Fuel diversity

[ioan]

Because we still ave to wait 4 weeks untill the first official day of the new season I'll bring up a point that could easily fill our time till then.

Because Gene was so enthusiast after driving the new LeMans toy:
http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns18033.html
and he suggested that this could be done in F1 too.

What do you believe about F1 adopting different fuels in the future and maybe going GREEN and thus using those billions of $ for something useful in the same time, wouldn't it be good?

I know many will scoff at the idea of having diesel or biodiesel used in F1, but I can live wit that!

[K-Pu]

F1 is (or should) about technical innovation, so I don´t see why they shouldn´t try to use diesel engines, or bio-fuel... or whatever. If they can make highly efficient engines using something else instead of gasoline, it should have its impact on road cars and everyday technology.

[RJL25]

the FIA has already expressed its interest in taking formula 1 down the bio-diesel road (mainly because diesel is so popular in europe, and bio-diesel is seen as the way forward) and has hinted that the F1 car in the not so distant future might become a diesel electric hybrid, and the powertrain could consist of a very small capacity, even smaller then today's 2.4ltr capacity, turbo diesel engine powered by 100% bio-diesel fuel combined with electric motors. A possible setup would be the bio-diesel engine powering the rear wheels and small electric in-wheel motors powering the front wheels.

Pretty interesting stuff, theres no doubt it would dramatically change F1 as we know it, but it would keep F1 at the very cutting edge of automtive technology and keep F1 relevant. And thats the FIA's goal for F1, they have these manufacturers spending big money, but in tern they want to see a return on that investment. So if their F1 envolvement speeds up their research into bio-diesel engines and electric engines then they'll be pretty happy.

Also, interestingly, Audi have admitted to making a diesel powered F1 engine a couple of years ago. Just to see what it could do really, see if it was viable. If it was they would have obviously lobbied the FIA to be able to use it in F1 (which would have required rule changes) but they obviously decided that they where better served with their lemans projects

[ClarkFan]

I think it is well past time F1 adopted more forward-looking rules on energy use. I have been disappointed in the proposed engine formulae because the FIA missed the chance to make efficiency a driving force in the rules.

Diesel/biodiesel could be readily incorporated in a BTU-equivalent fuel flow formula, a Keith Duckworth idea I have flogged here before. Want more horsepower in your F1 engine? Use your fuel allotment more efficiently. As the other posters here have noted, it could help square up the research on F1 engines and road engines.

ClarkFan

[blakebeatty]

the future of automotive lies in hybrid, and that i believe is formula 1's ultimate goal. look at toyota's new 400 horsepower concept. they have spoken about regenerative braking energy, the detraction, of course, being that they want costs down. This is clearly the direction that the fia would rather take.