This put a smile on my face ...

[Ed_Severson]

I was reading the Star this morning, and I found this little gem from the CrapWagon round-up ...

"Fernandez's IRL debut didn't last even a lap.

He improperly downshifted prior to the start of the race and ruined his gearbox. He took the green flag but immediately pitted and didn't return."

:rofl:

Bummer. So much for the urgency of immediately beginning your quest for the "championship". Had you waited around for Long Beach, you would never have scored those 12 points for 20th place and gotten that invaluable zero laps of race experience.

Then again, you might have missed the big race in your native Japan next month.

[KLang]

What the heck is an 'improper downshift' and why would one of those 'ruin' the gearbox?

And they want to take these crates on road and street courses? :saywhat:

[RacinM3]

Does the IRL use sequential 'boxes? Do the electronics prevent a downshift that would over-rev the engine? Can this happen in a Champ Car? I haven't heard of this for a long, long time in Champ Car, but I'm not sure if the connection is mechanical or electronic.

[Insomniac]

Does the IRL use sequential 'boxes? Do the electronics prevent a downshift that would over-rev the engine? Can this happen in a Champ Car? I haven't heard of this for a long, long time in Champ Car, but I'm not sure if the connection is mechanical or electronic.

IIRC, the electronics can't save the car from a mistaken downshift. Ithappens too fast for them to cut off the engine. I remember Honda's last year in CART and Mikey had donshifted one too many gears. He wasn't allowed to say how high it reved, but they speculated over 20k. He said something like "Not even a Honda could handle that many RPMs."

[RacinM3]

But it's not a matter of cutting the engine. If you cut the engine, but still allow the downshift to be made, it doesn't matter if the engine's got spark or not. You're going to blow it up. It's a matter of the computer knowing that the driver is asking for a downshift that will result in an over-revved engine, and not giving him the downshift until the car has slowed sufficiently.

If the car has a purely mechanical connection from the shifter to the gearbox, then there's nothing they can do. But if the connection relies on even one electronically-actuated part to complete the shift, then they could protect the engine.

So I guess my question is, on a champ car or earl car, is the linkage mechanical or mechanical/electronic? Anyone know?

[Insomniac]

But it's not a matter of cutting the engine. If you cut the engine, but still allow the downshift to be made, it doesn't matter if the engine's got spark or not. You're going to blow it up. It's a matter of the computer knowing that the driver is asking for a downshift that will result in an over-revved engine, and not giving him the downshift until the car has slowed sufficiently.

If the car has a purely mechanical connection from the shifter to the gearbox, then there's nothing they can do. But if the connection relies on even one electronically-actuated part to complete the shift, then they could protect the engine.

So I guess my question is, on a champ car or earl car, is the linkage mechanical or mechanical/electronic? Anyone know?

You're right, cutting the engine won't help, it will still be spinning in that gear.

[CART T. Katz]

fernandez = karma

you, baldy and mr. bertuzzi would be better served looking for the definition of that word.

[FCYTravis]

Both Champ Cars and "IndyCars" are required to have a fully mechanical gear selection system. If a driver's stupid enough to downshift too early, that's his own damn fault... :rofl:

[RobGuru]

Both Champ Cars and "IndyCars" are required to have a fully mechanical gear selection system. If a driver's stupid enough to downshift too early, that's his own damn fault... :rofl:

Yeah... I've heard that running the EARL deteriorates one's racing skills, but forgetting how to downshift on a pace lap seems like a very quick loss.

Poor Adrian! :shakehead

[B3RACER1a]

But it wasnt the engine that broke, the gearbox did. :rofl:

[racer2c]

Are the sequential boxes from the same manufacturer, with the same 'throw'? If not, this could be a situation where Adrian was used to a tighter shifter, and the difference was enough that he 'beat' the gear down.
I wish that Crap Wagons still had an h-pattern shifter. That was too damn funny!

[Fio1]

Downshifting in the IRL is improper, so is breaking. HA HA HA HA HA!

Hey Adrian, forget everything you ever learned about driving a race car, and use the skills you learned about driving on the freeway! :rolleyes: