F1 Red Bull Engineering

This blog post is about diffusers. So here is some background. Diffusers in F1 are basically the opposite of an airplane wing, instead of providing lift they apply suction - pulling the car to the earth as much as possible to increase tire grip, and reduce drag. The following article explains diffusers quite well Diffusers | Engineering basics | Aerodynamics. Now, what Red Bull did with the RB6 and even moreso with the RB7 and the use of the exhaust gases with regard to the diffuser to help Sebastian Vettel win another WDC is what this posting is all about. Basically, Red bull was cited for what is called an Exhaust-Blown Diffuser - where engine exhaust gases are redirected thru the diffuser to increase downforce on the car. Red Bull RB7 – Open Fronted Exhaust Blown Diffuser, The Exhaust Pipe That Made Red Bull A Success. Personally I like what Red Bull did, I thought it was innovative. But they were penalized, and I look back at this because now, in 2017 Red Bull is crying foul about the Mercedes AMG F1 Team T-Bar... Funny how things come around.