mclaren the platypus

[2006 preview]

mclaren revealed their 2006 contention, and boy is it a stunner.


for more pictures, visit here.

so how does it fare if compared to the just-revealed ferrari? for one, the ferrari looks clumsy and stubborn because the car doesn't look proportional. however, the mclaren is sleek, from front to the back. it looks sharp from all angle, and it is very beautiful even with that aweful orange. in fact, the orange is soothing to the eyes and is starting to look pretty good!

given that last year's car was one of the best aerodynamically, naturally there isn't need to give the car a big change. but of course that doesn't stop them from improving the package. clearly there's a huge evolution to the nose, it is neither the anteater of mp4-19 nor is it the elephant trunk of mp4-20. mclaren has combined both the design into this new car. behold the platypus.


2006 is going to be very interesting indeed.



previous posts:
2005 season review 3
2005 season review 2
2005 season review 1

[tagged: mclaren, formula 1]

ferrari f2006 revealed... finally!

[2006 preview]

oh boy, i almost soiled myself.

i didn't expect to see the new ferrari until next week, during their official launch. i was surprised pictures are revealed so soon since today's run was supposed to be a closed door event at fiorano. i'm glad that it isn't closed door, and this is truly exciting!


at first glimpse, the thing that caught my eyes was the awkward placement of rear view mirrors. man, that must be the weirdest placement of the mirrors. i've never them so far out before, they look totally out of place. i'm not sure what's with ferrari and rear view mirrors, they just love to play around with them. but doesn't this new arrangement affect the aerodynamic? not even a little? oh well, they are the expert.

the next most noticeable thing is the new nose. ferrari has copied mclaren's design, and now they have a drooped nose as well, albeit not as much as mclaren. the tip of the nose is still slightly round, retaining the old feature. i think changing the nose design is a good move. the picture below shows the sleeker and sharper design more clearly.


funny how michael schumacher is seen here waving. i guess it wasn't really a closed door after all. furthermore, i wonder why the chimneys and rear wing are painted in black, it seemed as though they are hiding some details from the prying eyes.

overall, this is quite a fine looking car. even though, at the moment, there is absolutely no comparison to the beauties of the previous years. of course, the paint jobs make all the difference. we shall wait for the car to be officially launched shiny with the sponsor 'stickers'. i will then make my final judgement on the look of the car. :)

one more week to go!



previous posts:
2005 season review 3
2005 season review 2
2005 season review 1

[tagged: ferrari, formula 1]

january, the month of car launches

[2006 preview]

january is the month for 2006 car launches (well, most of the cars anyways). midland will be launched february, and red bull during march. mclaren hasn't launched a car officially for the past few years. and normally, the worst team on the grid (str) doesn't launch.

anyways, here are the new cars!

toyota tf106 - january 14th:


although they had an early launch before christmas, this is the official one with the engine specs and design revealed, and of course with all those press conferences. comments on the car are available here.

bmw sauber f1.06 - january 17th:


the bmw sauber livery is officially revealed amist a rather casual yet prestigious event. boasting new front and rear suspension designs, the focus of the bmw car is on aerodynamics and lowering the center of gravity. with the change of the engine to a smaller v8, many attention is given to reducing size while increasing efficiency. personally, there is nothing to shout about this standard-looking car, although i think it could well be the black horse this year. other than that, this car looked more like williams. slightly confusing sometimes.

mclaren mp4-21 - january 23rd:


mclaren revealed a platypus.

ferrari 248 f1 - january 24th:


other than the change from conventional name to '248 f1' (which stands for 2.4li v8), the car looks like it appeared last week, with the weird placement of rear view mirror, and also the sharp nose. addition to that, the bargeboards and suspensions look more extensive, the sidepod and chimney much smaller, and also the side wings appear to have been brought forward. there's a clear distinction to the rear wing, along with a fin-like engine cover. i have to say, overall quite a looker. but how does it perform?

honda ra106 - january 25th:


f1 cars are made more compact to take advantage of the space freed from the samller v8. no difference from the new honda, as the rear of the car is clearly smaller. i like the sidepod bargeboard, which looks quite outrageous. in my opinion, the front wing looks a little underwork, but interesting nonetheless. i wonder whether this car can finally give jenson his first victory, not that i care much anyways.

williams fw28 - january 27th:


although being of same colors, the williams car looks more beautiful than the bmw-sauber. this car has a higher sidepod and a no-keel design. nice looking nose, and the wings look pretty good as well, especially that sidepod bargeboard. too bad the drivers aren't anything to shout about, especially that overrated mark webber. i think the competition between williams and bmw will be very interesting to witness (i hope heidfeld continues to kick webber's butt).

renault r26 - january 31st:


the last car to be launched for january, the renault is a gorgeous looking car. like the other cars, the sidepods are smaller to take advantage of the decrease in engine size. furthermore, it improves on last year's aerodynamics and there are more obvious curves and wings. just take a look at this. definitely a championship contender and a car to look out for this coming season.





previous posts:
2005 season review 3
2005 season review 2
2005 season review 1

[tagged: mclaren, formula 1]

welcome to the monochromatic f1

[2006 preview]

the future of f1 is all about saving cost. apparently, teams are saving money by painting their cars with just one color.

introducing bmw:


and previously introduced mclaren:


finally the williams:


maybe we'll see str following suit.



previous posts:
2005 season review 3
2005 season review 2
2005 season review 1

[tagged: mclaren, formula 1]

orange mclaren

[2006 preview]

so how important is a paint job?


the details of the car are more obvious with this single tone paint. it's nice to have a closer look at the curves and shapes of the mclaren, where it has always been hard to see with the black and silver paint.

this will only be an interim car, much like honda's black livery they use during testing. but it is a good opportunity for mclaren's fans to get ready for 2007, when vodafone gets onboard and mclaren to be orange as such.


not exactly a beauty. probably needs more work, at least in my opinion.



previous posts:
2005 season review 3
2005 season review 2
2005 season review 1

[tagged: mclaren, formula 1]