One of the Scuderia’s strong points when it comes to taking on the challenge of 2014 comes from the fact that the power unit and the car to which it will be fitted, are developed together, symbolically under the same roof.
In fact, Ferrari is the only team which, since 1950, has year after year been able to make the most of this situation, which only occasionally has it shared with other constructors. The Scuderia’s Technical Director, James Allison is well aware of that fact, as he has first hand experience of what it means for a designer to be in both the situation enjoyed by Ferrari and also that of the majority of the Prancing Horse’s competitors.
“Being able to build the engine and chassis together is definitely a nice advantage for Ferrari,” said James at the presentation of the 059/3. “Other teams cannot do the same and this year, like never before, installing the new power unit in the car’s chassis will be a complex operation. I’ve got direct experience of that from my time at Lotus: it’s true the engine supplier tries to meet your demands, but it’s never the same thing as happens here, where there is a historical culture relating to a common task of defining and developing the design of the new car.”
“We have worked side by side with our chassis colleagues over the years,” added Marmorini. “Precisely because we know there is no point in we engine engineers pushing too much emphasis on our single project if then it doesn’t adapt to a winning car. This is the case not just as far as the engine is concerned, but also relates to all the other elements of this powertrain which, as you can understand, is much more complex than in the past.”
“All I can say is I agree with Luca,” concluded James. “That argument also holds true for an element which, in recent years has been the centre of attention, namely the exhausts. Blowing them offered interesting technical challenges, but I have to say that, personally, I am pleased they have been eliminated and that we can go back to designing exhausts aimed at getting the most out of the power of the engine.”
Ferrari Press Release
