Inside the Bull’s Pen: A Small Glimpse at F1’s Red Bull Racing Operation

Understanding the family connection between Infiniti, Nissan’s luxury car brand, and Formula 1’s Red Bull Racing is easy, really.

Here’s how the story goes: Red Bull’s 2010 championship winning racecars driven by young superstar and reigning F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel and veteran Mark Webber are powered by custom 650-plus horsepower 2.4-liter Renault Sport F1 RS27 engines. In the road car world, Renault and Nissan are like peanut butter and jelly. Since 1999, they’ve often shared platforms, engines, and future tech as part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance.

So when Nissan recently needed a globally renowned outlet from which it could spread the word about Infiniti – especially in Europe where it is just now getting a foothold — it quickly devised a plan to badge the reigning championship cars and driver’s suits with giant Infiniti logos.

It is this cleaver multi-year marketing tie-up that recently brought me to a quiet industrial park near Milton Keynes, England. The town serves as the home base to RBR and is the sole spot where the team’s innovative technology is cultivated, not to mention guarded with the utmost seriousness and secrecy. Considering the competitive lot that includes juggernauts Scuderia Ferrari and Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, this should be no surprise. The three are some of the wealthiest and cutthroat teams in all of motorsport.

Merely walking into RBR’s front reception area, I got an immediate feeling of secrecy, cleanliness, and technological richness. (A recent Independent report emanating from Europe estimated Red Bull spends close to $300 million per year on its two Formula 1 teams, RBR and Scuderia Toro Rosso.) I liken the headquarters to those of NASA; our small group was required to have a legitimate reason to enter the compound and was asked not to not snap photos unless instructed to at designated areas. Top secret is the norm.

Just past the reception area’s elaborately lit race and championship trophy section is the building’s main floor, where 180 young designers sit in large low-walled cubicles. Each Dell flat screen displayed a 3D CAD part image. Minus the French heart, every component on the RB7 racecars — from titanium bolts to carbon fiber gearbox — is developed and created at the U.K. facility and the team’s sister company (which is right across Bradbourne Drive), Red Bull Technology.

The company hires most of its designers and engineers straight from the world’s top university programs. Not only do they call different countries home, some also arrive from the yachting, aerospace, and automotive industries, so specialties are highly diverse but remain closely related. There are also craftsmen, fabricators, carbon fiber/advanced material specialists, race engineers, strategists, and a group of administrative, marketing, and public relations executives that makeup the 560-strong team located at Milton Keynes.

Continuing past the outer-ring offices of chief technical officer, Adrian Newey, and team principal, Christian Horner, we arrive at RBR’s secured race center. The approximate 20-foot by 20-foot room has space for at least 16 engineers seated at individual desks. The desks are tiered in a stadium-seating sort of way, with the first row being the lowest. Again, thoughts of NASA’s Houston launch control come to mind, or better yet, a complex war room where all-out battles are directed.

On the wall ahead of the desks hang four giant flat screen TVs. According to RBR, they are a key element in the three lines of defense applied during a race. The first line is the pit lane engineering team, usually seated at a small enclosed box directly in front of the garage. Next are the back-of-garage engineers that monitor the car’s vital signs. Last is the aforementioned race center group in England connected live to engineers at the race via telephone and the four TV screens.

From these monitors engineers closely watch their cars and those of the competition. They analyze the live video feeds to determine competitors’ racing setups. From spring rates and suspension calibrations, to gearing and fuel load, RBR can make an educated guess as to what their top challengers are doing.

Strategists then plot the best time to schedule their 3-second pit stops and relay all information down to the pitlane. It is an amazing orchestration of analytics, guesswork, and technology that up until my visit, I had never truly appreciated or understood.

Downstairs from race control are massive aerospace-grade wind tunnels, autoclaves, and five-axis milling stations. The mills create part molds for wind tunnel testing by precisely etching materials by laser. RBR’s engineers share many fabrication techniques and technology with the military and space industries. One production process, for instance, creates lightweight metals and plastics from high-tech powders. Yes, powders. On my way towards the break room exit I caught a sight of the carbon fiber clean room/laboratory where parts are hand-built by associates donning long white coats.

Apart from the sophistication and sheer wealth of the Red Bull Racing operation, I walked away taken aback by every employee’s apparent love for motorsport and the ultimate prize — winning. Each is dedicated to providing Seb and Mark (that’s what I call them now) with the fastest open-wheel machines on the planet, no matter how unrelated or closely aligned their workday tasks may be.

I asked a few of the many engineers, designers, and administrators about the successful run they’ve had this season. Each told me they could not wait for their drivers to bring home the 2011 driver’s and constructor’s championships. In their minds, it isn’t if they’ll clinch the championships, it’s when. And after getting an intimate feel of what it takes to go from spiffy energy drink cans to Formula 1 kings, I have to agree.

Special thanks to Nissan North America, Infiniti, and Red Bull Racing for arranging my visit.

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Inside The Deal To Sell GM to China’s SAIC

By now, you’ve no doubt heard the news: General Motors’ Chinese partner, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) will take a controlling stake in GM by purchasing the equity sold to the U.S. and Canadian governments during the bailout. But what does it mean for the future of GM?

The announcement was brief, cryptic and buried in the excitement over the multitude of concepts and new vehicles GM has just announced it will debut at the Shanghai auto show in a few weeks. The press release reads simply:

“Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) and General Motors (NYSE: GM) are announcing today that an agreement has been reached with the governments of the United States and Canada that will allow SAIC to purchase the shares of GM owned by the respective governments. The sale is expected to be completed by this time next year pending approval from U.S., Canadian and Chinese government regulators.”

The implications of this announcement are enormous. The U.S. Treasury currently holds a 26-percent stake in General Motors after selling roughly half of its interest during the company’s Initial Public Offering in November 2010. The Canadian Government, meanwhile, holds nine percent of GM stock after selling of 17.4-percent of its stake during the IPO. Together, that’s 35-percent of the company.

Should the respective governments sign off on this deal, SAIC will take a 36-percent stake in GM (SAIC already bought a one-percent stake in GM during the company’s IPO), a controlling interest. In effect, GM will be owned and under the control of SAIC, which will make combined company far and away the world’s largest automaker by volume. It goes deeper than that, though. SAIC is owned and controlled by the Chinese Government. If this deal goes through, GM will essentially be sold to the government of China. How could our government let this happen? As is so often the case, it’s all about the money.

The “bailouts” of Chrysler and GM have been fairly unpopular with the American public. Many have accused the government of overstepping its authority and wasting taxpayer money propping up two companies who failed in their own right, and this negative perception has dogged the Obama Administration for years now. The Treasury gained some good PR last year when it sold roughly half its stake in GM, but for many opponents, it wasn’t enough. With the 2012 election looming, the Obama Administration is likely looking for a quick way out of this situation, and it appears the Chinese made them an offer they couldn’t refuse.

With GM’s share price closing at $33.01 on Thursday, SAIC would have to pay a minimum of $17.3 billion to buy all of the U.S. and Canadian Governments’ shares of GM, though the actual sale price will likely be higher so the governments can turn a profit on the sale. But unless SAIC offers the estimated $56 per share necessary for the U.S. and Canadian Governments to break even on their investment in GM, the taxpayers are going to take a bath on this deal.

Details regarding changes to GM post-sale are scarce right now, but the deal will likely see current GM Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson leave the company and replaced with SAIC chairman Hu Maoyuan and president Shen Jianhua. GM’s headquarters should remain in Detroit, but will answer to Shanghai. Shanghai GM, SAIC’s joint-venture with GM in China, will likely be folded into SAIC down the road as it will no longer be necessary under Chinese law.

Though the announcement comes as a shock, the warning signs seem so clear now. Why GM kept Buick and killed Pontiac. Why the quintessential American midsize car, the Chevrolet Malibu, is debuting in Shanghai. Why the Chevrolet Cruze and Buick Regal were on-sale in China long before the U.S. Why the Buick LaCrosse was designed in China and why China is getting a Buick version of the Chevrolet Volt, along with a new plug-in hybrid Buick SUV. A deal like this doesn’t happen overnight, and it’s clear now that GM has been buttering-up SAIC for the past few years.

The only question is: Is a GM run by the Chinese Government a better deal than GM run by the U.S. Government? We’ll find out soon enough…April 1, 2012, to be exact.

DISCLAIMER: IN CASE YOU HAVEN’T REALIZED IT BY NOW, THIS WAS AN APRIL FOOL’S JOKE.

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Newest Sprinter van is Brilliant, Maybach-like inside

Friday, Mar 25th, 2011 @ 4:36 p.m.

Mercedes-Benz is known worldwide for producing luxury sedans, wagons, coupes, cabriolets and SUVs, but now the automaker is making a foray into the luxury van segment with the introduction of the Sprinter-based Brilliant Vans and Mini Buses.

The modified Sprinter vans are produced by Brilliant Transportation, and are intended to deliver a Maybach-like experience for passengers with the added benefit of nearly endless headroom (Most NBA basketball players can stand up inside with room to spare) made possible by the Sprinter’s unique design.

A Brilliant van boasts four luxurious captain’s chairs positioned in a way that would allow its occupants to hold conversation while traveling, which the maker says appeals to businesses looking to make efficient use of their time when traveling to and from work sites or meetings. In fact, the vans also feature two 32-inch flat screen TVs, eight speakers, color printers and 3G WiFi, making it possible to hold a meeting in the van itself, complete with Powerpoint or other presentation tools on the multimedia system.

Of course, if passengers just want to relax they can also enjoy DirecTV signal in the van as well, moving or stationary.

Richard Fertig, founder of Brilliant Transportation, says that the vans were intended to appeal to “corporate management, entertainers and well-to-do families who want to reclaim that dead in-transit time and who appreciate the size, height and overall comfort of a large van.” Currently, Brilliant is operating chauffeur-driven Sprinter-based Brilliant Vans and Mini Buses up and down the East Coast as well as in the Los Angeles area.

Should you sign up for the service, you will enjoy up to a 400 mile range between fill-ups thanks to the 20 mile per gallon diesel powerplant under the hood.

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Ford’s Fiesta gains customization packages inside and out for 2012

Wednesday, Mar 23rd, 2011 @ 4:07 a.m.

Ford’s new global Fiesta is hardly a year old, but the Dearborn-based automaker has already seen fit to expand the subcompact’s interior color choice list to include some bright new hues, as well as to add some cosmetic bits to the outside for an aftermarket look.

When Ford first began showing off the new Fiesta during the 2010 auto show circuit there were a half a dozen or so customized Fiestas that were enlisted to do the trick, many with custom body kits, blacked out headlamps, carbon fiber odds and ends and a sporty rear spoiler that has been mysteriously missing despite previously being promised as an option. But alas, Ford is ready to deliver many of the attractive bits it used to tease and lure in buyers for the 2011 model year with three new packages for 2012.

The automotive aftermarket in is good for around $6 billion a year, and Ford hopes to tap into that income with accessories and OEM-installed options that would historically be acquired only through aftermarket customization, cutting Ford out of the profit equation. As it stands now, Ford says roughly four out of ten Fiesta buyers adds at least one OEM accessory at the time of a purchase, a figure that Ford wants to increase.

One way to do that is to tap into the well-received European Fod Focus RS’s bag of styling tricks, pulling out the “premium sport package” which includes 16-inch polished alloy wheels, blacked out and smooth side mirrors, headlamps, grille surround, license plate header and a rear upper hatch spoiler with a little more flair than the standard spoiler.

But before you cry “all show, no go” for the sport package, Ford says that if ordered on a manual car, the package will also entail a final gear ratio upgrade to 4.25, rather than the fuel-friendly 4.07.

What about the inside?
The interior changes will likely garner far more attention – and order sheet check boxes – than the somewhat stealthy changes to the outside found in the premium sport package, as they include radical amounts of colorful accents to be added throughout the car. The premium interior package – available on SEL and SES models – is centered around high-contrasting (read: bright) interior accent coloring in either Oxford White or Race Red, which stretch from the seats to the doors to the dash to the steering wheel.

“The inspiration for this package is mainly a result of the trends we’re seeing in fashion,” explained Mark Conforzi, chief designer, Ford Vehicle Personalization. “Designers like Stella McCartney use bold, contrasting color similar to these interior packages, adding a one-of-a-kind design.”

It will be interesting to see take rates for Ford’s new customization packages, as they will surely add to Ford’s already strong profit margins – a welcome change as Ford and other automakers reliant on profitable truck sales will likely see a shift to small cars if gas prices continue their upward trend.

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