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[admin]

SAUBER PETRONAS today released the first pictures of the C24. Tomorrow the new Sauber racing car will have its baptism of fire during the roll-out in Valencia. On Friday and Saturday Felipe Massa will be testing, and on Sunday Jacques Villeneuve will relieve his team-mate at the wheel.

For the aerodynamicists in particular the C24 represents a great challenge as new technical regulations result in a marked reduction of downforce. "Of course, this has made us focus special attention on aerodynamics," says Technical Director Willy Rampf. "Our experience with the C23 had clearly shown the significant influence of the sidepods and the rear bodywork on aerodynamics. That’s why the continuation of our development was consistently directed towards these areas, in which we have designed the car to be even more compact and harmonious." Conspicuous about the C24’s design is its sidepods, which have an extreme undercut to achieve optimum air flow. The same objective was pursed with regard to positioning the exhaust tailpipes, which have been integrated harmoniously into the bodywork.

"In the course of last year the C23 revealed major development potential, so it was a logical step to base the C24’s concept on that of its predecessor. Changes were made wherever we were able to identify opportunities for improvement," Rampf added.

The C24 will be powered by the PETRONAS 05A engine. This power unit corresponds to the V10 to be used by Ferrari as well. The new regulations now require the engine to last two weekends. With regard to the gearbox, Sauber has returned to a design of its own, which has been made lighter, stiffer and more compact yet again.

An important change for SAUBER PETRONAS has come about in the tyre sector as the team was able to win Michelin as a partner. "We expect a measurable improvement from this change and have certainly seen the first indications of this during initial test drives last year," Team Principal Peter Sauber says, explaining his decision.

Looking towards the upcoming season full of optimism are the two drivers. "During the tests at the end of last year, I got a very good impression of both the C23 and the team. I’m extremely motivated and determined to support SAUBER PETRONAS in moving ahead further," says Jacques Villeneuve, who recently joined the team. The former World Champion signed a two-year contract with SAUBER PETRONAS. His team-mate, Felipe Massa, can hardly await the season opener: "No other team improved as much during the course of last year as SAUBER PETRONAS did. If we manage to take this momentum with us into the new season, a few people will be in for a surprise."

After a successful year of 2004 showing a clear upwards trend in the second half, Team Principal Peter Sauber is full of confidence as well: "Our goal is to further reduce the gap between ourselves and the front runners. Yet to what extent this will impact on the results cannot be predicted at the moment. We won’t have any indications as to how well the individual teams have managed to adjust to the new regulations until after the season opener at Melbourne."

[Senna]

Sauber were instantly quick when they used Michelin rubber for the first time, I hope the new car is competitive as well.  They could do with a few new sponsorship deals though; the back of the car looks a little bare due to the absence of the Red Bull logo.

[Shadow]

I hope to goodness that they do well. the front wing looks high the 2005 regs coming into force. Can't wait for Jan 16.

[Sato]

Woah, i really love the look of the car. It also 'looks' fast to me for some reason, lets hope thats true.

[Kaciaj]

Sauber are looking quite competitive this year.....but the look of the car is not that good,they could have done something better to cover the space on the airbox after the departure of Red Bull.......that big blue free space sounds a lot like a cash strapped team one!!!

[Senna]

Kaciaj, on Jan 13 2005, 04:53 PM, said:

Sauber are looking quite competitive this year.....but the look of the car is not that good,they could have done something better to cover the space on the airbox after the departure of Red Bull.......that big blue free space sounds a lot like a cash strapped team one!!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Indeed.

Autosport said that JV might be getting advertising space on the car for his personal sponsors but they didn’t confirm the rumour and I doubt it was part of his contract.  Still, there are plenty of big sponsors out there and Peter has had time to bring some in so I can’t understand why it hasn’t happened yet.

[Taku]

apart from the bare space at the back, check the first frontal shot.  although not exactly pretty, i think the technical term is: it looks positively bad-a##.  

especially the sidepods.  it will be interesting to see how much effect the wind tunnel is having on their performance.

[Taku]

compare the toyota and sauber front-ons:




EDIT:  damn, how do you post those large pics?!  

well check teh 2 launch forum posts, you can see a very clear difference in the size of the respecive air intakes on the sidepods.  

2 completely different philosophies at work here imo.  toyota have gone for big lungs, sauber for aero efficiency.  surprising since i always considered gascoyne's cars to be heavily aero-influenced.  i guess he has a stonking engine to play with now.

[KoolMonkey]

I think the new Sauber looks like a race winner.  The Toyota looks too square-ish and am I correct I believing it has no radiator flow ducts or whatever they are called?

To really see the Sauber you need good pics.  Take a look at these beauties in all their intended glory...

http://www.sauber.ch...d/SP_ET8278.jpg
http://www.sauber.ch...d/SP_ET8443.jpg
http://www.sauber.ch...d/SP_ET8465.jpg

As far as the missing RB logo, yes it is sadly missing, but I'm sure PS has something in the bag for us come racing time.

- km

[webber]

the side pods on the C24 are insane. they look so nice the person who throt to make them like that needs a rase that car should have a lot better aero then the Toyota.

[webber]

im in love with this car i think i might start going for Sauber as well as Williams that is the best looking car i have eaver seen (im talking about the aero not the paint job)

[Senna]

webber, on Jan 14 2005, 04:17 AM, said:

im in love with this car

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well…at least it’s not the 191; I can’t understand why people like that car so much.

[AutoRacer5]

Dude, it looks pretty, the small distance between the wing and the nose, the radical sidepods from the front, it looks like a pimp car. I hope they succeed this year, it looks fast. Also, they have a radical new nose being tested today at Barcelona, anyone can get a pic? I don't have time to put one up.

[KoolMonkey]

Amazing.  Before I saw the new front wing, this car looked like a race winner, now it really looks like a racer winner lol.  Unlike the Williams tusk nose white elephant from last year, this gives me now vibes whatsoever.  The Williams car felt forced and like they were trying too hard.  The C24 feels natural and I'm getting excited just thinking about how it's gonna perform.

[Shadow]

Taku, on Jan 13 2005, 11:43 PM, said:

compare the toyota and sauber front-ons:

EDIT:  damn, how do you post those large pics?! 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

join the club that was exactly what I was wondering sometime back. i still don't know how

[Shadow]

From racing-Live.com


Technical specifications
Of the Sauber Petronas C24








Here are the main technical specifications of the new Sauber C24, including the Petronas 05A engine.

Official designation
Sauber Petronas C24

Chassis
Carbon-fibre monocoque

Suspension
Upper and lower wishbones (front and rear), inboard springs and dampers, actuated by pushrods (Sachs Race Engineering)

Brakes
Six-piston calipers (Brembo), carbon pads and discs (Brembo, Carbone Industrie)

Transmission
Longitudinally mounted, seven-speed gearbox (Sauber), carbon clutch (AP)

Chassis electronics
Magneti Marelli

Tyres
Michelin front 27x66x13, rear 32x66x13

Wheels
OZ front 12.5J-13, rear 13.7J-13

Dimensions
Length 4580 mm
Width 1800 mm
Height 1000 mm
Front track 1470 mm
Rear track 1410 mm
Wheelbase 3100 mm

Weight
600 kg (driveable car, including driver, tank empty)

Petronas engine

Official designation PETRONAS 05A
Number of cylinders V10
Cubic capacity 2997 cc
Cylinder block aluminium
Number of camshafts 4 OHC
Camshaft drive interlocked
Number of valves 40
Valve mechanism pneumatic
Ignition system Magneti Marelli
Injection system Magneti Marelli

[Shadow]

KoolMonkey, on Jan 14 2005, 02:55 AM, said:

I think the new Sauber looks like a race winner.  The Toyota looks too square-ish and am I correct I believing it has no radiator flow ducts or whatever they are called?
To really see the Sauber you need good pics.  Take a look at these beauties in all their intended glory...
http://www.sauber.ch...d/SP_ET8278.jpg
http://www.sauber.ch...d/SP_ET8443.jpg
http://www.sauber.ch...d/SP_ET8465.jpg
As far as the missing RB logo, yes it is sadly missing, but I'm sure PS has something in the bag for us come racing time.
- km

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Amazing pics.Good for you. i loved it  

[nojvnof1]

she's beautiful!!!        The team look to have gone a little radical in terms of design, especially on the side pods and engine cover in particular the bit with the exhausts being covered. This could just be the beast to help Jacques revive a once dying career, if this is successful, we'll have to nickname JV the 'Phoenix' for rising from the ashes, whilst Massa should run JV very very close with this car, and I wouldn't be surprised if he gets a podium or two with a little luck. But Im very very impressed with this design and I look forward to the new season, damn this car looks great, and if a car looks fast, it most probably runs fast!!! This has just made my wait for Melbourne even more agonising!! But Im getting a feeling that Melbourne will be the start of redemption for Jacques Villeneuve!!!

Just a note to say the team tested yesterday at Valencia. Massa did 70 or so laps with no major problems, so at least they have reliability, something Jacques will be happy to hear after his unreliable years at BAR!!

Good to have you on board as a Sauber fan Sato!!  

[AutoRacer5]

Don't forget me!

[Sato]

nojvnof1, on Jan 15 2005, 04:51 PM, said:

Good to have you on board as a Sauber fan Sato!! 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I couldn't help it. I've missed supporting a team since leaving Jordan, aswell as always ahving abit of a soft spot for Sauber. Then when i saw this car, i had to join as a fan!

[Taku]

webber, on Jan 14 2005, 04:12 AM, said:

the side pods on the C24 are insane.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

you're not wrong!  i still can't get over how bad-a## the sidepods look.  teh design in this are is so aggressive (read: innovative)!

and check how silky smooth and flowy they look from the side angle in the testing shots (see 4 & 8 especially):

http://www.pitpass.c...?fes_gal_id=364

gorgeous!

[nojvnof1]

welcome as well AR5!! Pity about what happened to JV on his first day, hopefully things improve, it surely can't be BAR '03 all over again with all that unreliability.

[AutoRacer5]

Those sidepods are without a doubt the best looking in F1.

[webber]

what happend to JV on his first day in the new car.

to right there the bestlooking sidepods in F1 but i must say that from the side on shots they look a little strange.

[Buttonfan]

Car looks awesome. Last year at the different launches, it was Williams with the different nose design. This year it is Sauber's sidepods.

[nojvnof1]

webber, on Jan 19 2005, 03:01 AM, said:

what happend to JV on his first day in the new car.

to right there the bestlooking sidepods in F1 but i must say that from the side on shots they look a little strange.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

he only did 20 laps and had electrical and hydraulic probs. However yesterday was much much better, he was on par with both BAR car's and was quick and reliable, so Im happy again!  

[Taku]

webber, on Jan 19 2005, 03:01 AM, said:

to right there the bestlooking sidepods in F1 but i must say that from the side on shots they look a little strange.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

why strange?

[Taku]

this would be the guy behind the aero:


Seamus Mullarkey (40) has been Head of Aerodynamics since 1998. The Briton who was born in Singapore studied physics at Leicester University and the Imperial College of Science and Technology in London, where he earned his PhD in 1989. From 1990 to 1996 he was working as an aerodynamicist and software engineer in the Champ Car Series as well as in Formula 1 before signing a two-year contract with Jordan as Head of Aerodynamics

[webber]

Taku, on Jan 20 2005, 07:03 PM, said:

why strange?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

just how the side pod is cut from a side on view it looks a little different with the bottom being so tucked in, it took a little wile for me to get used to it but now it does not look quite as strange.