Being one of the chosen BMW Juniors, I was recently invited to visit the BMW Formula One factory in Hinwil, Switzerland.
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The chosen ones. BMW Juniors at the BMW F1 Factory
in Hinwil, Switzerland
"Being one of the
chosen BMW Juniors, I was
recently invited to visit the BMW Formula One
factory in Hinwil, Switzerland.
We were given an extensive seminar on racing
technique, aerodynamics and car set up by
Mike Strottmann a former BMW touring
car racer himself and other experts from the factory.
Extremely interesting was also the tour of the
factory including the museum and the high tech wind
tunnel, which is so important for the development of
F1 aerodynamics.
F1 Engine secrets revealed by the expert
A Formula
One car is actually not a car as most people
perceive it: It is actually an airplane flown upside
down. If you race through a tunnel you could actually
drive along the ceiling and it would stick! The only
problem is how to get it there without crashing at
300 km/h. The engineer who gave us the lesson on
aerodynamics had been crazy enough to volunteer but
management refused because of safety concerns.
Set up and driving technique lesson by BMW Touring
car driver Mike Strottmann
The wind tunnel is
managed by the second most powerful computer in the
world: Albert. It is really huge, something like 20 x
2 x2 meters, like computers used to be 50 years ago,
but as powerful as they are today! Only
NASA has a bigger one. It works 24/7
and calculates billions of ways every day how air
could flow over the car in a way that it gives the
right mix between downforce and drag or wind
resistance. That's why the cars have little wings all
over and look so alien. But next year there will be
more restrictions and cars will look more similar
again to give the teams a more level playing field
and increase competition on the track instead of in
the factory, which is better for spectators, since
only few people have the opportunity to go inside an
F1 factory. Even we were not allowed
to go inside the actual tunnel. Top secret!"
Marlon
Marlon Stockinger and Simon Moss checking out
Nick Heidtfeldt's Steering Wheel at the BMW F1
Factory in Hinwil, Switzerland