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[sagi58]

CNN International's The Circuit Tours Haas F1 Team Banbury Facility

[Jabberwocky]

Cool

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

[myownalias]

I'm really interested to see where Haas slots in during 2016; will they immediately be in the mix battling for 4th/5th/6th place overall or will they be battling with Manor for the minor money? I'm kinda thinking that they will be in the midfield with the extensive backup from Ferrari in their initial season in F1.

[sagi58]

Not only do I agree that Haas will probably be in the midfield,
I sincerely hope so!!

[gdh]

Hopefully the team does well and raises more interest and coverage in N Am.

[LewEngBridewell]

Any thoughts on the new car?

[sagi58]

Haas launches its first F1 car



New American F1 team Haas has launched its first car, the VF-16.

Haas is the first American team to take part in the championship since 1986 and is headed up by the founder of Haas Automation and NASCAR team owner, Gene Haas.

"From an international standpoint, Formula One is the highest echelon of racing, and Haas Automation builds the highest-quality machine tools," Haas said. "When you hear 'F1' you know exactly what it is - a global racing series that showcases the latest technology and attracts the best talent in engineering and design. Haas Automation has an excellent reputation in the United States and I want that reputation to grow worldwide. Connecting Haas Automation with F1 in name and in practice is the best way to grow our business and elevate Haas Automation to a premium, global brand."

The team's close relationship with Ferrari means the car shares as many components as is allowed under the regulations with the recently-launched SF16-H, but the chassis itself has been manufactured by Italian company Dallara. It is powered by Ferrari's V6 turbo power unit and also uses a Ferrari gearbox.

[darwin dali]

Any thoughts on the new car?

Ferralino

[sagi58]

Hey, Lew... it looks like we posted almost simultaneously!!

As for the car... I agree with DD!! "Ferralino"!!

[sagi58]

Formula 1: A closer look at the drivers' cars for the 2016 season

Formula 1 constructors have revealed the designs of their new cars for the 2016 campaign.

But what should we be looking out for ahead of pre-season testing? BBC Sport highlights a selection of key features...

...Haas



Haas are brand new to Formula 1 with former Lotus driver Romain Grosjean steering their first Formula 1 car, the Haas VF16.

Key feature: The Haas car was designed in the Maranello wind tunnel and uses Ferrari's 2016 engine.

Expert view from Team principal Gunther Steiner: "Our methodology behind the VF-16 was to make it the best evolution of a good F1 car. We're a new team, so we looked at what the successful teams were doing to give us a baseline of the direction we needed to go with our design."



...

[sagi58]

The biggest issue facing each F1 team in 2016

Haas

Avoiding new team syndrome

It's always risky when a team boss or owner of a new team makes predictions about the debut season. Haas' strong links to Ferrari have already set tongues wagging about immediately challenging the midfield in its first season. Wisely, team boss Guenther Steiner has been at pains to temper expectations around the American outfit. But this is not just another new team joining the grid. Haas' extensive use of Ferrari's facilities at Maranello last year will have been an enormous benefit. Couple that with the fact Gene Haas has considerable resources to throw behind his F1 team and it is easy to back up the expectations some have about the Kannapolis team. Haas arrives with racing acumen from NASCAR and, in Romain Grosjean, one of the most talented drivers on the grid.

Haas' debut season feels somewhat bigger than just another team joining the grid. F1 is currently facing an important moment in its relationship with the United States. The U.S. Grand Prix has become a re-established, popular venue on the calendar at Austin's Circuit of the Americas but financial doubts continue to linger about its future. With talk of another West Coast grand prix joining the calendar in future, plus F1's failure to attract new teams to the grid in recent years, the success or failure of the Haas team this year and beyond will not be insignificant.

[sagi58]

There was a lot more to this article; but, I found this bit interesting:

F1 TEAMS: WHY THE HAAS MODEL POINTS THE WAY TO POSSIBLE FUTURE OF FORMULA 1

Anyone who has seen the Haas F1 team in action in Barcelona this week will concur that this is the best prepared new team to enter the sport since Toyota 15 years ago.

The team has started well. They will continue to be closely watched in their debut season, because if their model works of buying everything legally available within the F1 rules from a top team and going racing for around $100m a season, then other wealthy business owners, keen to capitalise on F1’s global platform, will follow.

Haas has been talking about entering the sport for five seasons and took an extra year to prepare when it realised that 2015 might be rushing things. That extra year has made all the difference. The team has developed a good car with Ferrari and Dallara, hired sensible drivers and employed good people in all areas. There is no sense of panic or rush around the team. They almost look as though they are enjoying themselves...

...The top teams will be all over it; they are looking to generate a profit centre from a customer collaboration as well as to consolidate a political ally and their crucial vote in the F1 commission.

With the political temperature rising between the FIA, CVC and Bernie Ecclestone on one side and the manufacturers on the other, this model could offer the best way for the manufacturers to get a political stranglehold on the sport ahead of the new Concorde Agreement negotiations post 2020...

...It’s also enough to threaten a breakaway, if the manufacturers want to push Ecclestone to the limit in the 2020 Concorde negotiations...

...Haas has come in and moved the model on to the limit of what is possible, and it looks mighty attractive on many levels right now.

[Paul Pearson]

I wish Haas every success, and the car looks the dogs wotsits !

[darwin dali]

Haas today: "Grosjean's really a great driver -- he's never won an F1 race but we'll try to fix that this year!"

A tad optimistic I'd say

[LewEngBridewell]

Excellent stuff from Haas this weekend. They've done a remarkable job, and 6th place was no easy feat for a new team. Grosjean didn't even seem to be holding up the cars behind!

Haas has done something that Marussia, Hispania, Lotus/Caterham and Super Aguri and many others failed to do on their first attempt.

Well done to them.