Not just hot air
Benetton opens state-of-art wind tunnel
Posted: Tuesday December 01, 1998 01:24 PM
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Giancarlo Fisichella will drive for Team Benetton again in 1999 Mark Thompson/Allsport |
ENSTONE, England (AP) -- Benetton, with only one Formula One victory in the last three seasons, opened a 12 million-pound (US$20 million) wind tunnel Tuesday.
The state-of-the-art facility will produce wind speeds of 150 mph (240 kph), and under pressure simulate wind speeds of 300 mph (480 kph). It will be used to test the car's aerodynamic characteristics under race conditions.
"We are extremely proud that the technology involved in the wind tunnel is the most advanced in the Formula One world," said Rocco Benetton, chief executive of Benetton.
"This is probably the biggest single technological investment in the Formula One industry and certainly the largest ever investment made by Benetton Group in motor racing.
"We now have a unique tool that is second to none," he added.
Benetton's only win in the last three seasons was Gerhard Berger's victory at Hockenheim in Germany in 1997.
Italy's Giancarlo Fisichella and Austria's Alexander Wurz drove for Benetton this season and will be back in 1999.
The new building is located on 1,250 square meters next to the Italian team factory in Enstone, about 15 miles (25 miles) north of Oxford.
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