Forget Stepped noses, F1 cars in 2014 could look worse

If you thought the stepped noses in 2012 were bad, think again.The new regulations for 2014 means that the F1 cars in 2014 could possibly be an eyesore.

The rules for the next season require a high chassis of 525mm and a low nose tip at 185mm.

But the regulations have not mentioned a specific width for the nose which means that a relatively small nose tip cross-section will be utilised in order to minimise the width of this area to improve air flow under the chassis.

What this means is that the nose could possibly look as shown in the image above.

A slender nose section protruding from a higher, more bulky, section that will pass crash tests and fit teams’ aerodynamic needs is a high possibility as teams will look to minimise weight and surface area.

It is thought that many of the front running outfits believe it is the best solution.

Autosport Reports that some senior Formula 1 technical personnel have already called for changes to improve aesthetics, but this was not successful due to a lack of agreement.

An FIA technical directive has also been issued ruling out an alternative nose solution that was put forward with a request for clarification.

Red Bull’s chief designer Adrian Newey and McLaren’s Sporting director Sam Michael have admitted that the 2014 cars are likely to be “ugly” due to the front impact structure.

“The low nose is not a problem,” Michael explained.

“The problem is in the way you get through the crash test – and the teams will mostly be going down one solution.”

What is clear from this is that F1 fans are possibly going to be subjected to “ugly” cars in a bid to gain technical advantages for the upcoming season.