How well does the FF chassis take a solid shunt?

[JDUB]

Ugly question I know and one a race driver never wants to ask but It's good to know what you're dealing with and where the chassis's strong and weak points are..

So here goes; how well does the basic FF chassis design protect the driver in a solid frontal, rear and/or side impact??

Is there something(s) I should be looking at to make sure I'm as safe as I can be??

[Jagbuff]

I know more about this than I would prefer to. I was testing for the Runoff's in 2000 when I had an incident with Stan Townes (Swift DB-1). I have an RF-98 which I spun sideways at the exit of turn 11 (leading into Thunder Valley). I was on the pavement and was stopped only for a moment. The track goes up and down here so the exit is not visable from the entry of the turn. Becasue it was a test day there were no corner workers (Shame on Mid-Ohio). Stan came over the rise just as I was starting to move. Later he told he his computer showed he hit me at 85 MPH. The nose of his car hit my oil pump. The impact broke the bellhousing off, broke all the ears off the back of the block, broke the thermostat housing off the cylinder head, snapped off the shift linkage at the shift lever, bent two of the tubes next to my right arm in 2-3", broke my helmet and lots more. The right side of the roll hoop was bent in about 1" and the belly pan was torn off all the way to the front of the fuel cell. The chassis was written off. The good news was that neither Stan nor I was hurt seriously! If Stan had hit me at my hips instead of the motor the outcome would not have been as good. If I had taken the same hit in my Lola T-342 I have to believe I would have gotten hurt. The RF-98 (and most modern FF's) are MUCH MUCH stronger than any of the older CFF's. In general I believe the later cars are very strong and reasonably safe but there is an element of risk you cannot get away from. I do not know what you could do to improve the side impact protection of most of these cars without a LOT of work. The one thing you do have control over is the seat. Get a bead seat and use it. Proper support of the driver will help you go faster and will protect you more in a crash than any fiberglass seat. Stan's DB-1 was repaired for the Runoff's by cutting the chassis off at the front roll hoop and splicing on a new front half of the car. A monumental job to do trackside in a week. Amazingly Stan got away with some badly bruised shins. If he had been in a CFF I don't think it would have been pretty for him either. Sorry for the long post but I thought I had some reasonable input. PS - I bought a HANS after that incident.

Tim Dunn FF-19
[email]tdunn@solonmfg.com[/email]

[Dale Carter]

The basic Formula Ford “small-tube” space frame chassis protects the driver in a variety of ways and to a varying extent depending on a broad rage of factors: characteristics of the particular design, the “vintage” of the design, the principles that have been applied to any given design, the age and condition of the chassis and the modifications that may have been done to it over time – among others. Early FF chassis had far less strength and rigidity than do more current designs. Some particular chassis were known for lightness and as a result, the degree of protection they offered was minimal. A good example would be a “non-strengthened” Lola 342. Late seventies cars were far stronger across the board. A good example would be the Zink Z10. Cars built from the early 80’s on – and certainly all current chassis - have far more sophisticated designs with more members in key locations. Driver protection became a key design criteria in cars like the Swift, Reynard and Van Diemen.

A lightweight formula car is meant to be rigid but it is also designed to absorb crash energy by means of “local-deformation”. As a consequence, the chassis offer a relatively high degree of protection under the kinds of crash conditions which can be expected. Obviously, heavy or “solid” impact at the front or sides can potentially result in significant injury – again, depending on a whole range of factors. But based on overall experience in club racing, the elements that contribute to the reduction of injuries have been maximized and the “risk” factor is well understood and accepted. One key fator is that tracks are designed and fitted out with deformable barriers – tire barriers, Armco barriers, etc. - to reduce the chances of a heavy impact with an immovable object.
To minimize your own level of risk, select a chassis design known for its strength and protection levels, check to be sure everything is still in place as it was manufactured and check the age and condition of the chassis paying special attention to possible previous crash damage. In some cases, additional members can be added and there are chassis specialists and prep shops that can help you with that.

[sarrcford]

I look at the development of FF chassis in three rather distinct periods. From conception until about 1982, most of the chassis were built to withstand a lot of abuse. This means your typical agricultural excursion didn't damage the 1.6 liter "tank" you were racing. That's the good part. The bad part was that, in the event of a major impact, the chassis bent, buckled and eventually transmitted a great deal of energy to the last component (the driver).

Second generation designs were much better, in that they put the suspension on shear plates. If you hit something, the shear plate would break, and you'd lose a corner, but the chassis would be more likely to survive intact...and there would be less energy transmitted to the driver. In the mid-80s the SCCA started to require a "crush box" in the nose of formula cars--another way to absorb energy and deplete it prior to reaching the driver.

We are now in the third generation of chassis design. If you compare the size of suspension rod ends to earlier cars, you'll find that they are several sizes smaller. Wishbone pickup brackets are designed to break away, and the various bits and pieces are much more fragile than the cars of the 60s and 70s. Each time a bit bends or breaks, it absorbs some energy, which otherwise would have been transmitted to the chassis and the driver. This is good news for you in the case of a serious shunt, but it also means that off-course time may result in some minor damage that earlier cars wouldn't have even noticed.

The current CART and F1 cars are far more advanced, and this is the reason that, if they hit a wall, they seem to come entirely unglued...but the driver survives.

As far as side impacts go,the break-away suspension doesn't help much. You can lay in a layer of Kevlar or add some metal for additional protection, but the fact is that you're still in a formula car, and it's not going to offer the protection of a showroom stock, door-car.

Larry Oliver
International Racing Products

[Donatob]

Tim's post was spot on and I had an incident which takes it should help give you further info on the importance of certain safety issues. I rolled a Swift DB-1 a combination of 5 barrell/end-over rolls. When it started I LET GO OF THE WHEEL, I attempted to put my hands up to brace the roll (don't ask why, it was instinct) but my PROPERLY ADJUSTED ARM RESTRAINTS pulled them back. My BEAD SEAT (Nordan Composites)seemed to absord most of the impact (32g's on my computer) and I wasn't even sore. I'm sure my head tried to bounce around pretty good, but I was wearing a Hans Device and my neck wasn't even sore.
I think the message here is stay on top of your maintenance, especially safety issues and an FF can take a lot. Just don't cut corners. Good Luck.

[sarrcford]

The three most beneficial things you can do are (strangely) not all that expensive.
1. Use a nose box that is a deformable structure.
2. Use a bead seat
3. Lay is some Kevlar reinforcing along the body side panels

Play safe!
Larry Oliver
International Racing Products

[JDUB]

Thanks for your input(s).. Looks like it's time to get the bead seat fitted at a minimum.

[JDUB]

Thank you all items are noted and will be incorporated this year, I will also look into the Hans Device..

[Chuck Gillis]

Mike: Just out of curiosity, how old was the harness in the car ou took that ride in? And did you replace them after the event?

Thanks. gm

[Donatob]

The harness was 3 years old and held me fine (all 200 lbs.). And YES it was replaced afterward. Once they take a good streetch like that you just never know.