Quiet Formula One Cars Spark a Noisy Debate

So the cars are all much quieter and some fans are ticked off because there isn't the noise of last year. F1 2013 vs 2014 sound comparison - Melbourne - YouTube had a good comparison of the two seasons.

I'm really curious about how the 2014 cars perform compared to a 2013 car? I didn't notice any mention of performance degradation in the article above. While I'm all for conservation, in the case of road racing, I don't know if I necessarily agree with mandating changes like this, especially if they reduce the performance of the vehicle. If the noise reduction happened and the vehicle performance was the same or better, I don't really see an issue with reduced noise levels.

This is coming from someone who has been to the local road course for a few track day events, but has never been to a NHRA, NASCAR, F1 race. Having said that, I also try to take care of my hearing and wear ear plugs all the time - anytime I'm driving motorcycles or the Atom, anytime I'm using gas powered tools (chainsaw, lawnmower, weed whip, wood chipper), as well as when I'm working in the shop (air power rivet gun, air powered drill, air powered grinder, sometimes with the circular saw, and in general any power tools if it's going to be more than a couple seconds of use).

Funny how just about any change will tick some people off. F1 needed a complete rework. It gets a bit tiring seeing the same guy and team win just about everything and then having to listen to the announcers concoct competition.

The new cars are a few seconds a lap slower this year which needed to happen. Simply adding that much weight would slow them down. If they remain tightly grouped, it is near impossible to tell a few seconds a lap difference when spectating.

The really big difference for me is that the speed was taken off in the corners and added in acceleration. They are now much more of a handful to drive and coming from the Champcar world I can say I am very happy to see them having to deal with mega torque exiting corners. It really serves to mix things up and have a different bunch of drivers rising to the top.

I'm glad I got a chance to hear the old normally aspirated F1 hardware up close but probably will not miss the ear damaging volume as much as some others.

Try playing a video game with the sound turned off. No fun.

I haven't been to an F1 race. But other sports cars are deafening. I would imagine that F1 is even louder. It is unbearable to be at a race without ear protection.

It isn't like they are quiet now anyways. Just not ear damaging loud.

But I also love the sound of turbos so I am biased.

Uncle Paul said:

Try playing a video game with the sound turned off. No fun.

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What is your point? The sound is not OFF, it's turned down to a reasonable volume. If you watch the youtube video the smart people are wearing ear protection for the old cars and not for the new cars. That is an IMPROVEMENT in the experience. I used to go to watch World Superbike and MotoGP at Laguna Seca religiously but they just kept getting louder and louder and more and more uncomfortable to watch as I had to sit further and further from the track. When the electric bikes ran my 3-year-old son and I were (literally) hanging on the fence, just feet away from them rushing by. MUCH better experience thank you very much. You can talk all you want about engine noises but all I hear is the sound of waste.

Uncle Paul said:

Try playing a video game with the sound turned off. No fun.

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True, but I think many of us on TMC can confirm that "driving with the sound off" can be pretty damn fun.

gg_got_a_tesla said:

Looks like the noise is going to be back soon:



Formula One’s New-Age Hybrids Find Their Footing

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Simple on the noise: have a rule that gradually decreases it over multiple seasons. Formula 1 cars could reach up to 130 decibels. You can hear them a mile away during the day and farther away at night. Frankly, I think people are just stuck in the past. It's not like the noise really tells you anything you don't know.

As somebody mentioned about electric motorcycle racing, the quieter they are, the closer you can safely be. I remember seeing video of an electric motorcycle race where a new rider said they were going throgh normal routine and realized they didn't need to put earplugs in.

To me, the only people in racing that need to be concerned about noise are the drivers, and I'd expect them to get familiar with whatever noise he vehicle makes.

gg_got_a_tesla said:

Looks like the noise is going to be back soon:

Formula One’s New-Age Hybrids Find Their Footing

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Where does it say anything in the article about noise coming back?

P.S. Having been temporarily deafened at numerous Grands Prix I rather like the new engine sounds. It's a physical reminder that the sport is getting more environmentally friendly.

Ah, thanks. I've read that before and thought there was something new. I also took it to be Jean Todt saying "We'll get back to you..." but knowing full well that nothing is going to happen this year (my prediction).

I've worked at 21 Australian Grand Prix so that includes turbo and non turbo eras. I wasn't working at this one but live close to the circuit and this year the F1 cars were almost the quietest cars on the track. Personally I didn't mind it but there were a lot of complaints