The Incredible Evolution of F1 Steering Wheels

[@chilledpenguins8381]

Nigel Mansell warping his wheel because of the forces through Eau Rouge is insane. Really puts into perspective how hard the cars of that era were to drive.

[@NicotineRosberg]

Or how strong that mustache of a man is

[@RukaGoldheart]

​@@NicotineRosberg definitely the mustache's fault

[@jacobmanitowabie-cooke6141]

Thats his dad for you

[@S-Ark7]

"Not my dad" got me so good! Great video!

[@N1lav]

Nigel Mansel - Fighting the car into submission Aurton Senna - Feeling the car and making it dance Choice of steering wheel pretty much sums up their driving style

[@Hal9023]

Not true, back then everyone fought the car, it’s just how they drove.

[@mikaelbihl-matias9462]

@@Hal9023 more or less Alain Prost wasn't fighting the car if you watch onboards of him driving

[@timjohnun4297]

@@Hal9023 I think the cars of the early to mid 90's were actually among the easiest to drive. Mansell said himself a trained monkey could drive the car. (I know that is a bit of an exaggeration). A lot of driver aids were removed after Senna's crash in 1994

[@schkann1384]

3:37 ah scotty 😭🗿 even though your content is so technical about F1 you never fail to make me laugh in tears

[@KomradZX1989]

I laughed out loud when you were talking about bespoke wheels and said, “Nigel Mansell (NOT MY DAD)…” 😂 I know I assumed you were related until I looked it up a few years ago 🤣🤪. Love all your channels! Can’t wait to see how your Subaru does with 304hp soon!

[@eTiMaGo]

I always had a doubt too, now it's gone :D

[@AmirPomen]

Im like: wait what? Not your dad realyyyyyyyyy? 🤣🤭😹

[@MirrorMountain]

This hahah

[@Nellsism]

I’m always stunned by how an F1 driver can have the presence of mind to fiddle with their 87 switches while essentially riding around in a bucking bronco going 200+ mph

[@kriaz9916]

I struggle in f1 games to press the right button sometimes, let alone double the buttons in a real race car

[@gluca069just___it9]

It was Forghieri who invented and introduced for the first time paddles to replace the stick to change gear in 1979; Villeneuve did not like them and the idea was parked in Ferrari archives. Barnard just re-proposed them in 1989; all this for the sake of correctness.

[@myronianny]

exactly

[@marcodeangelis5905]

Right

[@randomdude8877]

Wow, i wonder if F1 had changed if they went 10 years earlier with the design.

[@nlpnt]

@@randomdude8877 Not just F1, imagine trying to transfer the technology to road cars on a pre-electronic transmission like a GM THM350 or Ford C-6. You'd have to pull the paddle hard enough for it to act through a Bowden cable onto the valve body.

[@fredyicey]

I have been looking forward to a video like this, since i‘ve been always amazed by the technologies fitted into the steering wheels from the 90s to now on. Also, sole wheels are just absolutely beautiful for example Michael Schumachers wheel from 2000-2006, the McLaren wheels from the late 90s to the mid 2000s and also i think the Williams wheel today looks fantastic!

[@toddb930]

I love these historical evolution videos. Perhaps covering the history and evolution of telemetry would be interesting. Another electronic game changer.

[@Miwna]

Not just telemetry but all car-to-pit communication. For example some of the first radios, or rather intercoms, which were actually not wireless. The driver's helmet was connected to the car and the engineer could connect his headphones to the car to talk to the driver.

[@Sandfeld]

You steered this video quite well, there's no turning back on that

[@frzzzdtm]

cool pun

[@CommentFrom]

wheely good pun I cant believe you managed to steer it in that direction

[@Hal9023]

@@CommentFrom and you just had to drive it into the wall!

[@MrSaemichlaus]

@@Hal9023 That comment took a turn for the worst.

[@Ob1tuber]

😑😑😑😑

[@bother9732]

I absolutely LOVE your evolution series keep it up!

[@df006]

I absolutely love these evolution videos

[@number2pensyl557]

I’m just glad the sponsor wasn’t Established Titles! LMAO

[@vaughan9238]

its a massive scam

[@PannenTheKoek]

I see them everywhere all of a sudden, and many people in the comments calling it a scam. How come content creators don't do more research into their sponsors..

[@MC---]

@@PannenTheKoek Sometimes you gotta keep the lights on and pay your employees. KZbin is a non-stop grind. I wouldn't want to rely on KZbin as the foundation of a business model.

[@aaronmachado13]

Great video and something Id recommend is doing a video on sprint cars and their unique design that lets them go full throttle through a corner

[@cashmasters99]

3:38 "...not my dad..." SUUUUURE

[@Jason-gt2kx]

You are becoming my favorite F1 and racing channel. Thank you for such in depth analysis on interesting topics!

[@nemoclavon566]

“with more computer power than your laptop” Desktops: Not some of us

[@SideshowBen206]

"..., not my dad." 🤣

[@noizy514]

'Not my dad' 😂

[@supraender]

Love the sim videos for added visual representation. Keep using that when you don't have stock footage or authorized reproduction 👍

[@ianmcwilliams6453]

I wanted to pause the video at the parts where you show all the instructions around the modern wheels - fascinating but I wasn't able to freeze frame it in the right place!

[@Alex.The.Lionnnnn]

"not my dad" lmao

[@willgaj_8353]

0:07 "massive wooden steering wheels to sculpted carbon fiber units with more computing power than your laptop." And I took that personally.

[@BOABModels]

The handle on the first cars are called 'tillers' and they are still used on many boats.

[@fltribes]

Very informative especially the NOT MY DAD part, 🤣 but now I like you for who are. 🤗

[@VincentFischer]

F1 steering wheel more power than a Laptop? I highly doubt that. There is merely a microcontroller inside

[@smallbutdeadly931]

I think I'll always prefer a deep-dish style wheel due to the amount of control it gives over the car.

[@CreakingJordans]

With Latifi gone whom do you guys think will decide next year's championship? (Post;Do not include Latifis ghost)

[@CommentFrom]

I think mazepin is gonna make a suprise comeback

[@TheZanzaroni]

Lance Strulovich takes the vote for me.

[@06dpa]

The ghost of Canada

[@raydriver7300]

I enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing 🌞

[@PharasaLahat]

imagine activating the DRS but accidentally pressed the DRINK button instead 😂

[@horissores]

Lewis Hamilton already started redesigning the steering wheel while at McLaren, he only refined the concept further at Mercedes. You can already see in his 2012 onboards he already had his bottomless design: “What a lot of people don’t actually know is that I re-designed the steering wheel when I was at McLaren,” “And when I came to Mercedes, I did the same thing, and the other teams have all copied the wheel." “Now, you’ll see there's a top and the handle comes down and it doesn't join at the bottom" - Lewis Hamilton

[@asdf2593]

love the use of game footage to illustrate the changes

[@FarrYaweh]

It's incredible. A few years ago we saw some drivers throwing the wheel out of the cockpit in frustration - fully aware how much the bloody thing cost to make. Always left a bad taste in my mouth seeing drivers disrespect the work and engineering behind the wheel like that.

[@HxTurtle]

as a driver, I think I'd prefer the "lunch menu." 😅

[@HxTurtle]

lunch, launch .. just in case anyone's wondering 😅

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

@@HxTurtle "I'll have an option 13 please"

[@HxTurtle]

@@aaronaaronsen3360 😂

[@carmatic]

so far, the buttons on the steering wheels have been on-off switches it would be interesting to have gamepad-style sprung 'triggers' with proportional control at the back of the wheels, maybe for metering out the amount of electricity being used by the hybrid system , or for changing some parameter of the vehicle as part of the driving manouevres as opposed to dialled to a fixed setting as instructed over the radio

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

It would be quite tricky with the vibrations and all that's going on in the car. As for those "triggers", I think it'd already the case with the paddle clutches.

[@carmatic]

@@aaronaaronsen3360 you mean paddle shifters? paddle clutches are what engages the drivetrain to the engine... paddle shifters are still on-off switches, you either shift gears or you dont

[@carmatic]

​@@aaronaaronsen3360 in regards to vibrations, this is where the concept of sprung mass comes in, the triggers just have to be light and their springs have to be stiff, now you also have to account for the mass of the driver's finger pushing on the trigger now if the problem is the driver reflexively tightening their finger in response to driving conditions, that's a matter of ergonomics i.e. what is the best thing for the car to do in a situation where the driver would want to squeeze harder on the steering wheel

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

@@carmatic I understand that modern F1 racing wheels have paddle shifter *and* paddle clutches, in order to get the car off the starting line. And those are analog, since you can't use on-off switches to control those. Still, I saw some guys building off-road vehicles with steering wheel analog controls, so I guess it could be possible. It's faaaaar from F1 tech of course, their channel is called GrindHard Plumbing Co

[@HxTurtle]

in the mid nineties, a "drink"-button was actually one of the first to be introduced .. alongside the radio button. I didn't really see that in your video.

[@EL1AS_]

Mid 80's*

[@douglaspealing5608]

No kimi you will not have the drink

[@HxTurtle]

@@EL1AS_ oh, really? didn't know about that. then this even must've been like the very first button ever. technically, you don't really need this button; you could just suck really hard as well. it's more convenient, though. (when you make use of such a button, then it needs to work; no sucking out the drink possible, anymore.) Mercedes was pretty keen about the fact that they actually used a windscreen sprayer motor from their production cars within their formula one cars .. the only part shared with the production line, though 😅

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

@@HxTurtle depend on where the drink tank is placed, if it's far you couldn't suck it easily. Furthermore I think it could mess with the breathing when you drive, which is already complicated (I heard some amateur pilots talking about how they forgot to breathe during cornering as the concentration and forces where so intense)

[@HxTurtle]

@@aaronaaronsen3360 yes, I definitely have no clue as to how it works without any (electromechanical) aid. I was just going off from the assumption that drivers might've already drank during the race before the advent of this button. they always drove in great heat (just think about Phoenix, for instance, where the air is also very dry as well). yes, it's extremely strenuous especially inside an F1 car. like 4.5g sidewards acceleration during cornering and another g on top of that under braking is something the untrained person isn't easily able to withstand. g-forces are highest in Formula One; no other series can match with that. in NASCAR, they pull something like .9g in the corners. even street legal cars can top that.

[@ripcordjack]

Coming back to this now that williams finally adapted and now also has tje screen on the wheel

[@gordonwallin2368]

From Spads, to Spitfires, to Mig15s to F4s to F18s to F35s. Or Brough Superiors, o Harley Davidsons to MV Agustas, to Vincent Black Shadows, to Triuphs Bonnivilles, to Norton Players to Honda750s, to KawasakiZ1s to Suzuki Hayabusaa, to Ducati Penagalis. Whew. Cheers from the Pacific West Coast of Canada.

[@Z1G.2fx]

The nigel mansel meme 😂😂 3:38

[@BOABModels]

Enzo Ferrari's horse quote doesn't make sense as F1 cars were always rear wheel drive. One of a few times he was stubbornly conservative when faced with progress in Motorsport.

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

There's also the famous "aerodynamics are for people who can't build engines". But yeah, that comment aged like milk.

[@davinajanes6275]

I really thought you were Nigel's boy. I've had conversations with my husband about why you look nothing like him. I'd always thought that if I got stuck in a lift with Nige and his wife, it would be more uncomfortable than I would like. I'd had her down as a "wrong un". "Dirty little Hussey" I thought. Quite funny really. I can't be alone in thinking you were related. Great channel. A real addition to the viewing material. Thanks.

[@edfleming9600]

It wasn't a joystick, it was a tiller, from boats. Backwards, but a tiller.

[@61percentodicarica]

The Williams wheel looks gorgeous

[@DanielJamesGaff]

5:02 even ferrari back then we’re having issues 💀💀💀

[@crusherbmx]

Finally addresses the elephant in the room....."Nigel Mansell, Not my Dad."

[@smarterboy47]

I cant believe how small those older f1 cars look going through Eau Rouge, the modern ones look 4x the size! I really wish we could take back to the old era of f1, where there was a lot more driver involved than car. There is no power steering and confusing engine modes, DRS for overtaking. Just a gear shifter, pedals and a steering wheel. F1 was a lot more driver back then.

[@robertn2951]

Whenever they tell you that "back in the days, it was difficult", remember that they had truck steering wheels and no buttons on them. Imagine a fat F1 driver of "back in the days" trying to figure out the steering wheel with 15 buttons.

[@Fred_the_1996]

And the g forces

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

I think that may be why at the time the experience was more important than the physical fitness and you had older drivers and champions.

[@fourfour7168]

"not my dad" lol

[@pjottrpjottr3468]

I got a car with a $ 30.000 steering wheel, but the rest of the car came along with it. LOL

[@zikaypo6270]

we should now call steering wheels "steering rectangles"

[@DaveMcIroy]

3:37 - yeah, right.

[@forbiddenera]

The steering wheel does NOT have more power than any average laptop. It's just a microcontroller

[@fusebox173]

I always thought you were Nigel’s son.. I am not disappointed. ;-)

[@sierramunroe6869]

The 2022 sterring wheel of the thumnail looks like a gamer controller that will realese in 2050

[@bumpergoed]

Weird, pleasant, no ads on the video

[@SH_Hof]

I highly doubt modern F1 steering wheels having more computing power than my laptop.

[@TheGreatDiabeto]

Nigel Mansell, (NOT MY DAD)

[@HxTurtle]

3:39 would this read, "my dad" it'd be actually more convincing 😅

[@harrydapilot]

Hounest The video that got me into f1

[@danielsgrunge]

The old steering wheels were so good looking

[@pigfrompiggies19]

3:39 “Not my dad.” darm

[@karlosh9286]

I just wonder what a GP driver of the 1960s to 70s would make of the 2020s steering wheel ...

[@constantinosschinas4503]

Joystic is the wheel of the past. Joystic is the wheel the future.

[@M1nht0theMan]

3:37 🤣

[@prodbybabygod7411]

Ive been lookin forward to this video since last time you posted it!!!

[@tturi2]

I would love to put more controls on my steering wheel,

[@markcotter4213]

How about very few buttons and voice commands?

[@despizedicon]

When is the display gonna be in the helmet?

[@salamona03]

Gentlemen, a short view back to the past. Thirty years ago, Niki Lauda told us ‘take a monkey, place him into the cockpit and he is able to drive the car.’ Thirty years later, Sebastian told us ‘I had to start my car like a computer, it’s very complicated.’ And Nico Rosberg said that during the race - I don’t remember what race - he pressed the wrong button on the wheel. Question for you both: is Formula One driving today too complicated with twenty and more buttons on the wheel, are you too much under effort, under pressure? What are your wishes for the future concerning the technical programme during the race? Less buttons, more? Or less and more communication with your engineers?

[@HxTurtle]

4:46 wrong. the clutch pedal just stayed in place. it took them a little while to finally also move it to the steering wheel (it depended on driver's preference with Barrichello being indigenous for refraining from it for as long as possible). formula one never used automatic gear boxes which don't require a clutch, but semi-automatic ones. however, if you now tell me that the '93 Williams had none, I'd even believe that. but that thing was a computer on steroids that only accepted a driver due to regulation mandatories, basically. Prost even had assisted braking during at least some races.

[@EL1AS_]

Well by "removing clutch" he probably meant not using it for every shift like they used to, just using it for starts from standstill. They kinda "removed" it.

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

The first car to have two pedals IIRC was the 1994 McLaren Williams had 3 pedals till I believe 1995 with the clutch only used for starts and pit stops

[@HxTurtle]

@@EL1AS_ yeah, could be. ideally, he would've said, they removed the gear stick from inside the cockpit.

[@HxTurtle]

@@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1 for that crazy ’93 season, I meant that it's theoretically thinkable, that they, albeit briefly, got rid of manual clutch operation altogether. ya know, what I mean. that indeed a computer would take over control. no strict regulations on assisted driving and progress in lightweight computational power meant that teams, and especially so Williams, stuffed in more and more driver aids. they all got banned for '94 to which Senna himself predicted, that change, when not compensated with other regulation changes as well, will lead to decreased safety.

[@RANDOMZBOSSMAN1]

@@HxTurtle ohhh you’re talking about the CVT when they basically said f gears lol Williams in the early 90s we’re pushing the boundaries of technology I heard whilst the car would have been at least 1 second faster with CVT the engine couldn’t take being at 14k RPM all race and would have probably blown up mid race And Senna quote before the 94 season was serious harrowing. That year Him, Roland died Wendlinger ended up in a coma, Lamy could have been killed at Silverstone in a testing crash, Letho broke his back Alesi injured his neck, Montermini broke his ankle in a crash Verstappen almost got burned alive It was such a dangerous year that year

[@filipposstavro1233]

"Not my dad" lmaoo

[@bobmaster6244]

what was the game he used for demos called?

[@joshuarodriguez7653]

I always thought Nigel Mansell was your dad

[@bavelbenjamin]

Nigel Mansell is not your dad? Uncle?

[@ATEC101]

There is a direct correlation between the size and complexity of F1 steering wheels and the size and density of the drivers 'minerals'. As diameter decreased and buttons/dials/switches increased, there was a commensurate decrease in 'minerals'. Look at the suits of the past compared to modern suits, there is no room. This also coincides with the introduction of lap belts and later full harnesses, the density of the 'minerals' went from near neutron stars to barely marshmallows. BWHAHAHAHAA

[@rolandmclovin1499]

But can the current F1 steering wheel run Crysis?

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

I don't know but it will definitely run Doom

[@umi3017]

Why all F1 sim/mods out here not work like a Flight Sim add-on that all buttons on the steering wheels are simulated?

[@mx2004mx]

how can a steering wheel with buttons have more computational power than a computer?

[@harry4454]

God I love Driver61

[@chrisvanbuggenum871]

"NOT MY DAD" lol

[@BenMarvin]

0:13 Dang, they got a RTX 4080 in there?

[@oren2000]

how are you verified with 300 subscribers

[@captainalieth]

Gentlemen, a short view back to the past...

[@ronniemaeker9102]

Next...helmets with displays and retina activated controls...

[@elwinzkji]

Wowzer

[@chicobicalho5621]

I always thought F1 teams could make lots of extra cash selling "older" sreering wheels to rich people. For insistence, a Schumacher, Vettel, or Hamilton steering unit could potentially sell for a whole lot of cash. BTW, what do teams do with obsolete wheels from years past?

[@joshuapowers4623]

I maintain a lot of this stuff need to be stripped away, and combined with the insane aero, is most of the reason why there's so little passing. When you can set the cars for each individual corner, there's no room for the driver to "get more" without being given a better car.

[@ericjrparent]

I get that f1 is all about extracting the most possible but we're reaching a point where the drivers have too little to do with the race. So much data during the races being analyzed, telling drivers when to lift and coast for their strategy... I'd prefer simpler cars and more all out driving like we see in indycar

[@eugenev6269]

The horse pushes the harness that pulls the cart.. The horses action is pushing so no wonder he came around..

[@jockeyjack3367]

Does anyone know why Williams has not changed over to the new wheels?

[@MrEazyE357]

He answered that in the video. They feel in adds unnecessary rotational weight to the wheel.

[@jpaior]

I feel like I’ve seen this video before… lol. Is this the edit without the established titles sponsor spot? LOL.

[@the_lost_navigator7266]

Aren't all the steering wheel and display electronics made by McLaren now? And number of functions limited? I also read somewhere that they were looking to introduce a standard steering wheel for all teams, bit think the idea may have been dropped?

[@dianamaioru497]

TIL: Sir Lewis Hamilton was the trendsetter in modern steering wheel design! 10:27

[@Luca-pg5mj]

What is the diameter of modern f1 steering wheels?

[@KarlJorgensen1968]

Why don't they have "heads-up" displays inside the helmets? Having the right information displayed there seems sensible - so the on-car (or on-wheel) displays can display _other_ (less-often-used) information?

[@aaronaaronsen3360]

I think it has to do with the weight of the helmet. A small HUD wouldn't add much mass, but when you take into account the high G-Forces their head are submitted to, it quickly adds up. But I don't think it'd be that unreal in the future to see this technology appear.

[@dejanvanderputten3017]

What is the reason williams still have the screen in the car?

[@nicholassansone670]

Did you guys do this video already?

[@queenslander954]

Then there’s a whole to do with development of indicator stalk’s

[@michimibsi829]

Not my father 🤣🤣🤣

[@charliewang9171]

First keep up the good work scott

[@chellom292]

Gentlemen, a short view back to the past. Thirty years ago, Niki Lauda told us ‘take a monkey, place him into the cockpit and he is able to drive the car.’ Thirty years later, Sebastian told us ‘I had to start my car like a computer, it’s very complicated.’ And Nico Rosberg said that during the race - I don’t remember what race - he pressed the wrong button on the wheel. Question for you both: is Formula One driving today too complicated with twenty and more buttons on the wheel, are you too much under effort, under pressure? What are your wishes for the future concerning the technical programme during the race? Less buttons, more? Or less and more communication with your engineers?

[@piccoloatburgerking]

I'm sorry can you repeat the question?

[@crusherbmx]

How long did it take you to memorise this?

[@Vr4nj3s]

Literally the first thing that came to my mind when i saw the title of this video, i wanted to find this comment, and luckly for me its the first one hahahaha

[@Bearcat299]

Can I ask you, who's this question is to? Who do you want to answer it? He said it, it's for Nico and myself, you didn't listen, can you repart the question?

[@einfachferdinand5578]

Can I ask you who that question is to? Wh- Who do you you want to answer it??? Seb: No he said it is for Nico and myself so... You didn't listen! Can you repeat the question😂

[@damm3409]

First love your videos❤️❤️