2015 Formula 1 Season Thread

What are the characteristics of a junior formula which these cars exhibit, to me they look as formula one as they ever have looked and more even that last year.
 
What are the characteristics of a junior formula which these cars exhibit, to me they look as formula one as they ever have looked and more even that last year.

Everything that has an aero effect is so narrow. The car looks narrow. The tyres look narrow. The wings are narrow. Now the nose cone design is more traditional and flat they look more like a GP2 Dallara.

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Compare those to the early 2000's in terms of looks, then consider that the 2004 cars were also the fastest in terms of lap time, and it's pretty clear today's F1 is is what a feeder series car would have been by now if there were less restrictions.
Bad day when the "melted batmobile" IndyCar is the meanest looking single seater currently racing.

Anyway, none of this is new for 2015, no, but I think the noses are just bringing it out in the overall perception.
 
me neither! all the bulbs and winglets made them look like something a hot wheels-knockoff would come up with

and last years noses were ugly...but now they're boring!
which is a lot worse if you ask me
 
Mercedes just put some photos out recently, nose is pretty steep but it makes last years nose look quite bulky in comparison and a bit less elegant.

 
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Stop fannying about with this drab grey and go back to red and white like everyone fondly remembers of McLaren.
It's not like you have any sponsors to get in the way. HRT had more sponsorship.
Nice nose though, but the cars are looking more and more like junior formula cars and less and less like mean pinnacles of technology due to to all these size restriction rules.

I dont think the red and white is and ever was a viable option, especially in the old chevron design. That livery was not a Honda livery, nor was it a McLaren livery. It was a Marlboro livery and ran from 1973 to 1996 - a period of 23 years of which Honda were only a part of for five of those years. Other engines ran include TAG Porsche, Ford, Peugeot and Mercedes.

At the end of 1996 the Marlboro partnership was over and McLaren and Ron Dennis realised that gone with Marlboro was McLaren's identity (so much so that even the cars were named Marlboro Project 4) whereupon they decided that going forward they would paint the cars in their own colours. People think the silver and chrome was owned by Mercedes which was false. It was probably inspired and influenced heavily by Mercedes, but it remained McLaren's colour.

From 1997 all McLarens have been painted in their own colours with sponsors and partners adapting around it. Which is why this livery unveiled is no real surprise, although it is by now disappointingly shit. If the car still looks like this come Melbourne I'll be a bit disappointed, now was a good opportunity to rebrand a bit and maybe step away from the black and silver combo of the Mercedes era with a new design that would still retain the essence of McLaren and do the Honda partnership some justice. As you say, it's not like there are any other sponsors to get in the way. I think a deep metallic orange similar to the road car with a black and/or chrome design would look pretty striking.
 
I dont think the red and white is and ever was a viable option, especially in the old chevron design. That livery was not a Honda livery, nor was it a McLaren livery. It was a Marlboro livery and ran from 1973 to 1996 - a period of 23 years of which Honda were only a part of for five of those years. Other engines ran include TAG Porsche, Ford, Peugeot and Mercedes.

At the end of 1996 the Marlboro partnership was over and McLaren and Ron Dennis realised that gone with Marlboro was McLaren's identity (so much so that even the cars were named Marlboro Project 4) whereupon they decided that going forward they would paint the cars in their own colours. People think the silver and chrome was owned by Mercedes which was false. It was probably inspired and influenced heavily by Mercedes, but it remained McLaren's colour.

From 1997 all McLarens have been painted in their own colours with sponsors and partners adapting around it. Which is why this livery unveiled is no real surprise, although it is by now disappointingly shit. If the car still looks like this come Melbourne I'll be a bit disappointed, now was a good opportunity to rebrand a bit and maybe step away from the black and silver combo of the Mercedes era with a new design that would still retain the essence of McLaren and do the Honda partnership some justice. As you say, it's not like there are any other sponsors to get in the way. I think a deep metallic orange similar to the road car with a black and/or chrome design would look pretty striking.

you have anything to back that up?
because i think it's bullshit.

McLaren their homecolor has always been orange, it's only when they got sponsors, they changed their cars to suit the brand.
Merceds have been the silver arrows since the 50s. when McLaren became the MB factory team, they were forced to use that
 
Check out the Sauber, that nose is something else colour scheme is all right though.

 
I dont think the red and white is and ever was a viable option, especially in the old chevron design. That livery was not a Honda livery, nor was it a McLaren livery. It was a Marlboro livery and ran from 1973 to 1996 - a period of 23 years of which Honda were only a part of for five of those years. Other engines ran include TAG Porsche, Ford, Peugeot and Mercedes.

At the end of 1996 the Marlboro partnership was over and McLaren and Ron Dennis realised that gone with Marlboro was McLaren's identity (so much so that even the cars were named Marlboro Project 4) whereupon they decided that going forward they would paint the cars in their own colours. People think the silver and chrome was owned by Mercedes which was false. It was probably inspired and influenced heavily by Mercedes, but it remained McLaren's colour.

From 1997 all McLarens have been painted in their own colours with sponsors and partners adapting around it. Which is why this livery unveiled is no real surprise, although it is by now disappointingly shit. If the car still looks like this come Melbourne I'll be a bit disappointed, now was a good opportunity to rebrand a bit and maybe step away from the black and silver combo of the Mercedes era with a new design that would still retain the essence of McLaren and do the Honda partnership some justice. As you say, it's not like there are any other sponsors to get in the way. I think a deep metallic orange similar to the road car with a black and/or chrome design would look pretty striking.

Yeah I get that it's the Marlboro colour scheme, not Honda or McLaren, but it's still what most F1 fans over 20 associate with McLaren.
It'd be do-able since Marlboro don't own some exclusive rights to red+white. Honda and Toyota have both used it in their own racing programs.
Imagine the press attention from rocking up in Melbourne with red and white McLaren Hondas.

They ran the orange in pre-season testing years ago, but it was underwhelming since it just looked like an arrows.
 
hmm.. what Alfa romeo has doing with ferrari. i know they are (also) part of Fiat-Chrysler group, some in-house promotion?
 
hmm.. what Alfa romeo has doing with ferrari. i know they are (also) part of Fiat-Chrysler group, some in-house promotion?

I wonder if it's taking the place of FIAT I certainly don't see a FIAT logo on the car so I guess Alfa Romeo are a sponsor now.
 
you have anything to back that up?
because i think it's bullshit.

McLaren their homecolor has always been orange, it's only when they got sponsors, they changed their cars to suit the brand.
Merceds have been the silver arrows since the 50s. when McLaren became the MB factory team, they were forced to use that

Not immediately at hand but yes I do.

GraemeH said:
Yeah I get that it's the Marlboro colour scheme, not Honda or McLaren, but it's still what most F1 fans over 20 associate with McLaren.
It'd be do-able since Marlboro don't own some exclusive rights to red+white. Honda and Toyota have both used it in their own racing programs.
Imagine the press attention from rocking up in Melbourne with red and white McLaren Hondas.


I think it's bland and would be nothing more than a cheap knock off. All of the fantasy liveries I've seen that have been red and white have missed the mark. There's no reason they couldn't incorporate white and red into the colour scheme though, and I've seen some very good fantasy designs that pay homage to the old ways yet still come up with something new, that's (and importantly) still McLaren. Time to forge ahead I think and create a new era with Honda...with a drab old livery that was getting past its use by date in 2005. I can't explain that beyond noting as before that silver and black are colours chosen by McLaren to represent themselves.
 
hmm.. what Alfa romeo has doing with ferrari. i know they are (also) part of Fiat-Chrysler group, some in-house promotion?

One key Marchionne touch was the replacement of FIAT on the engine cover with Alfa Romeo. Marchionne has big plans for the revival and growth of Alfa under the new FIAT Chrysler Automobiles project and so why not use the global billboard of F1?s huge audience to begin showcasing that brand? It?s odd that the Alfa logos are many times bigger than any Ferrari brand on the car, but the same was true for FIAT.

http://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2015/01/notes-on-behind-the-scenes-of-the-ferrari-f1-launch/
 
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