News Source: topspeed.com

Almost two months from now, the 2014 Season of the FIA Formula One  World Championship will be back upon us — March 14th, to be exact. The first race, which will be held in Melbourne, Australia, will bring back the familiar scenes of open-wheel race cars  with deafening noise going around in circles, as the teams in their quest for glory try their best to score the maximum points.

However, with all the regulation changes being made for the 2014 season, that’s where the familiarity ends. The 2014 season will see a revolution in Formula 1 with radical changes made to the exterior design, engines, powertrain and aerodynamics features.

With a more stringent set of rules focusing to increase fuel efficiency and at the same time reducing dependence on aerodynamics, 2014 will see a lot of innovation driven by the new, tighter regulations in one of the most technologically advanced racing series in the world.

Powertrain

We use the term powertrain instead of engine because 2014 will see the new ERS playing a major role in the power delivery. The biggest change of 2014 will probably the dropping of the naturally-aspirated 2.4 liter V-8 engines in favor of turbocharged 1.6-liter V-6 engines. While the V8s revved up to a mind-boggling 18,000 rpm and produced around 770 horsepower, the new V-6 engines are expected to rev up to “just” 15,000 rpm with power delivery expected to be in the region of 600 to 620 horsepower.

This is where the new ERS (Energy Recovery System) comes into play. The new system does not carry the term "KERS," as the power regeneration is not just from kinetic energy. The new ERS setup is expected to produce around 160 more horsepower, bringing the total power to the same range as the previous year’s car.

The new ERS system now produces 120 kW, twice the power from last year’s system for a longer duration — up from just over six seconds per lap from the previous year to approximately thirty-three seconds per lap. What this means is when the ERS is on, the car will see a huge surge in torque and acceleration, resulting in better overtaking maneuvers and hopefully some exciting battles in the long straights. Additionally the cars will feature eight-speed gearboxes compared to the seven in the cars from the 2013 season.

Design & Aerodynamics

The most notable change in the exterior design will be in the nose height that, due to safety reasons, will be dropped from a maximum height of 550 mm (21.6 inches) from 2013 to just 185 mm (7.3 inches); a drop of 365 mm (13.4 inches). Other major changes include a narrower front wing decreased from 1,800 mm (70.9 inches) to 1,650 mm (65 inches) for this season.

In the rear, the twin-tailpipe exhaust from 2013 will be dropped in favor of single pipe exhaust, which must be angled upwards to decrease the aerodynamic advantage that can be achieved by using exhaust blown diffusers,

All these design changes mean the cars will have decreased down-force and the powertrain and driver skill will now be the biggest factors in deciding who holds the next championship title.