Wipeout on Wheels: MCLExtreme is McLaren's Vision For Formula One in 2050

giphy.gif
 
in all fairness, i don't think that in 2050 there will still be a formula 1.
They are struggling to survive already...

And if there are still "Wheels" around in 2050, i would be really disappointed. Should be more like Pod-Racing i guess
 
NaketWookie
in all fairness, i don't think that in 2050 there will still be a formula 1.
They are struggling to survive already...

And if there are still "Wheels" around in 2050, i would be really disappointed. Should be more like Pod-Racing i guess
Click to expand...
A good chunk of this "vision" came from McLaren's survey of fans - and they want wheels. They did specifically make mention in the press release of fans not wanting flying cars.
 
They aren't too far off either, the F 3600 ( "F";)) league officially began in 2052. The depicted drones in some of the pictures also give an element of conceivability, they are great tools for cinematography. I remember watching a GT3 race on YT at the streets of Adelaide in Australia, the drones tracking shots were surreal and mind blowing.

If nothing else it's a fun concept to envision.
 
The pitlane bit is actually pretty much the same as it was in the first few Wipeouts. I usually don't like futuristic concepts like this but honestly I'd be happy if this is what the future will be.
 
Since an F1 car of today creates enough down force to hold the weight of the car, I always wanted to see a track with a 180 degree twist, and watch the cars drive on the ceiling of a partial tunnel, then get back down to the flat with a second 180 twist.
this would have to be in the middle of a high speed straight and No Passing on the tunnel ceiling.
 
No. In 2050, we won't have any free real estate left because of all the goddamn people crammed onto the planet. Race tracks take enough space as it is, we need to use that as effectively as possible. And if McLaren see these cars doing top fuel dragster speeds, you might as well race aircraft. In addition, each and every year more things are done to slow the cars down and improve safety; I don't think McLaren's vision is a safe one. Could you imagine a crash in one of these things? It will be fatal, not just for the driver. This is all just a flight of fancy. I hope it stays that way.
 
Ace Carrera
They'll be two years too late, by 2048 we already have Wipeout.
Click to expand...
Ha! :lol:

Honestly, this thing looks like rubbish. Like it hasn't learned the lessons from anything else in the last 30 years of F1, or motorsport in general. How come Newey and Red Bull can get it so right with the X2010, and McLaren keep screwing these up?


From the design; open wheeler. WHY?! If you want close racing, turbulence is one thing to get rid of, not add more of.

Not to mention, the aero. I don't know when we traded wing profile for boxes, but clearly I missed some sort of regression here. Yeah sure you can say ground effects, but trimming devices are still useful as airfoils...

As for the so-called 'pit strategy', if you're doing 300mph in those things you're blowing energy like there's no tomorrow. Assuming the battery follows some new trend not yet discovered by mankind, and has a high capacity for that speed AND ludicrous C-rating (in the seconds, not hours spent in the pic), the ideal strategy is always going to be spend as much time in the pits gaining energy as possible.

Since you're going to be putting in more energy per second charging that driving (otherwise you'd be spending more time in the pits than the race), you're better off charging fully assuming you have enough time left in the race to use all the charge. At a net positive energy (battery potential + spent kinetic) just fill it up every time.

As for the mood lighting, congrats. You just telegraphed the drivers' attitude. I don't know why anyone thought this was a good idea, but there you go.

Blackout zones, much like tight twisty areas of existing tracks where you DON'T interupt the driver, what's the point? They drive one section lap after lap without hearing James from the pit wall? Already got that. Doesn't actually add to the racing.


Honestly, this is the kind of racing that sounds like it came from the mind of an interior decorator or fashion stylist. Nothing seems like it'd ever be functional for a race, and it's not even that stylish.

Apart from the HUD, like that used on the F-35 fighter, it all seems pretty bad. They have even created new problems (spectator value for money).
 
Wrong McLaren. F1 cars, if they still exist will be piloted remotely and these race cars will fly over the race track.
 
TBR 427
Like it hasn't learned the lessons from anything else in the last 30 years of F1, or motorsport in general. How come Newey and Red Bull can get it so right with the X2010, and McLaren keep screwing these up?
Click to expand...
Just so you're aware, McLaren Applied Technologies, who came up with this, isn't McLaren F1 Team or McLaren Automotive. They're all part of the McLaren Group, but the guys who design the F1 cars and the guys who designed this aren't the same guys.
TBR 427
As for the mood lighting, congrats. You just telegraphed the drivers' attitude. I don't know why anyone thought this was a good idea, but there you go.

Blackout zones, much like tight twisty areas of existing tracks where you DON'T interupt the driver, what's the point? They drive one section lap after lap without hearing James from the pit wall? Already got that. Doesn't actually add to the racing.
Click to expand...
This is part of the fan feedback. The fans want to see more of the drivers - transparent cars is part of that, but so is seeing their emotional state. The idea of divorcing the driver not just from the pitwall but the proposed AI companion comes from fans' increasing desire to see the driver doing the driving and not running to a delta with a voice in their ear. Or eyeline.
 
Famine
Just so you're aware, McLaren Applied Technologies, who came up with this, isn't McLaren F1 Team or McLaren Automotive. They're all part of the McLaren Group, but the guys who design the F1 cars and the guys who designed this aren't the same guys.

This is part of the fan feedback. The fans want to see more of the drivers - transparent cars is part of that, but so is seeing their emotional state. The idea of divorcing the driver not just from the pitwall but the proposed AI companion comes from fans' increasing desire to see the driver doing the driving and not running to a delta with a voice in their ear. Or eyeline.
Click to expand...

MAT is the group that does the medical/electrical stuff though, right? Much like the F1 team, they should be above such styling, and be more practical.

And for seeing the drivers well, that only works at certain speeds. These things, with electric motors and their typical speed profile (maximizing energy usage by accelerating hard out of corners and having a fairly average top speed), are going to be doing much higher speeds than you could actually see the drivers, at least in person or on video.

Photos, maybe, but that's after the fact.

And with the canopy reflecting all lights at night or the sun during daylight, you're not going to be able to get much of a view of the driver at all.


Currently, with the tight/twisty bits of circuits, like Hungary t4 onwards, or the hairpins/pool at Monaco, etc, is there any actual info other than RPM (by hearing/vibrations) that needs to get to the driver on the wheel? If the drivers already have an engineer smart enough to leave them alone during certain parts of the track each lap, what would this change?

To me this whole thing reeks of being seen to do something, rather than actually doing something or being clever enough to actually come up with an idea that makes things better. Virtue signalling, I think is the term.
 

Latest Posts

Back