I started this post with the knowledge that some of the rules committee read these forums, and may benefit from some feedback.
I suggest that the proposed rule changes for 2015 should be delayed until 2016 for the following reasons:
- There are a number of rules that affect the conceptual design of a lot of cars, and they are being released with less than 9 months before the comp they will be first used in.
- The delay will mean that the 2016 rules will have been released much earlier than normal. This has the following advantages:
- Teams from Japan and Australasia will be able to travel with the cars they are designing now, and will not create the same problem for 2016
- Sufficient time is available for feedback and revision of the rules if necessary. (I think this could be important given the magnitude of changes)
- It allows for plenty of time to work on the next revision (2017 rules)
- There is time to deal with differences the rules committee appear to be having within the committee (i.e differing rules for Germany vs other comps)
This request is not being made in order to change the proposed rules, or direction of the rules committee. The FSAE / Student community itself is split on whether they are a good idea or not. As long as all teams compete to the same rules we are still likely to have good competition. The ideal concept may change, some teams will win out some will take a hit.
I do feel that there are two points we can agree on:
- Rules should be released in their final form prior to teams beginning conceptual design. This should be more than 12 months before the first comp they will be used, ideally 18 months or so to allow international teams to be able to effectively plan ahead (i.e. change concept to suit planned international comp)
- Rules should be written clearly and objectively. No team wants to get caught out at scrutineering because either there is no clear scrutineering guidelines for the new rules, or because the scrutineer has a different interpretation of the rules.
Finally, before offering this post up for discussion I wish to make the statement that I am not making any form of negative comments towards the rules committee or anybody on it. It is a difficult job with a large number of stakeholders.
Lets try and keep this post civil and constructive. Please post on here whether you support or object to the delay of the proposed 2015 rules until the 2016 season. Offer constructive comments and lets hope it engages people on the rules committee.
Regards,
Dr Kevin Hayward
Faculty Advisor
Edith Cowan University (2008-present)
Team member at UWA Motorsport (2001-2005)