America’s own Formula 1 team, Haas F1 debuted their new designs for the 2018 season today. There’s no doubt that owner Gene Haas and the evolution of his industry leading CNC machines have forever changed all of motorsport and manufacturing worldwide. F1 is an awesome International series and with the first test sessions in Spain, the Haas F1 team is poised to move up in standings this season in one of the most competitive and expensive motorsports today.
This 2018 design incorporates a new sanctioning-body mandated Halo to protect the driver, particularly from airborne debris or another car. However, just wondering why the most sophisticated motorsport; F1 doesn’t incorporate a futuristic ballistic canopy, as a number of NHRA Top Fuel teams have now adopted and are proving quite successfully.
The VF-18 is an evolution of the team’s second car, the VF-17, which carried Haas F1 Team to an eighth-place finish in the 2017 constructors standings. Forty-seven points were scored by the VF-17 during Haas F1 Team’s sophomore season, 18 points more than the total earned in the organization’s debut season in 2016.
Incorporating “VF” into the name of the car is a nod to the history of Haas Automation, the team’s title sponsor. The first CNC machine manufactured by Haas Automation was the VF-1 in 1988. The “V” stands for vertical, which is an industry standard designation for a vertical mill. Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation, added “F1” to the name to unofficially designate it as the company’s “Very First One”.
As chairman of Haas F1 Team, the “F1” moniker of that first machine has taken on added significance as Haas utilizes Formula One to build Haas Automation into a premium, global brand.
“People see what we can do in Formula One and people believe Haas Automation can build world-class machine tools,” said Haas, whose entry in 2016 became the first American Formula One team since 1986. “Being a Formula One participant brings a level of credibility that you just won’t get through traditional advertising.”
Haas has built Haas Automation into the largest machine tool manufacturer in North America by focusing on the details amid constant refinement. He has applied those same attributes to Haas F1 Team.
“We eliminated a lot of the variables where we knew we were weak,” Haas said. “We’ve focused on what it’s going to take to get our car to be consistent and close that gap to the top teams.”
“The biggest part of the car’s evolution was the addition of the halo,” said Guenther Steiner, team principal, Haas F1 Team. “It took quite a bit of study by the aerodynamicists, but the designers had to work hard to modify the chassis so the halo could survive the mandated loads. The total minimum weight of the car increased because of the halo, and there’s a higher center of gravity simply because of the halo’s position. But, everyone is in the same boat.
“The regulations stayed pretty stable between 2017 and 2018, so the VF-18 is an evolution of our car from last year. It’s less about reinvention and more about refinement. You see elements we had from last year on the car this year.
“Our 2017 car was actually pretty good, but we didn’t always get the best out of it, and that’s what we aimed to change in 2018. We got the car as light as possible to carry more ballast. We were able to do a better job of putting the weight where we wanted it.”
The corporate colors of Haas Automation were carried over to the VF-18. Gray makes up the majority of the livery, augmented with tones of red and black that incorporates the look of Haas Automation’s complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers and rotary tables and indexers. Approximately 1,300 employees encompass Haas Automation, with the Oxnard, California-based company exporting its machines to more than 60 countries. The VF-18 showcases Haas Automation’s commitment to technology and innovation to a passionate, global audience.
“The livery is a little bit of a return to what we had on our first car, the VF-16,” Steiner added. “Its look is clean and precise, just like the machine tools made by Haas Automation.”
Haas F1 Team Unveils Racecar for 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship
The VF-18 tests at Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya Feb. 26-March 1 and again March 6-9 before the season-opening Australian Grand Prix March 25 in Melbourne.
Great to see…but even greater would have on American (all of the Americas, South, Central or North) driving for them.
Awesome! I hope they do good this year.
Pretty sure they said during the coverage last year that teams tried to make a canopy and/or windscreen out of about every type of material known to man but ALL of them still had the same problems….scratching, fogging, and how do you get out if the car’s on it’s lid?
Plus it rains quite often during their races so how would you rig up a wiper system?
The best bit of the vehicle\’s advancement turned into the development of the crown,\” expressed Guenther Steiner, foundation critical, Haas F1 group. \”It took many foci by the aerodynamicists, yet the originators expected to attempt to modify the suspension so the crown should live on the requested weights. The total minimum weight of the vehicle duplicated because of the brilliance, and there might be a superior point of convergence of gravity basically in view of the crown\’s capacity
We are however one year into the new high-downforce time. In the vicinity of 2009 and 2016, raise wings were raised, tires were smaller, and front wings, intended to be influenced less difficult, to have just expanded in unpredictability, educating the wind current for the whole auto.
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A couple of months before the beginning of the 17-race season in March, Button had all the earmarks of being without a drive as his group, Honda, pulled back from the game. Be that as it may, a spending takeover, initiated by Ross Brawn, saved the group and splendidly misused new directions to enable Button to win six of the initial seven races.