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The main challenges of the Interlagos circuit, home of this weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix, are the altitude and heat, both of which are potentially destructive characteristics for the new turbo hybrid power units.
In addition to the high altitude, the rise and fall of the local topography gives a total elevation change of 150ft over the course of a lap.
There have already been several off camber corners this season where the lubricants are ‘squashed' to one side.
However, the Renault Sport F1 engineers say there are no more obvious examples of this phenomenon than the first corner of Interlagos, the Senna “S” for the oil system and the last long left hand corner leading to the pit straight for the fuel system.
The off-camber Senna “S” drops sharply downhill, putting the cars an angle of approximately 30°.
Higher fuel and lubricant levels may be used to safeguard against any momentary stall as the fluids drop suddenly to one side of the tank, and fuel collectors are often designed with this corner in mind as it is the most severe of the season.
Interlagos is the bumpiest permanent track of the year. Monaco and the other street circuits feature ‘natural' bumps over manhole covers and drains, but the high ambient humidity, geographic position and relative lack of use of Interlagos means the track develops large contusions.
Due to the low ride height of the cars and the hard suspension, running directly over the middle of a bump makes the car temporarily ‘take off'. Even if it's just for a nano second, with no load running through the wheels the engine suddenly hits the rev limiter, which puts the internal parts under stress.
This is however less severe this year now engines are running “lower” revs.
In addition to the high altitude, the rise and fall of the local topography gives a total elevation change of 150ft over the course of a lap.
There have already been several off camber corners this season where the lubricants are ‘squashed' to one side.
However, the Renault Sport F1 engineers say there are no more obvious examples of this phenomenon than the first corner of Interlagos, the Senna “S” for the oil system and the last long left hand corner leading to the pit straight for the fuel system.
The off-camber Senna “S” drops sharply downhill, putting the cars an angle of approximately 30°.
Higher fuel and lubricant levels may be used to safeguard against any momentary stall as the fluids drop suddenly to one side of the tank, and fuel collectors are often designed with this corner in mind as it is the most severe of the season.
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| Interlagos track. (Image: Renault Sport F1) |
Interlagos is the bumpiest permanent track of the year. Monaco and the other street circuits feature ‘natural' bumps over manhole covers and drains, but the high ambient humidity, geographic position and relative lack of use of Interlagos means the track develops large contusions.
Due to the low ride height of the cars and the hard suspension, running directly over the middle of a bump makes the car temporarily ‘take off'. Even if it's just for a nano second, with no load running through the wheels the engine suddenly hits the rev limiter, which puts the internal parts under stress.
This is however less severe this year now engines are running “lower” revs.