Honda: Redeploys F-1 ‘Warriors’ for Victory in Fuel Efficiency
08-31-2009, 06:30 PM
#1
I feel the need...
Thread Starter
Honda: Redeploys F-1 ‘Warriors’ for Victory in Fuel Efficiency
Honda Motor Co.’s withdrawal from Formula One racing in December to save money may give it an advantage over rivals: fresh blood from an elite cadre of engineers to improve its Civic compacts and Odyssey minivans.
The automaker reassigned the racing team’s 400 engineers to speed up development of new technologies to improve fuel efficiency and emission levels for mass-produced cars.
“F-1 was all about pursuing the best energy efficiency to achieve speed,” Kazuo Sakurahara, who led Honda’s team of F-1 engineers, said in an interview at the company’s research center in Tochigi prefecture, north of Tokyo. “In that sense, the approach to our new job is exactly the same as it was then.”
Honda is boosting the brainpower of its research and development team as automakers hasten to meet stricter pollution regulations by moving away from cars powered solely by gasoline. Unlike Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co., Honda hasn’t announced plans for a plug-in hybrid or battery-powered car, even as emission regulations in California may force the Tokyo- based carmaker to do so in two years.....
The automaker reassigned the racing team’s 400 engineers to speed up development of new technologies to improve fuel efficiency and emission levels for mass-produced cars.
“F-1 was all about pursuing the best energy efficiency to achieve speed,” Kazuo Sakurahara, who led Honda’s team of F-1 engineers, said in an interview at the company’s research center in Tochigi prefecture, north of Tokyo. “In that sense, the approach to our new job is exactly the same as it was then.”
Honda is boosting the brainpower of its research and development team as automakers hasten to meet stricter pollution regulations by moving away from cars powered solely by gasoline. Unlike Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co., Honda hasn’t announced plans for a plug-in hybrid or battery-powered car, even as emission regulations in California may force the Tokyo- based carmaker to do so in two years.....
08-31-2009, 06:42 PM
#2
The sizzle in the Steak
In other news the US Navy has reassigned some Navy SEALS to the heartland to help with havesting teh corn. It's though that the highly trained SEALS can help with the harvest.
08-31-2009, 07:56 PM
#4
Senior Moderator
This sounds like good news. Not nessesarily for Acura but nothing wrong with more fuel efficient Accords, Civics and Odys.
Better than laying off the 400 engineers.
Better than laying off the 400 engineers.
08-31-2009, 08:14 PM
#5
AZ Community Team
Gotta expect some smart-ass comments but if you knew how Honda's racing program worked this is nothing new. Back when Honda were just engine suppliers for F1 teams their engineers and technicians would cycle through the racing program and after a couple years would go back to production vehicles.
A example of this was the wide range O2 sensor developed for the V12 3.5L used in the McLaren F1 cars in the 1991/2 seasons. The same technology for that O2 sensor went directly into the Honda Civic HX in the early 90's.
Sometimes the opposite happens in the 1994 F1 season Ford's Cosworth racing engine group reused the traction control software from the Ford production engineers in England. So when Micheal Schumacher was winning race after race in 1994, it's V8 ECU used the traction control firmware that had it's source code that was copied and modified from ECU for the high performance Escort in Europe.
A example of this was the wide range O2 sensor developed for the V12 3.5L used in the McLaren F1 cars in the 1991/2 seasons. The same technology for that O2 sensor went directly into the Honda Civic HX in the early 90's.
Sometimes the opposite happens in the 1994 F1 season Ford's Cosworth racing engine group reused the traction control software from the Ford production engineers in England. So when Micheal Schumacher was winning race after race in 1994, it's V8 ECU used the traction control firmware that had it's source code that was copied and modified from ECU for the high performance Escort in Europe.
09-01-2009, 02:06 AM
#6
6G TLX-S
How about finding good use of those 400 talented engineers to build F1-level performance vehicles for the Acura brand, instead of letting the Acura brand to rot away in the wanna-be-luxury segment.
09-01-2009, 07:52 AM
#7
Senior Moderator
And how many of those elite engineers decided to join Honda because they had an F1 program? Okay, with the current economy, maybe not too many will change companies. However, Honda might have trouble signing up future top engineers if Toyota can dangle that F1 carrot in front of them.
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09-01-2009, 10:31 AM
#8
The sizzle in the Steak
Good point.And how many of those elite engineers decided to join Honda because they had an F1 program? Okay, with the current economy, maybe not too many will change companies. However, Honda might have trouble signing up future top engineers if Toyota can dangle that F1 carrot in front of them.
09-01-2009, 11:37 AM
#9
Senior Moderator
Good news. This is something that happens periodically at Honda anyway (engineers rotating through departments) and will benefit Honda.
The question is, will this benefit Acura? If it leads to efficient turbo/twin turbo'ed or DI V6s with over 300 hp, yet with decent gas mileage, that'd be ideal.
(Note that I am no longer expecting V8s from Honda, the days of the V8 are numbered IMHO).
The question is, will this benefit Acura? If it leads to efficient turbo/twin turbo'ed or DI V6s with over 300 hp, yet with decent gas mileage, that'd be ideal.
(Note that I am no longer expecting V8s from Honda, the days of the V8 are numbered IMHO).
09-01-2009, 12:21 PM
#10
AZ Community Team
Maybe, maybe not. Gordon Murray the incredible talented F1 race car AND McLaren F1 car designer wrote a column a few years back talking about what it's like to design/develope a production car versus a race car. He likes both but dealing with all the rules and regulations of F1 that were increasing dramatically in the early 90's made him lose interest in race cars design.
Probably the vast majority of Honda's F1 engine staff came from inside Honda's infrastructure in Japan. The F1 chassis people were mostly all in England and hence European, most came from BAR which came out of Tyrell.
The article is pretty interesting but in the end, most of the folks are probably moved back into production vehicle motor research.
Not true for all cases however Osamo Goto from Honda went to Ferrari to help design it's engines in the mid 90's. Gotto was the chief designer of the Honda F1 V12 used in the early 90's McLaren was
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