The 2006 Technical Preview (Part I)
Ahead of the 2006 season, autosport.com's technical writer Craig Scarborough analyses the design trends seen on the new cars and the technical changes since last year (part one)
2005 ended a long spell of Ferrari domination in Formula One, and it also heralded the end of several eras, with the departure of V10 engines, Minardi, Jordan and Sauber. So 2006 brings a new age in F1, going back to V8 engines now just 2.4 litres in size, added to different technical rules and new or renamed teams.
Even if the rules haven't demanded it, the cars are all quite different in detail to last year, but not from each other. Few aerodynamic rule changes this year has allowed the teams to play catch up on the more drastic aero changes from last year. Now the convergence in design is striking. The shorter v8 engines have required some layout differences between the teams with Michelin tyres over the Bridgestone runners, but this difference is barely detectable externally.
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