Virgin VR-01

Virgin VR-01
Category Formula One
Constructor Virgin Racing
Designer(s) Nick Wirth (Chief Designer)
Successor Virgin MVR-02
Technical specifications[1]
Chassis carbon-fibre construction monocoque and nosebox
Suspension (front) carbon-fibre wishbones with titanium flexure joints, aluminium alloy uprights, Penske dampers
Suspension (rear) as front
Engine Cosworth CA2010 2,400 cc (146.5 cu in) 90° V8, limited to 18,000 RPM naturally aspirated mid-mounted
Transmission Seven-speed semi-automatic gearbox with reverse gear Aluminium construction, "seamless shift" electronically controlled hydraulic differential
Weight 620 kg (1,367 lb) (including driver)
Fuel BP
Tyres Bridgestone
BBS Wheels (front and rear): 13"
Competition history
Notable entrants Virgin Racing
Notable drivers 24. Germany Timo Glock
25. Brazil Lucas di Grassi
Debut 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix
RacesWinsPodiumsPolesF.Laps
190000

The Virgin VR-01 was a Formula One motor racing car designed by Nick Wirth[2] for Virgin Racing in the 2010 season. It was driven by former Toyota driver Timo Glock[3] and Brazilian ex-GP2 driver Lucas di Grassi.[4] The car was the first Formula One racing car designed entirely with computational fluid dynamics.[5] The car was due to be launched online through the official team website on 3 February 2010, but technical issues prevented the live internet broadcast from taking place.[6]

Development

It had been reported by Auto, Motor und Sport that the VR-01's fuel tank was too small for the car to finish a race, and that the team applied to the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) in order to obtain permission to modify the chassis to accommodate a larger tank. The revised chassis, with a longer underbody, engine cover and other bodywork changes, was expected to be introduced at the Spanish Grand Prix.[7][8] This was later clarified to mean that the car would struggle to complete races with a heavy rate of fuel consumption.[9]

Racing history

Timo Glock driving the VR-01, minus its front wing, during pre-season testing at Circuito de Jerez in February 2010.

The car passed its mandatory FIA crash tests, and completed its first track run at Silverstone on February 4 in the hands of Glock.[10][11] It tested with other teams for the first time at the group test at Jerez from February 10 to 13. On the first day, Glock completed five laps of the track during wet weather conditions. On the second day, he completed eleven laps before the car's front wing failed; the team had to abandon the day's running due to a shortage of spare parts.[12] Virgin modified the front wing mounting of the VR-01 ahead of the third day's running in Jerez, where di Grassi ran the Virgin for the first time.[13] The following test was plagued by weather conditions and the car suffered a hydraulic problem on the first test day and Glock only managed 10 laps. On the next day Glock notched up 72 laps for the car and had no mechanical problems, however the weather was still wet. Di Grassi took over for the remaining two days of the test.[14] Technical director Wirth said that the hydraulic problem was solved and the car has not had any big glitches.[15] The problem recurred, however, at the final pre-season testing session held at Catalunya, costing the team further track time and necessitating a further redesign of the relevant components ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix.[16]

Lucas di Grassi took the VR-01's first race finish with fourteenth position at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Glock was the fastest driver of the new teams in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix, but both he and Di Grassi retired from the race with further hydraulics problems. Di Grassi managed to finish in Malaysia, ending the race in fourteenth position ahead of rivals Lotus Racing and Hispania Racing,[17] albeit on fuel conservation mode.[18]

Complete Formula One results

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Engine Tyres Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Points WCC
2010 Virgin Racing Cosworth CA2010 V8 B BHR AUS MAL CHN ESP MON TUR CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR BRA ABU 0 12th
Glock Ret Ret Ret DNS 18 Ret 18 Ret 19 18 18 16 18 17 Ret 14 Ret 20 Ret
di Grassi Ret Ret 14 Ret 19 Ret 19 19 17 Ret Ret 18 17 20† 15 DNS Ret NC 18

† Driver failed to finish, but was classified as they had completed >90% of the race distance.

References

  1. ↑ Glendenning, Mark (2010-02-11). "Virgin VR-01". Autosport. Vol. 199 no. 6. pp. 34–37.
  2. ↑ Collins, Sam (2009-12-15). "Virgin Racing launches in London". Racecar Engineering. IPC Media. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
  3. ↑ "Glock to lead new Manor F1 team". BBC Sport. BBC. 2009-11-17. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
  4. ↑ Noble, Jonathan (2009-12-15). "Di Grassi to partner Glock at Virgin". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
  5. ↑ Collins, Sam (2009-12-15). "Wirth Research breaks new ground". Racecar Engineering. IPC Media. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
  6. ↑ Beer, Matt (2010-02-03). "Virgin reveals details of VR-01". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-03.
  7. ↑ "Fuel tank not big enough for Virgin to finish races". motorsport.com. GMM. 2010-03-25. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  8. ↑ Wood, Ryan (2010-03-25). "Virgin fuel tank too small to finish a race". thef1times.com. The F1 Times. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  9. ↑ Noble, Jonathan (2010-03-26). "Virgin forced to increase fuel tank size". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  10. ↑ Noble, Jonathan (2010-02-04). "Virgin VR-01 passes final crash test". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-04.
  11. ↑ Elizalde, Pablo (2010-02-05). "Virgin car completes maiden run". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-05.
  12. ↑ English, Steven (2010-02-11). "Parts shortage halts Virgin test". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-11.
  13. ↑ Beer, Matt; Straw, Edd (2010-02-11). "Virgin to modify wing mounting". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-11.
  14. ↑ Glendenning, Mark (2010-02-18). "Q & A with Nick Wirth". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-19.
  15. ↑ English, Steven; Glendenning, Mark (2010-02-18). "Virgin: Reliability problems are solved". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-19.
  16. ↑ Elizalde, Pablo (2010-02-28). "Virgin still hindered by hydraulic issue". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 2010-02-28.
  17. ↑ "Lucas di Grassi buoyed by Virgin finish at Malaysian GP". BBC Sport. BBC. 2010-04-04. Retrieved 2010-04-05.
  18. ↑ "Malaysia race analysis – Red Bull back in the hunt". formula1.com. Formula One Administration. 2010-04-05. Retrieved 2010-04-05.
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