms of down force. This allows the X1 to corner at unbelievably high speeds and virtually achieve a lap time of 1 minute 4 seconds in the Nürburgring Gran Prix circuit! To see Sebastian Vettel perform this astonishing lap, watch the video below.
Can they really make it?
Adrian Newey says yes. In fact, he describes the X1 as an evolution,"..delivering the optimum combination of tested technologies in a single integrated design." And that's because most of the elements included in this car have already been tested on protypes or race cars in the past. Technologies like the famous "Fan Car" which sucks the air flow beneath the car body to reduce its pressure and generate massive amounts of downforce, ride height suspension, variable transmission as well as active aero parts already exist or have existed on several race cars and even road cars.
Will it be as fast in real life?
If they can achieve 1483 Hp out of a direct injected twin turbo 3.0L V6 engine, then i don't see why a 615 Kg car propelled by such an engine woudln't go like a rocket!
Will it be drivable in real life?
You certainly need too much talent to drive an F1 car like Sebastian Vettel. But this car is so fast that it has reached the limit of what a human being body can take. If you are piloting a jet fighter at thousands of meters of altitude, it might not be a big deal to turn a second later. But if you do it on a track on the wheels of the X1 prototype, you'd be hitting the wall at 400 Km/h... Would you drive it?
After the game has been delayed again just two weeks ahead of its official launch date, Gran Turismo fans around the world just couldn't wait any time longer to know how the much anticipated X1 Prototype looked like. Luckily the guys at GTPlanet got their hands on the first leaked set of pictures of the car. Designed by Adrian Newey, Red Bull Racing's Chief Designer, the X1 Prototype is supposed to break all the barriers of limitation fixed by current Formula 1 regulations.
No matter how realistic GT5 is, don't forget that this racer still belongs to the virtual world. However it's interesting to see how two brilliant minds likes Adrian Newey and Kazunori Yamauchi imagined this car. So here's a quick tour of the technology used and the virtual performance numbers:
Power comes from a gas turbine developping 1483bhp and 527lb ft of torque. Power is transmitted to the rear wheels through a continuously variable transmission. The weight of the car is just 545 kilograms. This allows Newey's Dream racer to virtually lap the Suzuka circuit in 1:11.450 in the hands of Sebatian Vettel, 20 seconds faster than the fastest F1 lap around the same circuit. Top speed is nearly 400 Km/h (249 mph).
The car features the same livery as the current RB6 Formula 1 car. All four wheels are hidden and the driver cockpit is now nearly identical to a jet fighter's cockpit for maximum aerodynamic efficiency. However, there still are some formula One inspired aero elements like the front and rear wings as well as the side air intakes. Head on to GTPlanet to see the insane rear end of the car and don't forget to buy next month's issue of Car Magazine for more details.
If you want to see the teaser video again go back to this link.
The latest video released by Polyphony Digital in the 2010 edition of the E3 show, that you can watch again below, shows us a great number of new features that will be included in Gran Turismo 5 like damage rendering, night racing, day/night transition during races, the Top Gear test track and the Stig, perfectly modeled cars interiors, more than astonishing graphics and... the Red Bull Technology Center.
Now here's the bit that's very much less talked about: What does Adrian Newey and Sebastian Vettel do in this trailer which usually only shows in game footage. Now here's my theory (that you can also throw against the wall and pass your way):
At 1:52 we hear Sebastian Vettel saying "...easily reach 400 Km/h..." (or something like that) then we see Adrian Newey, Red Bull Racing's Technical Cheaf and an expert in aerodynamics and aeronautics explaining what must be something really technical to Kazunori Yamauchi, the creator of the GT series who seems really focused. Then we see a wind tunnel gate being closed then transformed into a perfectly modeled virtual one, with something laying the other side. Was it the Red Bull F1 car? Was Sebastian mentionning the maximum air flow speed through the wind tunnel? Will it be possible for us players to improve the cars' aerodynamics in a virtual wind tunnel? Design our own F1 cars? Kazunori Yamauchi already said that the final game is totally worth all this waiting, but will it be that good!
Okay, maybe i'm going too far with this... I'm wainting for your contributions!
EDIT: The device featured in the first picture of this post is actually an autoclave. Head on to this link for more clarifications.
