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[scotty]

From next season:

Double DRS will be banned for 2013, AUTOSPORT has learned, after Formula 1 teams agreed to a change of rules that will outlaw the concept for next year.

Mercedes led the way at the start of this season with a radical design that feeds air via a hole in the rear wing endplate, all the way through the car and out the front wing - which is then stalled when DRS is activated. This helps provide a straight line speed boost.

Rival team Lotus lodged a protest against the concept at the Chinese Grand Prix, but it was rejected by the race stewards who were adamant that channelling air through a hole that is opened when DRS is activated was not against the regulations.

Despite being disappointed at the time about the failure of the protest, Lotus duly set about developing its own version of double DRS, which it tested at the German GP and is set to race in Belgium next month.

Other teams have not pursued the idea yet, and there have been concerns among some of them that work on double DRS could become the subject of an expensive development race.

Following discussions at F1 rules think-tank, the Technical Working Group, sources have revealed that a majority of teams agreed for a change in regulations that will ensure they cannot incorporate double DRS into their cars for 2013.

Although Mercedes did not support the change in rules, because it had made such a headstart in the area, it could not stop the ban going through as it only needed a majority of teams to agree.

It is understood the changes to the rules will be made official by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council later this year.

Despite rivals claiming that double DRS was an expensive avenue of development, Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn was always adamant that it was cost-effective.

Speaking earlier this year he said: "People talk about the huge cost, but there isn't really a huge cost. You all know that there are a couple of carbon pipes running down the car, and the man on the street will tell you that they cost a few thousands pounds – they are not millions of pounds."

[vlad]

YES!!! FINALLY!!!

[stonemonkey]

What is being banned, the stalling of the front wing or the use of the rear wing DRS to activate it?

[scotty]

You would assume that it is using the DRS to influence other parts of the car, judging by the wording.

[vlad]

Let's hope they will ban the complete DRS thing.

[Jabberwocky]

DRS is good, why did they ban DDRS what makes it so evil?

[What's Burning?]

Horner and Newey are already planning a TRIPLE DRS for the RB9 as that ...wasn't banned.

[myownalias]

Let's just cut out the middle man and ban all aerodynamic devices alltogther; every year the FIA ban one or more innovations, F1 is slowly turning into a spec series...

The FIA is all about saving money in F1 but keeps on banning innovations, which makes F1 more expensive as the rules constantly change, meaning more money is spent on R&D to gain an advantage over the over teams, c'mon FIA get your act together and have some consistency in the rules for heavens sake!

[Jabberwocky]

I think all the cars will look like the Lotus 33 eventually

[acosmichippo]

This whole "voting" by teams to ban something or not is ridiculous. Of course if a team develops a novel new system, the other teams are going to vote against it. The TWG should decide for themselves what is in the best interest of the sport and let the teams adjust accordingly. If that means you have to spend money to replicate it, so be it. That's why you're in F1.

[Jabberwocky]

It soon becomes political.

Do Force India want DDRS banned? on one hand they would have to spend time and money on designing it and getting it working. On the other hand, how much do they want to annoy Mercedes in case they start bumping the price of engines etc

[Big Azza]

What a farce this sport is.

[stonemonkey]

You would assume that it is using the DRS to influence other parts of the car, judging by the wording.

The Lotus system doesn't depend on the DRS though does it? And Merc were working on a way of stalling the front wing using air entering the nose hole last year so there could be other ways of doing it turning up.

[scotty]

You would assume that it is using the DRS to influence other parts of the car, judging by the wording.

The Lotus system doesn't depend on the DRS though does it? And Merc were working on a way of stalling the front wing using air entering the nose hole last year so there could be other ways of doing it turning up.

Heh was just about to post something on the Lotus system, i heard it is designed to work when the DRS is actually shut, but i can't figure out any way in which it would work like that. I don't think anyone really knows how that works at the moment.

But another theory i heard was that the Lotus thing is a passive f-duct - same as Mercedes tested last year as you say... nothing in the rules against that, yet, it probably takes much more time, effort and money to R&D something like that!

[stonemonkey]

You would assume that it is using the DRS to influence other parts of the car, judging by the wording.

The Lotus system doesn't depend on the DRS though does it? And Merc were working on a way of stalling the front wing using air entering the nose hole last year so there could be other ways of doing it turning up.

Heh was just about to post something on the Lotus system, i heard it is designed to work when the DRS is actually shut, but i can't figure out any way in which it would work like that. I don't think anyone really knows how that works at the moment.

But another theory i heard was that the Lotus thing is a passive f-duct - same as Mercedes tested last year as you say... nothing in the rules against that, yet, it probably takes much more time, effort and money to R&D something like that!

There was mention of fluidic switches, and while I don't know, I was assuming it was something that would use airflow from one source to control and direct another airflow through different channels.