Gallery: Witness 60 Years of Glorious F1 Race Car Evolution
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The Formula 1 World Drivers' Championships formally kicked off in 1950, but the front engined cars of the day would be unrecognizable to a modern viewer. Alfa Romeo dominated the inaugural season. This is the British Grand Prix, at Silverstone.
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By the mid 1950s, regulations had started to limit engine size, though teams could use turbo or superchargers. In 1958 year, new rules meant every car had to burn standard gasoline fuel, rather than the alcohol-based fuels they'd used before. This is Stirling Moss in Rob Walker's Cooper at Goodwood.
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1968 saw aerodynamic effects used in a big way as teams slapped huge wings on struts several feet high (seen here on a Rob Walker Racing Team Lotus in the German Grand Prix). "They stole the idea from American Can-Am races," says motorsport historian Don Capps. It was also a particularly deadly year, claiming five drivers' lives---the bosses banned the high wings and introduced other safety rules.
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The 1970s marked the start of Formula 1 as fans know it today, and the technological innovations came thick and fast. Mario Andretti won the 1978 Formula 1 World Drivers Championship in this Lotus 79 which used 'ground effect' aerodynamics, effectively turning the underside of the car into the equivalent of the huge wing for gobs of downforce.
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Renault's RS01 was the first modern racer to use a turbocharger, although regulations had allowed them for over a decade. Initial reliability problems earned it the name the "yellow teapot" for the frequent clouds of white smoke. It proved itself in 1979, and other teams quickly adopted the turbo. Here it's competing in 1978 in Long Beach, California.
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John Watson's 1981 McLaren MP4/1 may not look revolutionary, but it was the first to be made as a single carbon-fiber composite monocoque, rather than a metal chassis. That made the car unbelievably light, stiff and strong. Early on, other teams worried about its crash safety, but it quickly become the standard way to build a racecar.
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In 1983 extreme ground effects had been completely banned, so Nelson Piquet's Brabham BMW BT52, here at the Italian Grand Prix, used heavily trimmed side pods, and a flat underside. By now the cars were all running very thirsty turbo engines, so pit stops were re-introduced for refueling. They didn't last long, and were banned again in 1984.
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It was all change again in 1989. After several seasons of limiting boost pressure to try to rein in the insane power of F1 engines and make races safer and more entertaining, turbos were banned altogether. Naturally aspirated engines were back in, up to 3.5 liters, and 8 to 12 cylinders. This is legendary driver Ayrton Senna in his McLaren MP4/5 at the 1989 British Grand Prix.
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Formula 1 had gone a decade without a fatality when F1 great Ayrton Senna, shown here in the Williams FW16, died in a crash at the 1994 San Marino GP---after warning the banning of electronic driver's aids would prove dangerous. His death sparked another round of power restrictions and track adjustments.
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By the late 2000s, the races were becoming boring to watch, thanks to evenly matched, reliable cars. So the bosses updated the regs yet again, reducing engine rev limits and allowing adjustable wings to change aerodynamics mid-race This Ferrari F150, shown testing at Spain's Ricardo Tormo Circuit, was one result.
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2014 marked a shift towards smaller engines (turbocharged 1.6-liters with six cylinders), but heavier use of the Kinetic Energy Recovery System. During braking, KERS stores energy by spinning up a flywheel, then releases it during acceleration to boost performance. Infiniti Red Bull Racing shows its new RB10 during day one of winter testing in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.
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For the 2017 season, the focus is back on overtaking, with an unwinding of many of the aerodynamic restrictions. F1's head honchos want cars to be faster through the corners, though viewers aren't convinced that'll make the races more exciting. The cars, like this one from reigning champions, Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport, are lower and sleeker, with much wider tires.
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What comes next? More evolution. In late 2015, McLaren showcased one view of the future, with the MP4-X. It's electric, charged by the sun, and drivers steer it by thought. It's an extreme concept, but as the last six decades have demonstrated, Formula 1 tech doesn't stand still for long.
