Formula One KERS

March 26, 2009 The 2009 FIA Formula One World Championship starts this weekend with round one in Melbourne Australian where we are about to witness the biggest number of rule changes in the history the sport. The front and rear wings have been significantly changed in size and height to reduce the aerodynamic effect on cars following each other. Many of the aerodynamic 'extras' added by teams last season around the side pods will be banned and after 11 years of grooved tires slicks will make a return. The aerodynamic changes include a first in F1, driver adjustable front wing flaps.

The Electric Future

The FIA must be congratulated for being the first motorsport sanctioning body in the world to introduce hybrid systems to a professional racing series. It did take them a while to wake up to the fact that having teams spending so much time in wind tunnels meant that the winning teams had to own one or two of their own, a factor that had become increasing irrelevant to any kind of road car application. Now with the emphasis squarely on putting the best and brightest to work on developing electric hybrid technology we can most definitely look forward to seeing what effect the red hot competition of Formula One racing can do for EV technology.

Teams that will use KERS in Melbourne:

• McLaren
• Ferrari
• Renault
• BMW

Teams that will definitely not use KERS in Melbourne:

• Williams
• Toyota
• Force India

Teams that may or may not race with KERS in Melbourne:

• Redbull racing
• Toro rosso
• Brawn (Honda)

The big question is - will it mean more exciting racing? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section... and check out the Red Bull video explaining new rules and KERS below.