Tyres
Often a critical decision in the race, a driver’s tyre choice can make or break his challenge for points. Here, we discuss the different types of tyres used in Formula One and their respective qualities. Choosing the wrong tyre can be disastrous for a driver, where lap times can be affected by up to 45 seconds with the wrong compound.
Tyres Teams have to use two compounds of slick tyre per race where the softer tyre is marked with a green stripe around the outside. |  At 670mm in diameter, the wet tyres are 10mm larger than the slicks and can disperse up to 61 litres of water per second at 300km/h. |
Regulations:
The Fédération International de l’Automobile (FIA), the sport’s governing body, introduced new regulations in 2009 to revolutionise the sport, and in doing so it was decided that Formula One would run on slick tyres for the first time in 16 years.
In addition to this, the FIA stated that for races run in dry conditions, two slick compounds have to be used from the four available, ranging from hard to medium, soft and super-soft. This gives the teams a very tough decision to make, as all sets of tyres have very different attributes – both positive and negative.
Slick Tyres:
The re-introduction of slick tyres in Formula One have divided public opinion, with some praising the ‘old-school’ appearance of the cars and others claiming that the dated looking plain tyres do not send out the most technologically advanced message.
With a dramatic reduction in aerodynamic grip – from new front and rear wing regulations, the FIA has had to ensure that the car now has as much stability as last year and to help this, the slick tyres provide 20% more grip than the grooved versions of 2008. This is as a result of the increased contact patch between the tyre and the track surface.
The hard compound slick tyre is often criticised for not delivering as much speed as its softer counterpart, but it has the advantage of lasting much longer, giving the driver a greater chance to close a gap or extend a lead through a longer stint between pit stops.
Wet Tyres:
Wet Tyres Aquaplaning: Using slick tyres in the wet leads to aquaplaning. Water trapped between tyre and track leads to a massive loss of grip. |  Contact patch: Where the tyre meets the wet track surface, the specially designed tread pattern forces water away from the moving tyre, leaving a dry contact area. |
The grooves in wet tyres, specially designed by a super computer, are manufactured to force as much as 61 litres of standing water per second at 300km/h away from the moving tyre.
The grooves actually push the water towards the front of the car and out to the sides so that there is a dry contact patch in the middle of the tyre.
When there is too much water, or the tyres are in a poor condition, water gets trapped between the surface of the track and the base of the tyre, causing aquaplaning.
As the grooves are not deep enough to force as much water out, the trapped water lifts the tyre from the track and massively reduces traction.
