First, I think it will create more mechanical grip, even without any hybrid technology. The question is if that mechanical grip makes up for that very likely aerodynamic penalty. I know that Audi did the studies and obviously has more data on this than me, but I would not be surprised what made the wider tires the winner was planning on powering them at some point. There are all sorts of questions to this theory, like do you need to power the fronts or do the rears have more than enough grip to handle the power. Something to look at would be the front pushrods. They would have to be positioned so they do no go through the drive shafts, so probably not on the centerline of the front axle or very high. From the pictures they do not look very high, but the pictures do not make it clear where they line up. The fin is required by the rules to help prevent the cars from becoming airborne.
It's all very interesting. I love it when teams release thier new toys, I love to look at the pictures really closely and think of the possibilities the teams are applying to the designs they came up with.
Seriously, I'd forgotten that next years cars had fins, and now I've seen this....they should be banned on the grounds of being hideous.
I like the shark fin as well... hate me? Not sure oversteer is that big of an issue in a car with that weight... I only see it being useful in the Porsche corners and even then the car should have enough downforce to keep it planted in the rear... But who the hell am I? Maybe the added stablity leaves room for less rear downforce/higher top speed. I'm sure it has its usses... just wanted to say a few smart words...
The problem is, the concept on the Acura LMP1s was considered to be largely a failure. The cons far outweighed what Wirth hoped would be the pros. I'm a bit perplexed as to Audi trying it again, although they surely have MUCH more resources than Wirth.
noooo shark fin! <A BORDER="0" HREF="http://www.supercars.net/PitLane?displayFAQ=y"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="pitlane/emoticons/sad.gif"></A>
And that why Audi is running a diesel even when the rules favor petrol. Audi and Peugeot have the budgets to overcome the rest of the field. To be honest, its like watching F1 again in 2004.
They may very well need it, but it seems a little simplistic to blame all of those crashes on the lack of a shark fin or suggest that a shark fin would have/will prevent such crashes.