Renault has unveiled a concept Formula 1 car called the RS2027 at the Shanghai Motor Show, aiming to give the world an idea of what Formula 1 cars could look like in 10 years from now. The car would weigh 600kg and would boast 1341 hp, which would make an impressive power-to-weight ratio, allowing the cars to lap faster than ever before. The car would be powered by a small internal combustion engine, with much more powerful energy recovery systems, which would give the car five times as much as electrical power compared to today. The car would feature four-wheel-drive and four-wheel-steering, active wings, a clear canopy and a transparent helmet would mean that the drivers could be safe and at the same time be visible to spectators. The car would use LED displays to show information about its race and its available electric power. There would be much more access to telemetry. Renault also suggests that the race weekend formats would change with such ideas as fan-boost, split races and even rookie races in the Friday night.
“We look forward to generating inspired conversations with the racing community, fans and enthusiasts through this concept that highlights our ideas and desires,” says team boss Cyril Abiteboul.
Here are some pictures of the RS2027:
joeblogsf1 
Would look nice on the Playstation I suppose. But I wouldn’t take it seriously otherwise because apart from the impending change of engine regulations (in 2020?) we’ve no idea what regulation changes will ensue to allow such a thing to be made.
What it needs is pro-active suspension. A LIDAR which reads the road ahead of the tyres with sub-millimeter accuracy and primes the suspension of individual wheels to handle it. Learning the amount of grip on a drying line, mapping temperature on a millimeter basis and using the front wheels to measure grip for the back.
Is there any racing formula at the moment which would allow proactive suspension?
While I can see many technological problems with such a system (such as how a LIDAR system tells the difference between something that deforms easily or something that is rock hard) but in F1 it’s not really an issue given that (Monaco and Singapore aside) they usually are racing on race tracks wit high grade asphalt.
But more importantly, unlike fancy modern sportscars, F1 cars used active suspension for a very different reason. It wasn’t about mechanical grip or ride quality, it was about changing the aerodynamics of the car. The suspension was controlled by airflow meters over the cars body that would pitch and shift the car to get the most downforce, the gains of which would be vastly greater than any increased mechanical grip from the orientation of the tyre. Williams even used to have an overtaking button that would lift the car on the straights to reduce its drag, much like DRS today.
video games much ?
Also they talked about a few ideas to shake up the format, and honestly, the support racr for the young guns really makes sense for me.
600kg and 1341 hp. Yes, upon sober consideration, I believe I can agree that that would be an impressive power-to-weight ratio.
Those are quite low profile tyres, go easy on the kerbs.
I like that they look at things that give more information, the transparent side making you feel like you can see the driver, the opened up suspension elements – a view towards showing off more of the incredible tech involved as well as using actively moving parts that should be easy to monitor (instead of fiddling about with bendy Front wings, rear wings sloping down in the right amount of air and floors curving etc, however impressive those things are for the art of layering carbon fibre.)
Not sure that cover would work for visibility and cleaning (who knows what material it could be made of) and I am not too wild about the overall looks.
But when taken as an input to the discussion of what the company expects from their top notch racing cars, it is a very good openening proposal.
Scalextric 😉
I see we can’t afford much lighting, in 2027…
Even the ray tracers are rationed…
Looks great . Awesome looking machine. It’s nice to brew up concept cars when you are a car manufacturer. Most usually end up as posters on petrol head work shops or a calendar of dream concepts, hardly any end up as a real deal. Regarding fan boost…not a fan of that.
It’s unfair, it’s like giving one driver and engine an shot of Steroids and NOz while the others get nothing. Just because the crowds don’t fancy them winning. Driver and machine is all you need. Leave the fans to watch the race.
Formula E fan boost is a waste of space.
This concept would be spectacular during night races! I hope a working model is made soon.
I still enjoy the roar of an engine, though.
Exactly what F1 needs! Agree with this concept 100%.
I see they keep the same ugly led lights as in their production cars…
Despite being an old guard F1 fan since 1964 I could live with this should this be where F1 winds up ten years from now . Seriously … thats not a bad vision of the future at all … assuming that there is a future … for both F1 .. as well as myself 😎
Don’t see how they can talk about the Formula being driver centric them mention the stupid completely artificial and unfair fanboost idea.
Have to say of all the future F1 concepts I’ve seen this is probably the worst.
Great hot wheels toy, not a future F1 car.
Actually looks suprisingly swoopy and racy…how it might sound is likely another question.
I like the idea of clear helmets also, if indeed possible, very clever. Looks like 20″ or so wheels, too.
If this is the future of F1, I may just be able to bear it…
ICE in 2017. LOL.
Fan boost, no. It will nearly always be a nationalistic result anyway… plus there is fan engagement and there is too much fan engagement. I don’t want fans to be able to influence a result/overtake in the race.
Rookie race I think would be interesting, though I watch GP2 and that fills that niche enough for me. Better coverage would be nice.
As for LED’s… sure. I’m not that upset about a canopy in the future as long as the drivers are still visible.
A spectacular look, worthy of praise.
Where all that technology fits within the limited chassis size shown would be a true engineering test, but worthy of pursuit.
And please, no comments about lack of engine noise. It’s the direction the world is taking.
Looks like a Transformer vehicle ready to morph into a Trumpian monster or a jet.
It looks thoughtful and beautiful. Add an all-electric or renewable power plant and I think you’ll have f1 in about 10 years.
Nice project. You can get back to making THIS season’s F1 car more powerful and reliable now, Renault.
I’d watch those race each other all day! The active info is also enticing, it’s only a matter of time before super-lightweight LED displays become a realistic addition to a wing or engine cover.
A move to become a visually futuristic formula would be an excellent key to attracting a much larger global fan base. The 2017 cars seem to be going in the right direction but they are, in fact, a throw back to the early 2000’s.
I can’t imagine it’s that difficult. The technology that exists these days is mind blowing. F1 needs to be at the absolute forefront of blowing people’s minds. I applaud the direction that F1 is taking and salute the likes of Zak Brown on his vision. More please!
I love it. Some great ideas there and a fantastic looking car. The rookie race is a great idea. Also, the clear canopy looks good – probably because it’s designed in conjunction with the rest of the car rather than the funny looking add-ons we’re seeing at the moment. I still don’t see how the halo is the best option as the driver is still exposed from certain angles. The fully enclosed clear canopy above is much nicer looking and far safer.
I would happily buy-in to that, nearly all the way till the end, except:
— what exactly is meant by “split races”?
— and if F1 adopts anything remotely in the spirit of “fan-boost”, I’m leaving.
As for “rookie races in the Friday night”, yeah, if third cars can be made affordable, it could be a great training ground. Even more I’d love to see the back-end of the main F1 grid filled with third cars where the drivers are the top few finishers of the Saturday F2 race.
I like a lot of these ideas, except Fan Boost – an idea that should be taken out and shot.
LED displays showing available power etc and more telemetry would be great.
Thanks to Renault for putting the time and effort into this concept and for offering fans something to enjoy and think about. This design and the earlier McLaren concept give us a glimpse of possible futures which look great. Some good ideas here particularly around letting fans see the driver performing while providing a safe driver cell (and an aesthetically pleasing way of dealing with driver head protection – something for the engineers to make work). The aero surfaces look more aesthetic than functional but overall the car looks cool and not an ugly engineering solution as so many of todays cars are. Its time F1 rule makers woke up to the fact that our sport is a wonderful combination and celebration of sport, technology and commerce that demands the highest levels of design presentation. Ugly cars are not acceptable for good commercial reasons – fans hate them and they don’t represent F1 or their commercial brand partners in a positive manner. These two points are very real criteria for the design of F1 cars that are just as important as aero performance for the future success of the sport. I trust Ross Brawn adds car appearance and affective design and presentation to his list of criteria so we don’t have to suffer more obscene noses or daft aero appendages that make F1 cars look embarrassingly silly.
Cool car! (or should that be une voiture frais! 🙂
Tron?
If one widened the bodywork you end up with something like a 2017 WEC car, and they, although a decent series, suffer from the series wide motorsport curse of all looking exactly the same! So would 20 of these Renault inspired car look good on a track? Not for me i’m afraid.
Also, Lap numbers displayed on the car, fair enough, but why can’t anyone put the car Number on the car, and the Driver??
Split races, we’ve had that for years with the fuel and tyre, and then tyre only pitstops and i’ve never been a fan myself, as i’ve always liked the idea of a race to the flag without gimmicks……Fan Boost, an awful artificial gimmick that just creates a joke out of GP Racing…..Rookie races, that would be fine, but better still would be bigger grids, works teams being able to run extra cars, Privateer teams being able to buy new or used F1 cars, and Rookie Drivers being thrown into the action in the Main Event, along with the mainstream GP Drivers….that would be a welcome blast from the past.
Still, things change and ( improve…..), and i’ve always got Historics & Goodwood to cater for my desires to revel in real racing cars.
PS lots of you don’t need to troll over my views, they’re mine and based on personal preference, which is why I don’t go modern circuit spectating these days.
In the profile image, it bears an unfortunate resemblance to a Dyson vacuum cleaner. The overhead view just looks ghastly. A Lotus 79 or a Maserati 250F it ain’t.
Do concept cars ever get close? What did the concept cars in 2007 or even 1997 think F1 would look like.
If Renault found spare time for this.. We’re in for one hell of an update next month!
I suspect that Renault F1 team and Engine division didn’t have to trouble their resource allocation by much.
Still has open wheels … I’m bored rigid with that.
Joe, I just wanted to thank you for your “Interesting Facts” over the winter. I thoroughly enjoyed them and it was very kind of you. Thank you very much. Hope all is well and you (we) have a goo season.
*good season
Hi Joe,
Slightly off topic but will you be finding someone else to do podcasts with in the future?
I hope to do so…
Really? Was the last edition the final one with Sidepodcast and Christine Blatchford’s mob?
Yes, apparently it was. They got silly
Shame, but for me they overreached themselves as I only listened to your podcasts with them so will look forward to hearing from you with someone else.
No more “An Aside With Joe”? That’s a bummer.
Oh yes. It ain’t trademarked!
Do please use the name elsewhere, Joe. It’d give Mr C a face like a slapped arse – which would be quite apt.
It’s all very ‘Kiddie with a CAD’ program. Similar designs pop up all over the interweb every few weeks. Dunno about getting off the drawing board, this won’t even get on one.
Fan boost already makes Formula E a bit of joke, if it came to F1, we’d be seeing Ferrari receiving it every time. Just think of the money Bernie could have made from that idea, charging £1 a pop for every vote to a premium rate number. It’s one part of social media he would have appreciated.
“Hello Renault? RENAULT?! Yeah hi, this is 2027 calling. Listen, stop worrying about me, ok? You have enough to do in your own era to get competitive without this future nonsense, so put your damn crystal balls away and get back to work! See you in ten years. Bye.”
Haha!
A serious sport cannot have something like FanBoost.
Imagine Football. Manchester United winning every game with GoalBoost because they have the most fans.
Now you’re talking. I may forward this page to Jose.
So according to this, the future of F1 is… WEC. Not a ringing endorsement of F1 but the ACO will doubtless be happy.
Fan boost?
Hell no.
I can live with anything except fanboost…
Also, rookie races seem like a very reasonable idea
Did Renault specify whether they will be continuing with their modern tradition of being slowest down the straights?