Adrian Newey, Red Bull F1’s chief technical officer, has cast doubt on the narrative surrounding F1 and the future of the car.
Adrian Newey, perhaps the most famous designer in F1 history, has admitted that environment and sustainability are “big issues” that need attention.
“Formula 1 can and must play that role,” Newey told Motorsport-magazin.com.
“But there is a lot of debate regarding whether the energy source should come from electricity, biofuels, synthetic fuels or hydrogen. There is a lot of misinformation regarding this issue, especially the electrical side. ”
“People are starting to realize that the carbon footprint of producing electric cars is much higher than that of gasoline cars.”
“The assumption that electricity from wind and solar energy is zero-emissions is just not true.”
And Adrian Newey says building wind turbines requires “huge amounts of concrete”, which is “one of the biggest contributors to CO2 emissions”.
“These structures also contain a lot of aluminum and copper, which are also very polluting during production, so they are not zero emissions.”
When it comes to F1 cars, hybrid ‘power unit’ technology is very efficient, but Adrian Newey says the car’s weight offsets much of it.
“I don’t think anyone is talking regarding the amount of energy it takes to keep the car moving,” said Newey.
And in the road car industry, Adrian Newey says it’s “illogical” that automakers should be credited for making bigger, heavier cars as long as they emit less polluting emissions.
“It’s run by a government influenced by car manufacturers, and it’s very similar to motorsport these days,” Newey claimed.
“Some changes in F1 are also the result of lobbying.”
“I think we need smaller, lighter and more energy efficient cars.”
“Our cars are bigger and heavier, with more drag, so they’re not particularly efficient aerodynamically. Unfortunately, F1 has achieved the exact opposite with these new rules.”
“It’s clear that for F1 and the car industry in general, bigger, heavier cars and people’s obsession with whether they run on battery or on petrol has gone completely wrong.”
“The biggest problem is the amount of energy it takes to move the damn thing, wherever that energy comes from.”
“Of course the big car makers don’t want to allow it, so the F1 technical regulations don’t seem to allow it. At least I think so.”
Category: F1 / red bull / F1 machine
