away from simply making bigger, more powerful engines with computers managing every facet of driver input and car output While there has been some of this back

away from simply making bigger, more powerful engines with computers managing every facet of driver input and car output While there has been some of this back in the 80s (e.g., the Williams FW14B[1]), these regulations are also blocking a whole lot of real out-of-the-box thinking. When I think of technical innovations from F1, I think of cars that showcased really unusual technologies. Some of my favorites have been the 1976 Tyrrell six-wheel car [2], which used four small wheels in the front to improve downforce; and the 1978 Brabham BT46 "fan car" [3], which used a big fan like a vacuum, sucking the car down onto the track for better traction. These regulations may help prevent escalation of dumb "big iron", but they also completely shut the door on any kind of revolutionary thinking. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Williams_FW14 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Williams_FW14 [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrrell_P34 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrrell_P34 [3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brabham_BT46 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brabham_BT46