Apr 08 (Nikkei) - A Japanese manufacturer supplying new standardized wheel rims for Formula One and NASCAR reckons it will learn enough on the racetrack to help improve the experience of driving an electric car.
The extreme conditions endured by F1 cars provide an opportunity to expand the company's technical know-how, according to Takahiro Maeda, the president of Maedakosen Group, whose subsidiary BBS Japan announced the prestigious contract wins earlier this year.
F1 is introducing standardized wheels as part of a major rules revamp with the aim of making races closer and reining in development costs. Tires are already provided by a single supplier.
"What we are eager to learn from the race is the ride quality, especially the quietness of the cars and parts," Maeda said in an interview with Nikkei Asia on Thursday. Specifically, the company plans to research ways to suppress noise through the shape of the wheel, the composition of materials and other means. It hopes that feedback from professional racers will help with the company's twin aims of making the wheels quieter and lighter.
Reducing wheel noise has become increasingly important since the cars of the future won't have an internal combustion engine drowning it out, Maeda said. "It will be quieter when the engine is gone in an electric vehicle, so that the sound from the tires and the ground will all come into the car directly," he said. "How to maintain quietness is a challenge for all manufacturers who are involved in the EV business, and that has a lot to do with part makers as well." ...continue reading
