Pirelli’s request for Formula One to implement live monitoring of tyre data has more than raised a few alarm bells about the possibility teams circumventing minimum tyre pressure regulations.
While safety is the biggest concern after a number of tyre failures in China this year and in particular, Sebastian Vettel’s during the 2015 Belgian Grand Prix, Pirelli’s appeal comes from suspicions that some teams have found ways of intentionally lowering tyre pressures between the moment checks are made before the formation lap and the start of the race.
Currently, Pirelli only has access to tyre pressure information as the cars leave the grid, but the Italian tyre manufacturer boss Paul Hembery, believes that “some people have found a way of lowering the pressure, or maybe not having the pressure we see at the regrouping point at the start of the race.”
“Some teams haven’t worked out how they’re doing it yet and the reality is we probably don’t want people spending money trying to find that advantage” he said.
As speeds in Formula One have increased, Pirelli have introduced higher minimum pressure limits, provoking some drivers, such as HAAS’s Romain Grosjean to label the new limits as “ridiculous”.
HAAS no doubt have their hands full being newcomers to the sport, but there is potential that bigger players may be engaging in the odd case of subterfuge in sidestepping the pressure limit.
Mercedes caused controversy at Monza last year when Lewis Hamilton’s left-rear tyre was found to be 0.3 psi below the required mark, with the same tyre on Nico Rosberg’s car 1.1 psi under and the end of the race.
However, after convening with the technical delegate, Mercedes team representatives and the assigned Pirelli tyre engineer, the FIA concluded that Mercedes had no case to answer. The official word was that the pressures in the tyres concerned were: “at the minimum start pressure recommended by Pirelli when they were fitted to the car”, according to an FIA statement.
So how could this happen? Is it possible that a tyre pressure regulator or relief valve could be controlled remotely after an on the grid check?
With so much activity on the grid, could a team have gauges set to automatically release down to a predetermined pressure – a process that could be executed incrementally as not to create suspicion?
Or could a tyre pressure monitor sensor contain software that releases pressure after a set period of time?
Advanced ceramic systems manufacturer, Morgan Electro Ceramic has developed technology which can power car tyre pressure monitoring systems using wheel movement instead of batteries.
Movement of the wheel and pressure of the tyre on the ground causes a bimorph (or sensor) to bend and undergo stress, which is then transformed into electrical energy. The bimorph generates enough electrical energy to power a wireless signal that transmits data about the pressure in the tyre to an on-car receiver.
It’s therefore conceivable that the on-car receiver could then relay a ‘message’ back to the gauge to drop pressure during the formation lap and avoid the scrutiny of stewards.
It is in effect, a high concept version of nefarious strategies used throughout the history of motor sport.
NASCAR teams used to fill their cages and chassis with wet sand so they met minimum weight requirements at scrutineering checks, then gained an advantage over the course of the race as the water evaporated and or fell out the bottom of the car.
Peter Brock’s Ford Sierra was said to have had an extinguisher nozzle pointing into the intercooler during qualifying at Bathurst in 1989, thereby keeping the engine cool and boosting power over a short period of the lap. Despite never being proven conclusively, Brock was fined $5000 by the entrants group for the indiscretion.
In Formula One’s case, the only way to stop feeding rumour and innuendo is to implement Hembery’s recommendation and introduce “a live feed of tyre pressures fed through the data systems, so we can see at any one point what the minimum running pressure is.”
Tyres might be black to the eye, but doing clearing this up might make their matter a little less grey.
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