If It Can't Spend $400M in F1 Anymore, Ferrari Might as Well Win Le Mans

If that were true then why don't Red Bull or Mercedes have LMH teams in the WEC series? Surely, they would want to use all that data to improve their F1 cars, right? Or is it because they all know, including Ferrari, that there is very little correlation between an F1 car and a LMH car.

Their WEC performances have been stellar for a rookie team.

Last year, I took my wagon for a drive on "The Ring". It was an exceptional experience, a rollercoaster ride I haven’t experienced in my life before. I'd really like to get back there some time, with a more beefier car.

I had the great opportunity to get to know a semi-professional driver on the track, who drove three rounds with me in his Subaru. That was a whole different level.

Le Mans Prototypes are basically ground aircraft.

Ignoring the Mercedes-Benz CLR, of course.

Honestly, I can only imagine what’s going to happen if movable aero is ever allowed at the top end of motorsport. Think something like the McMurtry Speirling (https://youtu.be/tHIbvYWhaxA?t=999), but as if it was put through some madman’s Kerbal Space Program fever dream.

Granted, I think the memory of June 11th, 1955 will keep it from ever happening.

It's the same for all F1 cars, as there is no radiator fan and the airflow from driving is required to keep the car cool. you actually can't idle for too long or you'll overheat. you also have to cool the brakes after running or there is a fire risk.

not sure about so-called prototype [ie, lemans] cars, but i do suspect those cars have radiator fans. Even many (most?) passenger cars keep the electric fan on the radiator going, and water pump circulating, after you shut the engine down. it looks like the 2 leaf blowers in the front are for the brakes and the one in the top is for the engine.

Of course in F1 they have custom enclosures made to fit and lock into the radiator openings. It is funny to see these do look like bog standard off the shelf leaf blowers.

I used to use an e-go leaf blower with a fabricated attachment for the air intake.

One thing you learn about high end performance cars is just the sheer amount of heat they spew at all times. From everywhere. Part of it is they have far more than a single radiator. Once you start crossing $100K USD a fair number of cars start getting to 3-5 heat exchangers (even NA cars!), and it climbs from there.

Road going performance cars have fans first to help get things up to temperature for emissions, and after that, for when you’re at low speeds or stationary. So you don’t overheat (or catch fire) when you’re stuck in traffic after having the car at high load.

Race cars tend to not have any fans near their primary heat exchangers. You get more airflow without fan blades creating impedance, and you just rely on the airflow at speed to do all the work.