Formula One Cars have changed a huge amount over the past few decades. Power, speed, glory and safety requirements have all contributed to the various changes that have been seen.

Performance

The performance of Formula One Cars, compared with even the fastest of production sports cars, is quite simply astounding. The majority of F1 cars have a power to weight ratio of over 1,200 hp/tonne. This would be enough power to power an F1 car to 60mph in under a second but, due to traction loss, this power cannot be converted to acceleration at low speeds. A more usual figure of around 2 seconds for 0-60 and top speeds of around 205 mph are often seen.

The Engine

For many years the Formula One Car ran using 3 litre V10 engines. These were restricted to 2.4 litre naturally aspirated engines in 2006 in an attempt to slow the races down due to safety fears. All racing teams are also now required to limit their engine speeds to 19,000 rpm to cut the hugely increasing costs of racing.

Transmission

The transmissions in use in today`s Formula One Cars are semi-automatic sequential gearboxes with 7 forward gears and 1 reverse. All of the gear changes are controlled by the driver through the use of paddle-style gear shifters mounted on the steering wheel. The steering wheels themselves provide the driver with a wealth of information during the race such as lap times and average speeds. An average F1 steering wheel can cost well over £20,000.

Aerodynamics

The aerodynamics of the Formula One Car have been tweaked over the years providing what you see on the tracks today; a mix of incredible down-force to keep the car on track, whilst producing a minimum amount of drag. Front and rear aerofoils along with the massive rear spoilers all work together to achieve this.

Fuel

The fuel used by Formula One Cars is not that different from standard petrol, apart from the tightly controlled mixes and higher octane levels. The F1 regulator, the FIA, often sample fuel in use by the racing teams at random times to ensure that they are abiding by the controls in place.

Tyres

The tyres in use by Formula One Cars are made using an extremely soft compound rubber, designed to maximise the road holding ability throughout the race. Different types of tyres are available depending on the weather and surfaces that are being raced upon. Since 2007, all F1 tyres are supplied by Bridgestone.

Manufacturers

Some of the worlds best known sports car manufacturers take part in the F1 championship. Ferrari, McLaren, Williams and BMW are among the top of the field. Racing for these manufacturers are drivers including Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg and Nick Heidfeld respectively, all fighting for their place at the top of the podium. Thus, when you are looking at Grand Prix betting odds, you can be sure that the cars themselves are a significant factor.

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