What's Inside a £250,000 F1 Gearbox?

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I got to see something really cool. I got to open up a modern F1 gearbox and see how it works -- and these things cost upwards of £250,000 each, with the F1 teams spending about £7 million a year on them.
So, of course, I wanted to see and touch the materials and understand exactly how a Formula One car changes gears - from when the driver pulls the paddle through to the gearbox selecting the next gear.
And how they work is actually pretty simple, and, incredibly clever all at the same time.
So, a few weeks ago, I was invited to TDF - a company that restores old F1 cars for private owners - and gives old F1 cars a new lease of life.
Thanks to TDF, you can find out more:
Website - tdf.co.uk
Facebook - / powerbytdf1
Instagram - / powerbytdf
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#Formula1 #Gearbox #Gears

[@kenm5770]

Even though I no longer turn a wrench due to physical issues, I still love learning about stuff like this. Truly fascinating.

[@Schmayrak]

hope you get well soon mate :)

[@bluej511]

Same here my friend, I have 20+ years experience but still work on my own car here and there.

[@Josh-oe4ex]

Same here. Miss building cars (back injuries) but this guy is so interesting to watch. Makes me long for those days again

[@Popeye_Ratheesh]

Get well soon❤

[@queden1841]

I never do bc im just too incapable and enjoy learning about it aswell. I think working on cars and learning about the mechanics of them are two separate things.

[@drstrangelove4998]

I’m always amazed at the narrowness of the gears, considering the power they have to transmit ❤

[@SocietyUnplugged]

I would disagree if those gears were designed for the V10/V8 era because low torque engines. The hybrid engines have 3 times more torque but it seems that the gears aren't any wider which amazes me as well.

[@bertram-raven]

This is why they are straight cut. Road car gear are not straight cut to drastically reduce noise but as a result need to be thicker and heavier to prevent skipping and the inherent sideways torque of angle cut gears. Even in multi-thousand Nm industrial engines the straight cut gears are thin - this predates anything similar in F1. Indeed, 1920s busses had them, but they were not seamless and in a "crash" configuration with no synchro drive dogs.

[@ramosel]

@@SocietyUnplugged But, the gear width is still based on the torque the gear transmits... for strength and durability. 1st gear must transmit much more torque and is wider than say 5th gear which sees less torque (due to gear ratios). I believe beryllium is still banned (health issues) but there are some OMG alloys out there that have taken gear strength to new heights... as well as costs... material and machining. Grumman holds the patents on some very exotic alloys. My contact won't say who is using which ones, only that they are being used. This is where the FIA's stupidity on "cost cutting" becomes painfully obvious. Ideally, in racing, you want just enough strength to last the race and 50 more feet. But the FIA saw that as wasteful and threw in the multi-race engine and gearbox rules. So now the gearboxes (and motors) have to last longer... but to get there they had to go to more expensive materials and machining costs. So no money was saved but the FIA can put on their addlepated "Green" smile.

[@bobolulu7615]

The shaft spacing, when wider apart, means the chord line of power introduced to the gear teeth, is flatter and the force is therefore along a thicker part of the gear tooth. Also there are several teeth always in engagement, lowering the amount of torque loading on each gear tooth.

[@chiefdenis]

Materials man

[@timjohnun4297]

Great video and I'd often wondered how the seamless shift worked. It's cool to see that the gearboxes are still effectively an old school manual box, with a lot of newer technology incorporated into them.

[@chiefdenis]

Simplicity is king, and manual will always be the king of simplicity

[@DefinitelyNotJ749]

This video doesn't show how the latest gen seamless shift actually works - it only shows a dual selector drum gearbox which aren't used anymore. The newest version of seamless hasn't been publicly shown, but there are patents showing how it was designed. It completely removes the selector forks in favour of a hollow drive shaft with a mechanism that essentially controls the gear selection through the gear hub itself rather than using shaft mounted dog rings as previous gearboxes do. It's apparently even faster than dual selector drums, with the downside that they need rebuilding more often. If you want to know how the mechanism likely works (again, there's no public info for current gen seamless), there's a few videos on here that demonstrates the basic operating principle.

[@blermule8692]

As an industrial mechanic, I have been working for almost forty years in a company that manufactures gears and gear teeth. It is incredible what has happened in development since then! Gears used to be heavy and clunky. Today they are much lighter and have better torque. The manufacture of gears is a brilliant world in itself. Just by using much better quality controls and technology, you can improve the weight, service life and efficiency immensely! I love this job!

[@DarkonXBL]

I have no freaking clue after watching all of that, but thanks so much for taking your time to explain it. At least I understand a little more and I can appreciate more the design/engineering these guys make. 💙

[@brycedonfrancisco2926]

I do work for the company that makes the microhydraulics for these. Super cool to see.

[@RogerKeulen]

Do you know how the timing of the gearbox works ?

[@brycedonfrancisco2926]

@@RogerKeulen I do security, not engineering

[@threadtapwhisperer5136]

Im far too busy lubing my shafts, prior to sliding said shaft inside the dripping wet (with oil :) ) bearings. 😂😂😂😂😂 If inflation goes any higher, it's gonna stress the hell out my member, as hes gonna need to start making LonelyFans content... Hahaha!

[@samshim3149]

They could buy the house I'm renting with that transmission...

[@bertram-raven]

My current monthly rent is more than my parents paid for their first house. I am sure rents will soon catch up with gearbox prices.

[@rhyswilliams4893]

​@@bertram-raven so depressing that that's actually plausible.

[@RogerKeulen]

Or fill up your gas tank 1000 times. Ohh, wait... No, sorry. 999 times.... 998.... 997.... 996....

[@vv247]

My first career many years ago was as a heavy equipment mechanic....I used to remove these massive transmissions from time to time for repair. Its very surprising to me to see how simple and light the F1 transmissions are and that they can withstand the shifting at such high revs and not blow apart. I wonder, how long do they actually last ?

[@chiefdenis]

They can last 6 races (p3 to quali, to race) or more, ~400km per weekend = ~2400 high stress kms.

[@vv247]

@@chiefdenis very cool ... 6 races , thats pretty good !

[@ScottDukesRealEstate]

You may remember they pointed out an oil pump early in the program which helps cool the transmission and insure better oil distribution/volume compared to similar transmissions that just have the gears sitting in the oil to distribute it. Most likely helping longevity of the trans. Something I didn't realize was the two shift drums. I thought they had two separate clutches and gear systems that were independent of each other. One for odd and one for even gears. This way they could shift independently. Shifting delay between the two could then be determined electronically and easily tuned. With the approach used in the video requires just another drum like a self playing piano. Less complicated and less weight. Very cool.

[@calvinthurston1441]

As a mechanic and F1 fan i love this type of content! Thanks!

[@radamus210]

Considering the amount of power transmitted, I'm most impressed by those drive dogs which take as much force as anything in there and are the smallest part. Impressive stack of friction discs in the clutch of such small diameter. East to see how just a brush of a barrier in practice makes the mechanics see stars knowing how big a job it is if that housing is cracked.

[@andydelarue9344]

Yep love the tech, no one else does it so clean and understandable

[@martykath4427]

Tractors have had "stressed members" for years. With straight cut gears and I'm told the crown wheel and pinion are straight cut too, that thing would need a loud exhaust noise to drown out the transmission noise.

[@michaelwilliams8297]

That was a great vid. I didn't expect the pitch of the gears to be that coarse in F1. Also you can definitely tell how 3d printing is revolutionizing machines, casting that housing, or machining it from a billet would be incredibly difficult by comparison.

[@paulkurilecz4209]

To those who are asking about the gears, here are a few items. First and foremost, gears transmit torque, power is merely the rotational speed times the torque. Why torque? Because a force is transmitted from gear tooth to a mating gear tooth. The force times the pitch circle radius of the gear is the torque. Now why are the gears so narrow? The force that can transmitted depends on the fit between the mating gear teeth. In gear design theory, the objective is to have a rolling contact along a line of contact between the two mating gear teeth. This line of contact depends on the finish tolerances between the gear teeth. Obviously a 100%-line contact is preferred. This takes a high degree of precision and close tolerances. The closer the 100%-line contact is reached the more torque can be transmitted without overstressing the surface of the gear teeth. The gear teeth are also heat treated along with a surface hardening in order to allow higher loading stresses. Also, fatigue life is part of the design of the gear. I am sure that these gears are very life limited in that they may only be safely used for one particular race including the trials and qualifying. This will also reduce the necessary width of the gear. One last item is whether or not, the gears are designed as hunting or non-hunting gear sets. A hunting gear set has different teeth meshing with different teeth on each revolution of the gear set. A non-hunting gear set has the same teeth always meshing with each other. In high torque applications, non-hunting is preferred in order to ensure the best fit. Anyway, that is Gear Theory 101. HTH

[@ianmangham4570]

Gears ⚙️ aka spinning levers 😮

[@paulkurilecz4209]

@@ianmangham4570 exactly!

[@IJ-E36]

By all means please do more of this type of content Scott! Really enjoyed it.

[@supermiaoumix]

Thanks for those informations ! :D I'll take that as direct knowledge for my formation next year to become a race car mecanic (at le Mans FFSA academy) 😁 (man i'm so happy to be selected as a student there and i think channels like this are a part of it)

[@XSspeeds]

I love the in depth technical content. Thank you for sharing.

[@wolflegion_]

This is by far my favourite recent video! Great technical insight :)

[@endurofan9854]

this gearbox is just perfectly similar as to how underbone motorcycle gearbox works, the difference is, the hub, in which on motorbikes it was one with the gear, and the selector barrels being single shifting drum on bikes, i tought F1's gearbox was extremely. unique in mechanisms too, glad to know, simple yet effective designs prevail 👌

[@RBurwell]

I've been to Xtrac many times and its amazing to see how polished everything is. Beautiful.

[@1Three8Fiver]

Clearly got a very classy audience as I can't believe and disappointed that after a quick flip down the comments nobody has made a "stressed member" joke.

[@MrMuz99]

I didn't go there until I read your comment, get your head out the gutter! 😂

[@MrHiBeta]

“Stressed member with its load going through it”

[@njg26.gustav12]

Because it takes a " stressed member" to be into this kinda stuff...

[@1Three8Fiver]

@@MrHiBeta Legend! :D

[@bobdog4379]

Fnaar Fnaaar.

[@Rautaneito69]

It would be a dream to own and work in that kind of workshop. Mad respect to them!

[@wernerschulte6245]

Thank you for the video and thank you for speaking a clear and understandable english and thank you for not playing "music" in the background. As a german guy I´m grateful for that. The gear box looks relatively simple and reminds me on the gear boxes of my motor bikes. However, sitting on my motorbike I try to change the gears as soft as possible. Accelerating, than reducing power . . . an in just the moment, the gear forces relax, changing the gear. After some training it works perfectly without "clutch". When I look at the formular 1 gearbox I can imagine that besides the clever engineering of the system also much shock load will happen when the gears change within some milliseconds. So not only the design but the selection of high tech materials will be needed - I think.

[@FindSimpleGuides]

Never knew F1 gearboxes were this full of tech and precision. This video was incredibly informative and well put together. The seamless shift technology seems like a game-changer in the sport.

[@Drie_Kleuren]

I have 0 mechanic knowledge but these types of videos are very interesting. I love f1 and its very cool to see the inside of the cars :)

[@thelowedown6875]

I almost didn't watch this but I LOVED it! Thanks man, only the most intelligent & knowledgeable can learn and teach simultaneously. Big ups

[@Ensorcle]

Happy to let you know that I like this content and would like you to make more. The engineering in F1 is endlessly fascinating.

[@EnSerio71]

Motorcycle was the first thing that came to mind.

[@tandersen25]

I'm so glad you mentioned indeterminate design, his videos where he makes an aerodynamic beast of a remote controlled car are brilliant

[@copperaudio9664]

Really interesting - thanks! Old school names -"shift drum" and "shift fork" The Dog engaging is that "clunk" you hear when shifting a motorcycle into 1st from neutral.

[@redroomfotog9253]

Driver 61, yours is one of a select few F1 related channels that is not a mess of hyperbolic foolishness. It is factual, not subjective...and even more important...INTERESTING. Thank you for a job well done. Live long and prosper.

[@TheRollorokka]

Crazy that it's so delicate yet able to endure and transmit all the power.

[@okcstormchaser]

What an amazing experience, congrats to you for knowing your stuff, and getting to touch it, not including what's not in the video that we saw, naturally. But very entertaining and interesting at the same time, I can see why your sponsor sponsors such things. Cheers!

[@chumba421]

Love teardowns and explanations of cool racing tech, more of this please ❤

[@karigreyd2808]

Pretty much looks like a motorcycle gearbox very cool. Long live the dog box 📦 ❤

[@simplymau142]

That is actually crazy, engineers deserve way much more credit! Hopefully one day i will become one myself!

[@AdaptivePhenix]

Yup, the unsung heroes of F1

[@alimanski7941]

It's amazing that the dogs can transmit all that power, being as small as they are. Unless I got it wrong - they are a very high stress part in the system.

[@jamiecarrer9212]

What a video you put out thank you very much!!! Great job explaining the gearbox collaborating with TDF 👏🏼

[@quantaccount4337]

An Xtrac gearbox - legendary transmission company. Great video!

[@conanobrien1]

What happened to your "driving upside down" challenge?

[@captiannemo1587]

Costs

[@mediarblx_npc]

Not got enough moneys

[@2Fast4Mellow]

He fell down and didn't wanted to be featured in a FailArmy video ;-)

[@Waitin4_a_Mate]

They needed a car with downforce that's 2x car weight + the power to keep it going that fast to maintain downforce, as well as a round enough tunnel, & the car being somewhat disposable, so a prototype doesn't really work.

[@frogandspanner]

Anybody who has stripped and rebuilt an old motorcycle gearbox (e.g. the AMC/Norton box from my 1966 Norton 650SS) would recognise much of that box, selector cam (although on the AMC it's a slotted plate) with multiplate clutch, but without dog rings (they're directly on the gears), reverse, and the dual selector cam.

[@tcmtech7515]

Or a riding lawnmower transmission.

[@martykath4427]

Any Japanese bike does it better.

[@tedecker3792]

@@frogandspanner I thought I knew moto gear boxes well until I rebuilt a Hodaka transmission. Whole different way of thinking.

[@RogerKeulen]

And in the first lap out of the pit's you need to program these two rotating bars. That's why Max had to go to all the gears in Hungary on a wet track and made a mistake going to the grid. Thus making everything going in sync. So, it's pretty precise how they to that. Precise enough to change overnight or temprature cycle.

[@tobywonkinoby8916]

Super cool! Thank you for giving us such a detailed look at the inner workings of an F1 transmission!

[@normala3227]

You should also explain how the clutch packs work. Starting off the clutch pack governing gears 1,3,5,7, which rotates the first barrel, is engaged. When shifting from 1st. to 2nd. gear, the first clutch pack releases as the second clutch pack, which governs the 2,4,6 barrel, engages. As you go up or down through the gears this engagement and disengagement of the clutchs happens in a split second. There is no need for synchro rings, the gears can be straight cut as they are always in mesh. Grinding of gears will not happen unless a signal or hydraulic valve fault occur in the clutch pack, and it is game over.

[@Andres_1970]

"A Torsion Bar is a Spring, of course.." It's just the other way round, but the point is valid none the less. Amazing structural integrity in it.Colin Chapman would not be much impressed but Emerson Fittipaldi would, though !

[@glennac]

Yes! More of these mechanical breakdowns. 👍🏼 Also, would love to see more on how repairs are made during a race. How far will teams go to get a car back out on the track just to get a Finish? What are the rule restrictions regarding repairs? And what about between races? How far do teams go before a car is deemed “totaled” and abandoned? Finally, tell us about cannibalization. What can be salvaged, and how often do teams truly build a new car from the ground up and not rely on reclaimed parts? Thanks❣️

[@LucianoBenvenuto-vy6vc]

The MotoGP seamless gearbox is even more fascinating, it's different in concept

[@Mudux]

yeah, this F1 gearbox isn't really seamless.

[@LucianoBenvenuto-vy6vc]

@@Mudux i think they use this method because I think that is more reliable and they really wanted just a quicker and smoother shift. In bikes the main target is to cancel the "kick" from the tork of the shift, that can unsettle the bike a lot more than a car. But anyway from the beauty of engineering I think MotoGP wins 😊

[@srinitaaigaura]

​@@LucianoBenvenuto-vy6vcTill today I have never seen any video which even remotely covers what kind of magic they do inside MotoGP boxes. The tech is more top secret than some national secrets..😂

[@LucianoBenvenuto-vy6vc]

@@srinitaaigaura unfortunately I don't remember where, but I've seen it documented a couple years ago somewhere.. and if I'm not wrong Ducati has presented a patent here in Italy for a seamless gearbox for street bikes (I believe for possible use in SBK) It would be very expensive but I think give it some time maybe it would become reality someday

[@colinbowman8816]

The heck? Motogp boxes aren't the same as mass production superbikes? I need to go check this out.

[@estrheagen4160]

The dual barrel setup is ingenious, and it's basically a more hardcore version of a DCT in a car, just with two selector barrels instead of two clutches. Makes me think if it's ever going to be implemented on a high-performance motorcycle with a mechanical linkage instead of a hydraulic valve.

[@AmericanHorse-sg9oc]

This is why F1 is so important to the future of our Automobiles.

[@artysanmobile]

I have long wanted to see this. It is hard to believe the stresses these parts withstand and how long they persist in doing so.

[@WizardOfOss]

At first I was a bit surprised that F1 cars still have an actual reverse gear. After all, why not just use the hybrid system for that, and reverse on electric power alone. But then I realized where the MGU-K is placed in the whole power unit......yeah, that's not gonna work... But impressive piece of angineering, and very cool to see!

[@donnamarie3617]

Wow! Loved this content, really super interesting. Thanks Scott.

[@markussannan5973]

No voice ever needed this much sizzle and high end energy. Its exhausting.

[@brettwoodard167]

Always thought along the same lines of all gears meshing at the same time but each gear had it's own hydraulic clutch on it. Cool Stuff!

[@TMRDAM]

I remember when the seamless gearboxes come out on MotoGP, it was fashinating and not many information were released about them. I thought it was something way more complicated than a simple syncronized double barrel system.

[@azmidlyf]

Silly question: Where did the term "Dogs" on the rings come from? Love your insider access to this world.

[@Sakehime]

"This word usage is a metaphor derived from the idea of a dog (animal) biting and holding on, the "dog" name derived from the basic idea of how a dog jaw locks on, by the movement of the jaw, or by the presence of many teeth" From Wikipedia

[@kayzrx8]

@@Sakehime the fact that you credited Wiki for that says alot, you a real one

[@trumanhw]

In the billiards diagram @6:09 ... the 3 ball (red) would miss due to contact induced throw (CIT). Look it up.

[@EvdogRacing]

I love the level of detail you go to in your videos. Keep it up!

[@jamesricketts6186]

Great video. The sequential gearbox is really interesting.

[@ar_pe4012]

Thanks for the video. It actually looks very similar to a sequential motorcycle gearbox, except for the two barrels.

[@edwardrichardson8254]

The Ferrari F50 road car is the only production car to do this (its connection point is an iron oil sump) and it caught hell for it by Jeremy Clarkson and the motoring press for rattling, being loud being slower than the F40 in 0-60 as well as McLaren F1 but it WHIPPED both at the track. The car is enjoying a revisionist Renaissance now.

[@LanceCampeau]

Great details! Really cool to see both inside and outside of the gear box. Can they do weld repairs to the 3D printed titanium gear box casing? Like if a mounting point got cracked or something like that...

[@johncooper4637]

This is somewhat different than the gearbox on the Tyrrell 022 that I worked on. The cases were made of magnesium and there was only one selector barrel.

[@sidecarbod1441]

Years ago I raced F1 sidecars, I was having issues with the ZZR1100 engine that I was running, I shimmed the gears on each shaft in order to get better dog engagement, this should have helped stop the dogs rounding off. Everything worked really well when testing the gearbox by turning it by hand, however I over did it with the shims, when changing up whilst racing the gearbox ended up being in two gears at the same time, it didn't end well!

[@neekamp]

Best video, thought about it for years how they do it. Especially the seamless shifting always talked in Motogp. Thanks made.

[@robertnicholson7733]

So it is a constant mesh, sequential shift, dog (clutch) box, pretty much the same as every motorcycle gearbox since WWII and many before. The main difference is the two selector barrels versus the single cam plate commonly used in British motorcycles. Like the barrels the cam-plate drives the dog clutch across very quickly to avoid the "crash box " sound of the dogs clattering past one another, the change occurs as only a single dog passes. You can get pretty good high-speed clutchless changes with a standard modern road motorcycle gearbox. Gearbox/engine assemblies as stressed members were not an F1 invention, they had been used in cars, motorcycles, and aircraft for a very long time. The HRD Vincent had a box section oil tank bolted across the heads, the front suspension attaching to the front with the upper mounting point of the rear dampers attached to the rear. The cantilever rear pivot point was cast into the unit motor/gearbox casting, the Vincent really had no frame. I would have been more interested to see what had been done to the profiles of the gears and dog clutch to get the best efficiency, shift speed, and reliability. The metallurgy of the gears would have also been interesting.

[@AvenEngineer]

Todays 1000cc Sportbikes are more complex than this. A 2024 BMW 1000 is an astonishing piece of engineering. The IOM TT lap record is on a Superstock bike. A kid can buy the fastest bike on Earth with fast food wages.

[@richy69ify]

They all use F1 technology. Combustion tech really moved on for 4 strokes due to F1 secrets or evolution going over via the likes of Honda. Before this 2-strokes ruled. I's love to see F1 move to 2-stroke motors and develop those.

[@KCadbyRacing]

I don't consider 20+ thousand dollars to be fast food wages but I guess it would be possible to buy one if they're still living at home with the parents. And spoiler alert, the fastest (production) bike on the planet is the Kawasaki H2R which cost 50K...

[@timessix8434]

Very nice explanation. Although you forgot to show the 1m spacer between engine and gearbox that the cars have today😅

[@michaelvadney5803]

Thanks for the excellent video! It is difficult to picture how a titanium 3D printed part works. Awesome tech!

[@АлексейГодунов-ц8м]

Things i didn't expect to see in this expensive f1 gearbox video: Lada 2107 in garage 54))😂

[@ДаниилПавлов-и9д]

Вот теперь думаю ты русский или смотришь в английском дубляже/Now I think you’re from Russia or you’re watching a dubbed video

[@АлексейГодунов-ц8м]

@@ДаниилПавлов-и9дНе понял, при чём тут дубляж, но ты прав, я русский)

[@jbang917]

10:10 someone trying to summon a hadouken in the bottom right 😂 Great video! Love the nerdy F1 content like this!

[@DoctorFernandes]

Love this video - so helpful and informative. My only concern would be the battery life in a lithium electrolyte battery that is constantly getting charged/discharged. A Porsche Tech told me that he would expect the battery to last about 35,000 km before requiring replacement on average, and that as a result, one could expect an operational cost of this vehicle of about $1/km. that simply does not exist in the pure ICE 992.1. If they could up their battery game to leverage super capacitors or solid state batteries, the long term viability of the battery could be much improved. I'd be interested in others' thoughts on this.

[@RogerKeulen]

Can you also do a vid on the F1 electronics and engine mapping ? Thus what are the boxes from the FIA and what are there own. And what is all allowed from the electronics side. Like what can you do on track and what in the pits or driving through the pits.

[@deeinissan9966]

Moog valves are also used on seismic vibrators for oil and gas exploration.

[@blackflagqwerty]

I knew it, I knew there were gears in there.

[@apt962]

They also put ref and sync sensors on the shafts (same sensors used for engine cam shaft timing for fuel and ignition) to know when the dogs won’t line up for the next gear to be able to seamless shift with a single clutch. That’s why when you hear the engineers say “we have lost gear box ref or gear box sync” they can still shift but not as quickly and also not advised to shift until it comes back online if at all as it can result in box damage if you bash dogs.

[@kudryavchik]

Its old style F1 & LMP1 gearbox. From about 2013-2014 F1 and LMP1 use cassette type gearbox, where there are the stressed casing from CF and unstressed gearbox inside. More efficient because you can change the suspension arm points without changing the whole gearbox case

[@RealKiwitones]

Brilliant. Love to see more. My head kinda hurts but I think I get it.

[@Peregrine1984]

This video was great, thanks! Also the 1924 Type 35 Bugatti used the engine as stressed member :)

[@davidmcc359]

Incredible to see the inner workings of these surprisingly small, compact gearboxes which have an unbelievable stress attatched to their workings. Can I just say, whilst I'm no mechanic, I thoroughly enjoy such videos like these, but you really HAVE TO SLOW DOWN the delivery, for there's no time to take in the intricasies of all being shown and explained, before the footage and information is lost to the next paragraph, or two, of words. Whilst it is a privilage to have someone show this normally secretive area of F1, and I am in awe of the mans skill, knowledge and ability, could they not have provided someone who can deliver the information, who seems either uninterested or forced to do so, as it would make this video so much better..

[@XaosMorlan]

This is very similar to what Honda is using today in automatic transmissions for motorbikes such as the NC750 or GoldWing, for example. The Dual Clutch system. Two clutches, one on each shaft. On one shaft are the first, third and fifth gears and on the second shaft are the second, fourth and sixth gears. In other words, if the engine is running with the fourth gear, located on the second shaft, the clutch on the first shaft is ready to engage the third or fifth gear. I own the NC750, and I can say that the shift and transition is impeccably immediate and almost imperceptible. In addition, the transmission is fitted with an anti-rebound system to prevent wheel lock-up in very fast downshifts, especially in sport mode, or by using the handlebar paddles.

[@bertram-raven]

Fun Fact: At Monaco in 2006 one of the Red Bull engineers came over the the Super Aguri garage to chat away about pit-stop techniques (SA was actually one of the fastest pitstop crews at the time - too much practice maybe). At one point he paused and said. "Hey, how come you have our gearbox?!" The reply was, "We don't have yours, you have ours." What happened was Super Aguri bought the IP of Orange Arrows which included their seamless shift. OA had the first geared seamless shift on the grid - CVT is different as it has no cut gears. Red Bull had licensed the IP, not bought it.

[@turboslag]

Just like a bike gearbox, where it's called a positive stop mechanism and has been in use since the 1930's in basically the same form. A bike gearbox, well, a modern type anyway, can be shifted without using the clutch, by slightly rolling off the throttle. Although there are now quick shifts where the ignition is momentarily killed by the ecu to allow almost instant shifts. I remember discovering that F1 used the same system as bikes in the late 80's and wondering whether it was influenced by a biker F1 designer! That double selector system is very ingenious though! Most impressive thing for me here is the 3d printed Ti gearcase, wow!

[@carltownson2551]

Outstanding video! Very informative and interesting, even to a 74 year old retired machinist. The precision work that goes into building one of these trannys is unbelievable. Would like to know for sure just how much computer-based processes goes into the machine work that is required to ensure that all the gears, bearings, spacers, dog rings, etc. do their job under what must be unbelievable stress and strain. Thanks again for the great vid.

[@amongstgreatdanes580]

This is awesome, thank you!

[@brianmccarthy1322]

Same clutch and gear box set-up my Honda CB360 motorcycle had in 1974.

[@nickyborrisino]

Really cool seeing a lay-gear shaft with removable/replaceable gears.

[@StingrayOfficial]

Love this hardware tech stuff. I will watch these every time.

[@user-rk9kb2sd9b]

I don't know who controlled the camera, because a lot of shots were out of focus, you really need to disable automatic focus and do it manually instead in static shots or buy a camera that allows better control of auto focus.

[@sf2372]

what an amazing idea for a business, kudos to TDF

[@toddb930]

That is SO cool!! One thing I've wondered about is ... does the driver, or a computer, decrease the throttle during a shift to avoid breaking the tires loose?

[@RuiStuart]

At minute 2:30 the titanium plate was machined away not for weight but to increase structural rigidity. If it were due to weight, instead of removing all the titanium, they would leave a very very thin layer. The titanium removed is less heavy than the bigger carbon plate and the glue used to fix it.

[@johntomasik1555]

Yup, surprisingly simple in operation. Very much like the trannies in my motorcycles. I wonder what level of detail Brilliant gets into when it comes to gear design. Decades ago, designing a gear set seemed to take a lot more into account, as much of it has since been complimented by not only 3D modeling and the subsequent modern CNC/manufacturing processes, but also modern FEA software. When I first started doing gear design, much of it being plastic gears, I entered at a time where I had to learn about approach action and recess action (AA/RA). Those equations helped me design gear systems that minimized wear. Then, I had to run through some basic stress calcs. Now, AA/RA isn't such a big deal (more modern engineered materials and those 3D CAD/CAM implemented tools), but I don't doubt it can still play a part in design of gearboxes, including metal gears. Since they're trying to minimize weight, rotational mass, while having a defined life (which isn't something like a consumer or industrial system has to deliver), properly accounting for these nuances can really trim the design to an optimal performing system.

[@jdsstegman]

Weird. I would have thought they were more sophisticated. I deal with these all the time in motorcycles. Bikes have been like this for many many years.

[@T0mmyTune]

The Auto Industry could take a lesson here. This was the most incredibly simple gearbox. So well thought out and executed. Great work!

[@kayzrx8]

The issue with the auto industry is not the industry but the consumer. Most people will not tolerate the whine of the gearbox and low-speed shift abruptness. The automatic transmission is king of comfort and smooth shifts at any load speed and can do this for a very long time. These F1 transmission have limited life and high cost when compared to a planetary gear auto transmission.

[@jordan9339]

Transmission like that can be made to be durable enough and cheaper than an automatic transmission. But it still would be whiney and harsher. For what is worth motorcycles use very similar transmission type. Some motorcycles have a device called quick shifter that doesn't require to use clutch or to let off the throttle. You just need to tap the lever, which can be automated easily.

[@mcgoo721]

I feel like this is posted to save face for the wrenching performance during the budget car mods. I seem to recall someone saying "I've done this sort of thing before, honest! I can rebuild an F1 transmission!"

[@Miata822]

Form and function so close to a motorcycle transmission. The twin selector barrels is a cool innovation though.

[@ericssonnyeleti]

This is just as simple as motorcycle gears.! Awesome stuff!

[@kyronrc]

Thats pretty simple and compact actually. Very smart design! Road cars seems to have much more complex pieces.

[@HeiHee1]

Exept Renaults Multimode Hybrid Gearbox: They selected a Dog Box to keep it small and efficient...

[@mtb5778]

jeez simply amazing engineering. thanks.