F1 Info - 2003 Rule Changes

Parc Ferme

FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DE L' AUTOMOBILE
PRESS INFORMATION - Melbourne, March 6, 2003
2003 FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP POST QUALIFYING PARC FERMÉ

Further to ongoing discussions with Team Managers and Technical Directors the following updated procedure will apply:

General:

The parc fermé procedure has two purposes. First, to check the cars for general conformity with the Technical and Sporting Regulations and, secondly, to ensure that in each case the car which is scrutineered, qualified and raced is one and the same.

Any car which did not take part in, or complete a flying lap in the second qualifying practice session will not normally be needed in the parc fermé.

Accordingly, the cars will be deemed to be in parc fermé from the end of their qualifying lap on Saturday until the green lights are illuminated at the start of the formation lap (for clarity, in the event of a delayed start or a race stoppage we refer here only to the first formation lap).

Between these times Teams may carry out the following work:

cooling devices may be fitted;
changes to improve the drivers comfort. In this context anything other than addition or removal or padding or similar material may only be carried out with the specific permission of the FIA Technical Delegate;
a fuel breather may be fitted;
bodywork may be removed and / or cleaned;
cosmetic changes may be made to the bodywork;
any part of the car may be cleaned;
any parts which are removed from the car in order to carry out any work specifically permitted below must remain close to it and, at all times, be visible to the scrutineer assigned to the relevant car;
fluids used for replenishment must conform to the same specification as the original fluid.

For safety reasons, no fuel may be added to or removed from the car between the second qualifying session and the race. This will avoid the danger that in a search for extra performance during qualifying, the car could be assembled in a manner which, while optimum for qualifying with a minimal fuel load, might be unsuitable or even dangerous at the start of the race.

Immediately after entering the pits:

All cars which complete a flying lap during the second qualifying practice session will be stopped in the weighing area, weighed and then held in the central parc fermé until the session is finished. The weight of the car at this time (without driver) will be used as a reference in the event of a driver using another race car and for comparison with the weight of the car immediately before the pit lane opens for the race.

Whilst the cars are being held we will allow two members from each Team (not two per car) to be in the FIA’s central parc fermé at any one time for the purpose of:

checking tyre pressures;
connecting a jump battery under the supervision of the FIA;
downloading data by physical connection to the car under the supervision of the FIA;
fitting water heaters;
engine oil may be drained;
changing tyres before the car is pushed back to the Team’s garage. These, or any other tyres, may be used when the car is returned to the central parc fermé the same evening and back to the Team’s garage on Sunday morning. The wheels and tyres used for qualifying will be marked and / or sealed by the scrutineers before being released to the Team;
carrying out any work required by the FIA Technical Delegate.

Once any such work has been carried out the Team personnel must leave the central parc fermé immediately.

No other work of any kind will be permitted at this time unless deemed absolutely necessary by the FIA Technical Delegate.

Saturday afternoon:

Once the session has finished, and all preliminary checks have been carried out by the FIA, the cars held in the central parc fermé will be released simultaneously and Teams will be permitted to push them back to their garages. Cars will remain under parc fermé conditions throughout. From this point, and until 18.00, Teams will be permitted to carry out the following work under supervision of the scrutineers:

wheels may be removed;
removal of any parts genuinely necessary to carry out essential safety checks;
engines may be started (an external fuel pressurising system may be used if necessary but only fuel on board the car may be used for running the engine);
with the exception of fuel, fluids with a specific gravity less than 1.1 may be drained;
draining and / or addition of compressed gases;
heating devices may be fitted;
on board electrical units may be freely accessed via a physical connection to the car;

No other work will be permitted during this time unless the FIA Technical Delegate is satisfied that it is absolutely necessary and has specifically authorised it.

At some time before 18.00 each Team must take any car which completed a flying lap in the second qualifying practice back to the central parc fermé, with all parts used for qualifying re-fitted (other than wheels and tyres, which if they are not fitted to the car, must be taken separately), where they will remain secure until the following day. Whilst cars are in the central parc fermé they may be covered and fitted with devices to keep them warm, no Team personnel will be permitted there unless specifically authorised by the FIA Technical Delegate.

Sunday:

At 08.00 on the day of the race, or earlier if the relevant Event timetable makes this necessary, Teams will be permitted to take their cars back to their garages where, again, they will remain under parc fermé conditions until the green lights are illuminated at the start of the formation lap. Only the following work on the cars will be permitted during this time:

repair of bona fide accident damage;
wheels and tyres may be removed, rebalanced, tyre pressures adjusted and tyre heating devices fitted;
during all reconnaissance laps every car must be fitted with the same wheels and tyres as the driver used for his qualifying lap, the race must also be started with these same wheels and tyres. If one or more tyres are damaged, and are deemed unusable by the FIA Technical Delegate, they may be replaced by other tyres which have been used for a greater number of laps than the damaged ones;
with the exception of fuel, fluids with a specific gravity less than 1.1 may be drained and / or replenished, however, no replenishment may take place less than one hour before the pit lane opens for the race. In order to ensure that fluids are not being used as ballast, and that the car is therefore being raced as it was qualified, the FIA reserves the right to weigh cars at random during the hour preceding the opening of the pit lane. When a car is weighed in this way its weight must be within 3kg of its weight at the completion of its qualifying lap;
draining and / or addition of compressed gases;
the aerodynamic set up of the front wing may be adjusted using the existing parts. No parts may be added, removed or replaced;
on board electrical units may be freely accessed via a physical connection to the car;
engines may be started (an external fuel pressurising system may be used if necessary but only fuel on board the car may be used for running the engine);
the main electrical battery may be changed and a jump battery connected;
if the second qualifying practice is held in wet conditions and the race is dry (or vice versa), tyres may be changed and changes may be made to brake cooling ducts;
if the FIA technical delegate is satisfied that changes in climatic conditions necessitate alterations to the specification of a car these may be carried out but only with his explicit approval.

Any work not listed above may only be undertaken with the approval of the FIA Technical Delegate following a written request from the Team concerned. It must be clear that any replacement part a Team wishes to fit is similar in mass, inertia and function to the original. After the work has been carried out the car must be submitted for re-scrutineering. Any parts removed will be retained by the FIA.

One scrutineer will be allocated to each car for the purpose of ensuring that no unauthorised work is carried out whilst cars are being held under parc fermé conditions. If any such unauthorised work is carried out a report will be made to the Stewards of the Meeting.

A list of additional work carried out with the specific agreement of the FIA Technical Delegate will be published prior to the race.

Finally, if deemed necessary for safety reasons by the FIA Technical Delegate, changes to the set up of the suspension may be made in order to rectify any serious problem which may have been encountered during the qualifying session. However, any such changes may only be made in the pit lane during the fifteen minute period prior to the start of the first formation lap and under the supervision of the scrutineers.

Suspension and aerodynamic devices

In order that the scrutineers may be completely satisfied that no alterations have been made to the suspension systems or aerodynamic configuration of the car (with the exception of the front wing) whilst in post-qualifying parc fermé, it must be clear from physical inspection that changes cannot be made without the use of tools.

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