Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 148 Is there no limit to talent?

The detailed power parameters of F1 engines in any era are core secrets of the teams and engine suppliers. The outside world can only get a rough range through FIA documents and test speeds, and wait for the team data to be declassified many years later.

The 2.4L V8 engine of that era, lacking turbocharging, did indeed have a significant performance gap compared to the 1.6L V6 hybrid engine with its thousand horsepower in later generations.

But that doesn't necessarily mean it will be much slower!

Because the speed of a race car is determined by more than just engine power; the weight of the car also matters.

The RA108 features mostly custom-made carbon fiber components, resulting in an overall weight of just over 600 kg. Hybrid-era ground effect vehicles, due to the inclusion of batteries, turbochargers, and more electronic equipment, have a minimum weight of 798 kg.

The difference in vehicle weight, a full 200 kilograms, translates to a power-to-weight ratio that completely offsets the difference in horsepower.

Therefore, two race cars from different eras will not have a significant speed difference; lap times will depend more on the track type and road conditions.

Of course, overall, hybrid ground effect vehicles are still faster than naturally aspirated electric vehicles of this era.

After all, technology is developing and the times are progressing.

"Understood, I will try my best to maintain zero mistakes."

Chen Xiangbei nodded and took the data panel from Odette's hand.

"Not just try, but do it to a certain extent."

Odeto emphasized that, to be honest, money was a secondary factor; the main issue was spare parts.

Honda's technology roadmap has been replaced by Mercedes-Benz, and most of the materials and parts used to be used by them were transported to the Tokyo headquarters when they withdrew from the project. The Brawn GP R&D base is no longer in production.

Repairing a damaged race car can be very troublesome.

"Ah."

Chen Xiangbei nodded and didn't say anything more.

Heading to the drivers' lounge behind the pit stop, Chen Xiangbei was provided with a brand-new helmet and racing suit.

The speed and danger of F1 cars are far greater than those of Renault or F3 cars. The FIA ​​has extremely strict standards for the lightweight and strength of helmets, as well as the fireproof and moisture-wicking performance of racing suits.

For example, to withstand a high temperature of 800℃ for at least 12 seconds, what is the driver's perceived temperature during this process? The temperature cannot exceed 40℃, which basically ensures that even if the car crashes and causes a "sea of ​​fire" level explosion, a dozen seconds is enough for the driver to climb out of the car cockpit.

During Chen Xiangbei's time at the Blackley factory, the Brawn GP team had completely customized his racing suit, helmet, gloves, and other equipment according to his height and weight.

Compared to the generic "mass-produced" clothes I used to wear, not to mention the differences in materials or performance, there has been a qualitative improvement in terms of comfort!

After changing into his racing suit, Chen Xiangbei sat in the lounge, familiarizing himself with the buttons and functions on the steering wheel.

In fact, during the month or so that Chen Xiangbei trained with the Brawn GP team, he learned about F1 steering wheels. However, the layout of the steering wheel buttons for each team is subject to some minor adjustments based on the engineers' arrangement and the drivers' habits.

This means that Chen Xiangbei only needs to remember the changes in a few keys.

After finishing all that, Chen Xiangbei left the driver's rest room and returned to the pit lane. At this moment, the RA108 race car's tires and fluids were fully preheated, just waiting for Chen Xiangbei to sit in and connect the power.

"Xiang Beijun, the Catalan circuit has almost every type of corner, as well as a rugged and ever-changing track environment."

"The only thing I can tell you is that the G-force in fast corners can generate a centrifugal force four times the driver's body weight, so you must hold the steering wheel tightly at all times."

"Go for it, Xiangbei-kun!"

Hiroki Sawano said something that, as a textbook-level test track, there is no need to emphasize what needs to be paid attention to anymore.

The drivers will face all challenges here!
This applies not only to the drivers, but also to the crew members.

A comprehensive track means there is no specific tuning scheme, and team engineers need to make trade-offs based on different temperatures and environments.

Should we choose the high downforce option to seek better grip and faster cornering?

Or is it a low-pressure strategy, prioritizing straightaways and fast acceleration?

It's often impossible to have the best of both worlds; making the wrong choice can cause a driver to lose at the starting line.

"OK."

Chen Xiangbei made a gesture, then gestured to Liang Chi beside him.

As the rear-mounted starter motor turned, the Honda RA808E engine roared to life, its roar echoing throughout the pit lane.

Even at idle, the racing engine has a speed of nearly 10,000 RPM.

As the most powerful racing car on Earth, it truly proves the famous street saying: Don't try to challenge my idle speed with your top speed!
This is also why, when F1 cars make temporary stops, you can often see mechanics using huge blowers to blow air into the air intakes in the broadcast footage.

The problem lies in the excessive idling speed, which causes the engine temperature to rise too high. When the car is stationary, it cannot be cooled by air and can only rely on the blower for assistance.

Hearing the RA108 race car roar like a beast, Chen Xiangbei felt his blood boil. He had finally driven a real F1 race car and would soon be able to feel its performance impact!

"The oil temperature is normal."

"Circulating lubrication is normal."

"Sensor data test passed."

As the instructions were relayed through the TR, Chen Xiangbei could sense the excitement in the team's engineers' voices.

As former members of the Super Aguri team, they also yearn to return to the F1 paddock and once again tune the world's top racing car.

Today, Chen Xiangbei has led them to achieve their dream!
"Everything is ready, get ready to depart."

After the car's self-checks were completed, Odette gave Chen the final start order, heading north.

"receive."

Chen Xiangbei responded, then braked with his left foot, accelerated with his right foot, and simultaneously released the clutch paddle shifters from the steering wheel.

The crew members watched Chen Xiangbei's operating procedures with a slightly tense attitude.

After all, the difficulty of starting in F1 racing alone is something that many ordinary professional drivers cannot control, as it requires a very high level of coordination between the throttle, clutch, and gears.

Even the slightest mistake could result in either a slow start or a tire burnout and skidding.

Even with Chen Xiangbei's very conservative approach, the rear wheels still showed slight signs of slipping when the clutch paddle was fully released and the accelerator was lightly pressed.

One reason is that the power-to-weight ratio of F1 cars is simply too exaggerated.

On the other hand, the pit lane floor is self-leveling, which doesn't have the same grip as the track's asphalt.

This slight slip was insignificant; on the contrary, Odette nodded in approval when he saw it.

This means that Chen Xiangbei noticed the difference in the ground material. If he had used the same throttle as when starting on the track, it wouldn't have been just a slight slip; the race car would have gone out of control and fishtailed.

The devil is in the details. Putting everything else aside, this Chinese kid at least kept a cool head!
As the RA108 race car drove into the pit lane, Chen Xiangbei slammed on the accelerator, and a tremendous surge of power pushed him firmly into his seat.

Just over a second later, the speedometer on the steering wheel's built-in LCD screen had already exceeded 100 km/h and was still accelerating rapidly.

This is the surging power brought by the extreme power-to-weight ratio of F1 cars. There is no need for any cornering scenarios. It can simply jump over opponents on the straightaway from the start. All the supercars of the same era are like little brothers in front of it.

Even if a thousand-horsepower motor came to fight in the future, it would still be so vulnerable due to the huge difference in vehicle weight!
Accelerate, shift up, improve again, shift up again...

Chen Xiangbei had completely forgotten Odeto's instructions; his mind was now entirely consumed by the thrill of speed and passion.

Forget about being conservative and taking it easy; with dopamine surging through him, Chen Xiangbei would rather be shattered to pieces than slow down.

My dream of driving in F1 for two lifetimes has finally come true at this moment!
The roar of the engine, revving at tens of thousands of RPM, now echoed through the sky, like a jet plane whizzing by.

At this moment, not only were members of the Super Dream team watching Chen Xiangbei's every move through the track corner cameras, but even engineers from the two "elite" teams, McLaren and Renault, were standing in front of the control panel, watching with curiosity.

Chen Xiangbei's two consecutive European Cup victories with Renault and his F3 championship at the Australian Grand Prix have indeed caused a stir in lower-level formula racing and in Asia, but their impact on top F1 teams is negligible.

Every year there are countless F3 Grand Prix champions, and without a dominant lead throughout the year, they won't receive much attention.

The reason for the curiosity and attention this time was mainly due to Chen Xiangbei's status as a Chinese driver.

It's worth noting that in the more than 50-year history of Formula One, only one and a half Chinese drivers have ever driven an F1 car.

One is Ho-Pin Tung, who is currently on trial with Renault, and the other is Malaysian driver Xiong Long.

Because he is of mixed Chinese and British descent, he can only be considered half a person.

Chen Xiangbei has even transcended the category of Chinese and is a thoroughly Chinese driver.

It's hard not to be curious about such a groundbreaking new talent test.

Chen Xiangbei, on the track, was completely unaware that so many eyes were watching him, and he continued to accelerate frantically!
Compared to the Formula One cars I've driven before, the shift speed and power response of the F1 seamless sequential gearbox are simply unparalleled, achieving an experience similar to "electric throttle".

Its gear shift time is an astonishing 0.02 seconds!
It's worth noting that even the fastest CVT transmission in the civilian vehicle segment still takes 0.1 seconds to shift gears, while the racing-grade PDK transmission can achieve a maximum shift time of 0.04 seconds.

The seamless gearbox shifts gears twice as fast as a regular racing gearbox!
This extreme shifting speed is so fast that you can barely feel any power interruption; it's as linear as an electric motor. Only during continuous downshifts can you hear a slight change in the engine's roar.

At this moment, Chen Xiangbei floored the accelerator on the long straight road, shifting to the highest gear, seventh gear, and the car speed directly exceeded 300km/h!

"Xiang Beijun, isn't he moving a little too fast?"

Upon seeing the speedometer on the sensor, Hiroki Sawano couldn't help but mutter something under his breath.

Chen Xiangbei didn't even do a warm-up lap; he drove at speeds close to those of the main race, even though the temperature inside the Catalan circuit was high and the downforce from the F1 car's aerodynamic kit was still incredibly strong.

I'm afraid we can't guarantee that everything will be foolproof.

"This kid has no concept of being conservative anymore!" Odeto remarked expressionlessly.

It can only be said that the cause you sowed has now come to fruition.

"A rookie at F3 level from the north, driving at that speed, didn't anyone stop him?"

Standing to the side, Field didn't understand the reason and couldn't help but ask.

Although Chen Xiangbei's car test was conducted by members of the Chaomeng Racing Team, it was still conducted under the name of the Brawn GP Team, and the RA108 car was also the property of the Brawn GP Team.

As the test engineer who stayed behind, Field felt obligated to remind Chen Xiangbei that his speed was insane!

Faced with Field's question, the members of the Super Dream team exchanged glances and all turned their attention to Odette.

Chen Xiangbei has now become exactly what Odeto hoped for, and it would be difficult for him to turn back.

"Field, watch your wording, North is a newcomer at the F3 championship level."

Although Odette was feeling a bit uncertain, he absolutely couldn't show weakness in front of outsiders. Even if he had to put on an act, he had to make sure he didn't lose face.

"What's the difference? He can't control that speed."

"I believe he can handle it."

Odeto replied without hesitation.

He could remind Chen Xiangbei, but he absolutely could not question his abilities.

This is the trust that must exist between the driver and the team leader!
Hearing Odeto's "resolute" answer, Field wanted to refute it, but swallowed the words back.

F1 teams have a strict system, and team leaders have absolute say in both races and training.

Let alone an "outsider," even if you are a team owner or management, you cannot challenge the team leader's authority at this time, even if you fire him after the race.

If Field continued, he would be crossing the line.

He still couldn't quite understand what gave Odette the courage to trust the abilities of a new Chinese talent so much.

In fact, it wasn't just Field; McLaren and Renault's pit engineers, seeing Chen Xiangbei's "whoever loosens the throttle is a coward" attitude, many of them showed a strange expression.

It's understandable that the Chinese kid has never been exposed to F1 racing, but surely he doesn't even know anything about it?

This kind of speed isn't for testing; it's more like courting death!

Historically, many rookie drivers have experienced getting tilted while driving F1 cars during testing.

To put it simply, it's like street racing; when you're overly excited and your emotions control your brain, you ignore the risks that come with speed.

However, when signs of trouble appear, the team will promptly issue instructions to the drivers to slow down and stay within a safe range.

So far, we haven't heard any TR instructions from either Mewtwo or the Brawn GP team.

Did they not realize that the entire crew, including the vehicle crew members, were a bunch of rookies?
After all, Super Aguri withdrew from the F1 paddock last April, and it is questionable how many technical backbones he can retain. If the recruited and reorganized strategy team members are all "newcomers" from lower-level formulas, they may not even realize the risks!
Just as everyone was filled with doubts, Chen Xiangbei braked and slowed down before entering the turn, quickly downshifting to 3rd gear at 130km/h, and passed through the first turn with a very smooth line.

Furthermore, Chen Xiangbei demonstrated an incredible familiarity with the track and handling during the consecutive turns at T2 and T3!

Because T3 is an extremely long curved corner, experienced drivers, after exiting T2, can accelerate directly to full throttle through the corner as long as they can find the central racing line.

Many drivers know this route and operating method, including rookies.

After all, racing simulators are very advanced in this era, and with the opportunity to test F1 cars, the teams will definitely provide a lot of data support, which rookie drivers can learn through study.

But knowing something doesn't mean you can do it. Track conditions can change in an instant, and going full throttle through a corner is very risky.

Among the rookie drivers who have tried out over the years, unless they have prior testing experience or are exceptionally talented, very few can find the center line and go full throttle through the corners on the very first lap!

Even McLaren's test driver, Puffett, who had won the DTM World Championship, couldn't do it.

On the contrary, Chen Xiangbei, a Chinese newcomer who had only run one F3 race, actually did it?

No one knows how Chen Xiangbei did it; he had already arrived at the famous "Mercedes Corner" of the Catalan circuit.

In the 16 Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix, Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg engaged in a fierce internal battle for the world championship.

During the front row start, Rosberg overtook his teammate Hamilton at Turn 1. When they reached Turn 4, Hamilton attempted a spin to overtake, but the two cars collided, resulting in both retiring from the race.

To become a world champion, you only have opponents on the track, no teammates!

This bend isn't particularly difficult; it's just famous because an accident happened there.

Chen Xiangbei continued to navigate the corners smoothly, gradually finding his footing in driving an F1 car.

It's not that Chen Xiangbei's talent is so high that it's beyond the sky, but the driving feel of F1 cars in this era is really similar to that of F2 cars in my previous life.

Later F2 cars used a 3.4L V8 single-turbo engine, manufactured by Mecachrome, the former Renault sporting division, with a maximum horsepower of 620.

Compared to later F1 cars, which have been converted to ground effect vehicles and hybrid systems, F2 cars still maintain pure fuel performance and do not have batteries or kinetic energy recovery systems, making the driving experience of the two completely different.

In other words, the handling experience of later F2 cars is actually closer to that of F1 cars of this era.

Although Chen Xiangbei failed at the threshold of F1 in his previous life, he made a lot of efforts to cross that final step, including practicing the Catalan and Bahrain circuits on simulators like crazy, hoping to seize the opportunity to test drive.

However, compared to the immature youth training system of that era, the selection criteria of later F1 teams focused more on their own youth trainees, making it difficult to give external drivers a spot or opportunity.

But the effort was not in vain, and the memory remains.

This is why Chen Xiangbei was able to adapt to F1 racing so quickly and find the center line to corner at full throttle in Turn 3.

As the old saying goes, Chen Xiangbei is not a complete newcomer.

And his exceptional talent allowed him to master F1 racing at an astonishing speed!

"Dong, is this Brawn GP driver Bei really a newcomer from China?"

The Renault team's race engineer stared at the track footage and the various sensor data, his face filled with disbelief.

He believes that there are super rookies in the world, like Kimi Räikkönen.

They couldn't believe that this rising star came from China, a country without Formula One racing!
The news that Brawn GP team signed Chen Xiangbei as a test driver was actually known to all the teams in the F1 paddock.

However, none of their companies took it seriously.

The reason is simple: test drivers look very prestigious and have the title of F1 team drivers.

In fact, they are completely different from official drivers, and there is no limit to the number of them. A team can sign as many as three or four if they are willing to.

Ross Brawn's acquisition of the Honda F1 team was also famously accompanied by news of his financial difficulties. Many believed that this was due to Chinese driver Bei using his "money power," which happened to be a perfect match for the cash-strapped Ross Brawn.

Now it seems that is not the case.

"I'm sure Bei is a complete newcomer."

Although Ho-Pin Tung is an overseas Chinese, he participated in Formula BMW Asia as a Chinese driver several years ago and is very familiar with the development of Formula racing in China.

Until this year, Chen Xiangbei was the kind of person who kept a low profile and had absolutely no professional experience.

"If this were a newcomer, their talent would be terrifying."

After saying that, the Renault race engineer pointed to the computer screen, which showed Chen Xiangbei's lap time that he had just completed.

1 minutes 27 seconds 552.

The pole position record at the Catalunya circuit in this era is 1 minute 15.022 seconds, set by Michael Schumacher in 2004.

It looked like Chen Xiangbei was more than ten seconds behind, a very exaggerated gap.

In fact, the Catalan track record is only 1 minute 17.450 seconds, which was also set by racing legend Michael Schumacher in 2004.

Based on this calculation, Chen Xiangbei is only 10 seconds away from the track record.

If we also take into account the unfavorable factors such as Chen Xiangbei not having enough warm-up tires, it being his first rookie test, and the car not having undergone feedback and tuning, etc.

His lap time can only be described as "terrifying".

If you still don't understand, there are two rookies on site who are also testing the track for the first time.

McLaren driver Parfit, driving the same championship-winning car as Hamilton, set a test lap time of 1 minute 27.841 seconds on the first lap yesterday, which was about 0.3 seconds slower than Chen Xiangbei's.

As for Ho-Pin Tung, who was driving a Renault race car, it was even more outrageous. His first lap time was 1 minute 32.388 seconds, which was more than five seconds slower, making him a driver in a completely different class.

Despite the small difference between Parfit and Chen Xiangbei, Honda's RA108 race car actually ranked third from the bottom in the standings last year, scoring only 14 points throughout the year.

India Force, which ranked second to last, and Super Aguri, which ranked last, both scored zero points throughout the year!

Although McLaren's Silver Arrow race car wasn't exactly a groundbreaking "Mars car" in 08, it was still far superior to Honda's tractor-like car.

Honda Group's decision to withdraw from F1 racing was a result of heavy investment over the years, yet the car still managed to achieve a dismal third-to-last performance. The RA108 can be considered the "culprit" in this situation!
Not only in the Renault team's pit garage, but also because this is a continuation of last year's winter testing, all test data is publicly shared, and McLaren team members can also see Chen Xiangbei's lap times.

They were starting to wonder if there was a problem with the speed measurement.

How did a Chinese rookie driving a Honda RA108 tractor manage to defeat McLaren's Silver Arrows, the champion car?

(End of this chapter)