Nico Hulkenberg has questioned Max Verstappen's explanation for his qualifying crash at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The Dutchman reported that a software glitch caused an increase of 150 horsepower, causing him to spin out into the barrier.
But Hulkenberg, who also drives a Renault-powered car says that story makes little sense: "First I'd like to ask where the 150hp comes from," Nico Hulkenberg told Speed Week. "Does he have a party mode, too? I've never experienced anything like this. I'll say it like this: it seems strange to me," the works Renault driver added.
And two Dutch racing drivers agree that Verstappen's explanation was "unusual". "It is highly unusual, but possible," Jan Lammers told Algemeen Dagblad newspaper.
Former Minardi driver Christijan Albers added: "Verstappen is not the type to make up a story that is not right. Then he makes himself out to be crazy. I myself have also experienced strange things in a car. Remember, it's all electronics -- there's no cable attached to the throttle," he said. (GMM)
I envision a bunch of hateful comments about Nico Hulkenberg below this one... Regarding Verstappen, it's a weird explanation, but it was also a weird mistake. So I'd give him the benefit of the doubt.
I envision a bunch of hateful comments about Nico Hulkenberg below this one... Regarding Verstappen, it's a weird explanation, but it was also a weird mistake. So I'd give him the benefit of the doubt.
It is weird. My first thought was the same as Nico's. Where does an extra 150 hp come from? The Hulk knows that engine and also that there isn't 150 hp in reserve to create such a surge without blowing the engine trying to extract that much. I'm guessing that there was some kind of power surge or spike but that it was no where near 150 hp.
It is weird for sure, but remember that it was in a corner. A 150 hp spike while you jump on n off the throttle is possible ( as in mot 150 more than the total ponies, but 150 more than required in that situation). But its a weird issue... spikes like that, and this strong, isnt common, is it?
I read some the same explanation from Horner. He said that the lap that he was doing was to dial the engine into the maximise engine parameters which was a weird comment. Not sure if they are doing some kind of engine speed control which has an effect like a kind of traction control. It was a strange remark so I am unsure what occurred.
I saw that interview with Horner and he was just basically saying that VER was on an outlap and going through a routine of calibrating his engine modes (something to that effect) just as they would normally do before qualifying.
Engine maps have traction control build into them. Basic idea is that when rpm goes up you get slightly less power out pf engine with same pedal position if not asking maximum. That helps because wheel spin will increase rpm compared to what would be required for same speed without spin. Then reduced power output from engine will let friction stop the spin allowing easier control of wheel spin compared to engine map where pedal position produces same power output for all rpms.
It's not 150 bhp on top of the maximum, it's 150 bhp unexpectedly on top of the throttle position Verstappen was asking for. In his own words, he wasn't going flat out there. So if he was deploying, he thought, 600-ish bhp (out of a possible 900) and all of a sudden the ERS fully unloaded onto the drive train, then that would easily explain what happened. The ERS system alone can deliver over 160 bhp when fully charged.
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I envision a bunch of hateful comments about Nico Hulkenberg below this one... Regarding Verstappen, it's a weird explanation, but it was also a weird mistake. So I'd give him the benefit of the doubt.