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Watch an F1 Pit Crew Change Four Tires in Under Two Seconds

This is why GIFs were invented

By Rain Noe - April 28, 2016

in Cars

While some GIFs get boring, this one doesn't cease to fascinate. With each repetition you can focus on a different person in the crew to see what they're doing:

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Once upon a time Formula One pit stops were closer to 10 seconds. But in 2010 refueling was banned, and without the need to break out the hose and pump petrol into the tank, pit stop time has dropped to the sub-3-second range (assuming tire changes only) as seen in the GIF above.

Here's a crazy sub-2-second pit stop:

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While the following one is a tad longer at 2.05 seconds (jeez, what a bunch of slugs), you'll see something interesting as it's shot from the driver's point of view:

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From that angle, you can see some UX thought has been put into the front jack. As seen from the driver's perspective, the bright graphics make it highly visible and indicate precisely where the driver is meant to put the centerline of the nose of the car.

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Looking again at the GIF up top, you'll now notice a bright orange arrow performing the same function on the front jack.

Lastly, you're bound to get a kick out of this: It's a video showing a 1950s open-wheel racing pit stop (1-minute-plus!) contrasted with a Team Ferrari pit stop of today. Note how the 1950s dude is hammering the lugs off:

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Joey Tribiani

8 years ago

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Anyone know what the guys in the middle are doing? There are 3 people assigned to each tire. In between them, on both sides of the car, is a guy who leans on the vehicle, but I can't figure out what his function is.

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- Rain Noe
  
  Joey Tribiani
  
  8 years ago
  
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  Joey, if you watch the heads of those two men, you'll notice the one nearest the camera is watching the front tires, while the man opposite is watching the rear tires. I'm guessing that in addition to keeping the sides car steady while it's jacked--the jacks are lifting the centerline of the car, after all--they are also somehow signaling to the driver when the crew is clear. That's my guess, anyway.
  
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Christopher Hanks

8 years ago

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THIS IS AWESOME.

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