HOW TO BUILD AN F1 CAR WITHIN FIVE MONTHS - On pole at Lotus Racing
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HOW TO BUILD AN F1 CAR WITHIN FIVE MONTHS On pole at Lotus Racing
Hour 0 Month 1
Qualifying At the starting line
On 12 September 2009, the race against time begins. In order to manage the project successfully in the short
After an extremely late approval from the FIA, exactly amount of time available, Lotus Racing brings capricorn
six months remain until the start of the 2010 season on board for the chassis construction and all of the com-
for Lotus Racing to bring a vehicle to the starting grid. posite work. “capricorn is a well-known supplier, and we
The original Lotus Racing timetable was based on know they can deliver the quality we need; we do not
receiving permission to start in the first allocation round have time for even the smallest of errors,” explains Chief
in June 2009, which the team from this renowned com- Technical Officer Gascoyne.
pany did not however obtain. Chief Technical Officer As a proven supplier, capricorn provides the neces-
Mike Gascoyne did not let this discourage him though, sary expertise for the production of all primary structures
and after the withdrawal of BMW, on 12 September Lotus of the Lotus Cosworth T127. Composite fibre technology
Racing received the sought-after starting position as the is the focus at the production site near the Nürburgring,
14th team for the Formula 1 2010 season, exactly six a technology which is of key importance in Formula 1.
months before the first race. Composite materials demonstrate extremely high strength
At this point in time, Lotus Racing is little more than and durability, while at the same time being incredibly
a legendary name. To meet the tight deadline, the team lightweight.
must build a competitive racing car within five months. To produce the individual chassis and panel compo-
The question is: will the new Lotus team complete the nents of the racing car, capricorn first produces master
car in time for the start of the season? And how do you models. With 5-axis milling machines and using CAD
build a Formula 1 car in just five months? data, completely computer-controlled models are milled.
From these, the capricorn composite experts then form
the laminating tools in negative in order to start actual
production of the racing car chassis.
Composite fibre technology Composite materials
Production site Semi-finishedMonth 2 Month 3
Hit the gas Lap by lap
capricorn tackles the side impact and rollover protection The rollover protection also successfully passes a stress
structures of the Lotus Cosworth first. Because racing test. With side impact protection, the rear impact struc
places extremely high demands on the strength of the ture and rollover bar, important components of the
material, while at the same time requiring the lowest racing cars have now passed the test.
possible weight, Formula 1 cars are now almost exclu- At the same time, capricorn begins with the produc-
sively made of carbon structures. Pre-impregnated with tion of chassis components for the Lotus T127. With
resin, the semi-finished fibre components are referred each step and each individual component, the Formula 1
to as “prepreg” technology. Through various types of car comes closer and closer to being realised. The new
cutting patterns, laying fibre in different directions and car also finally gets its face – the car’s nose goes into
varying the number of fibre layers, the strength of each production. Of course, it must also withstand crash tests
component is individually adapted. During this fine- in accordance with FIA regulations. To ensure the safety
tuning procedure, capricorn Composite is especially of the driver in the cockpit in case of a frontal crash, the
able to utilise its years of expertise. nose of a Formula 1 car must withstand an impact of
The specialists place the prepregs into the previously 15 m/s without the driver cell being damaged.
manufactured laminating moulds by hand; layer by layer At half time the team is on the right track – but will
the expensive hi-tech material is transferred exactly. Lotus Racing finish in time and be able to start the
A vacuum is created under a vacuum bag and the com- racing season?
ponent then moves into a giant oven, the autoclave.
During slow “baking” at about 135 °C under a constant
pressure of 6 bar, a perfectly pressed fibre structure
is produced, giving the composite component its extremely
high strength.
To ensure the safety of the driver and to meet the
requirements of the FIA, the individual components
of the Formula 1 car are subjected to crash tests during
the development phase. As required, the side impact
structures withstand a side crash with a force of up to 20 g.
A vacuum is created under a vacuum bag 15 m/s
Cutting patterns As required, the side impact structures
withstand a side crash with a force of up to 20 gMonth 4 Month 5
In the fast lane On the home straight
To cope with the huge mountain of tasks, the 50- The final phase is underway and the Formula 1 racing car
member capricorn team works virtually around the clock. project is perfectly on track. The capricorn specialists
To win the race against time, weekend shifts are the work out the final details at full speed. The assembled
norm. But the efforts are worthwhile because, just as chassis receives its final touches. capricorn manufac-
with a puzzle, the parts slowly begin to add up to the tures the final key component on the front wing for the
big picture. The first chassis is assembled from a large Lotus Cosworth T127.
number of individual components. At the same time, The perfect interaction between Lotus Racing and
chassis no. 2 and the first running gear components, capricorn culminates in the desired result: exactly five
such as the pushrods, go into production. In addition, the months after being awarded the starting place, on 12
capricorn experts are working on covering all elements January 2010, the Lotus Racing team reveals its com-
of the car. pleted race car in London – a somewhat conservative
design in the traditional Lotus colours.
The finish
Crossing the finish line
After a successful track test, the Lotus Cosworth T127
achieves its goal – just in time for the beginning of the
Formula 1 2010 season, the race car is on the starting
grid on 14 March 2010 in Bahrain.
And the first running gear components,
such as the pushrods, go into productionContact capricorn AUTOMOTIVE GmbH Krefelder Straße 320 41066 Mönchengladbach Germany Tel. + 49 21 61.4 77 76-0 Fax + 49 21 61.4 77 76-17 www.capricorngroup.de capricorn COMPOSITE Gottlieb-Daimler-Str. 6-10 53520 Meuspath Germany Tel. + 49 26 91.9 33 06-0 Fax + 49 26 91.9 33 06-66 www.capricorngroup.de Imprint capricorn AUTOMOTIVE GmbH Speditionstraße 15 40221 Düsseldorf Germany
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