Feeling the rush in a Formula 4 (F4) car

By JAY WONG | 23 August 2017


As a motoring journalist, there have been many occasions to experience more than a few laps around the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) in a car, but never in a Formula 4 (F4) single-seat open-wheel race car till now.

Petron Malaysia, the fuel and lubricants supplier, recently organised for some members of the media to join them at the SIC in order to experience driving a F4 race car for a few laps.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 17
Since F4 drivers are generally young aspiring race car drivers which are also generally smaller in size, some time had to be wasted in getting this writer’s manly-build into the cockpit as best as possible - meanwhile slowly baking with all that safety gear under the unrelenting hot sun.

Rather than wait aimless around, some of us were getting introduced to the single-seater open-wheel race car that happens to be making its rounds in the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia too.

The car uses a 2.0-litre water and air-cooled naturally-aspirated Renault (F4RSEA) engine that’s specifically tuned to about 180hp and is mated to a six-speed Sequential Sadev gearbox.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 29
A ‘Life Racing F88RS’ engine management system is fitted as standard and everything can be found nicely nestled within the confines of a Mygale F4 chassis.

After learning all that, this writer was finally fitted, albeit snugly, into the cockpit in an almost lying position with the three pedals perfectly positioned at the soles of the feet and just extending the foot forward is all that’s needed to actuate any of them.

Flipping two designated switches gets the car primed and flipping the third final switch gets the French-built engine trumpeting its eagerness.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 43
The pit lane crew gives me the thumbs up and points me in the direction to head out.
My left foot struggles to get the heavy clutch fully pushed though and with my thumb on the green ‘N’ (neutral) button, I engage first-gear by tugging on the right paddle shifter.

Thank goodness its paddle shifting from here on out.

I blip the throttle a few times, trying to balance the clutch and keep the car from stalling - and myself from embarrassment - and by the third blip, it unexpectedly boots me forward forcing me to wrench the steering to the right to keep it from making a ‘F4 pizza’ mess on the opposite wall.

Luckily, I’ve managed to get the car properly rolling down the pitlane in one piece and with eyes wide open as I breath hard to calm the nerves from the initial sudden surge of power.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 48
It’s almost game time as the pitlane exit line approached and from then on it was full-throttle down to turn-one to begin my familiarisation lap and admittedly I did jink the car left and right - just as a F1 driver would, and planted my foot on the brakes in order to find out how this ‘strange creature’ behaves.

By the last corner, I was fairly confident of my abilities to control this open-wheeler and so I let it loose, dumping all its wondrous power onto the rear tyres (front and rear Hankook Ventus slicks by the way) and subsequently getting a big kick from behind that snaps my head back - a rude awakening indeed.

Barrelling down the start-finish straight, the muscles at my neck is starting to ache trying to keep my head down with all that displaced wind buffeting onto the helmet while trying to keep the car from bouncing off the uneven sections of the straight as well as blown off course by cross-winds - all that without power steering and a steering wheel that’s roughly 80% smaller than convention.

Although it might be wise to simply slow down at that point, the need for air-flow through my hot helmet to help cool my head edges me on to stay on point and catch anything potentially nasty before it can affect the car’s stability.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 51
But once I came to that conclusion, it was time to hit the brakes after almost reaching the 100m braking mark - which is usually the point of no return for most standard cars.
My left-foot goes deep on the centre pedal and this time I’ve braced myself enough from allowing my head to snap forward and turn the car towards the apex preparing for turn-two which opens up wide on its exit.

Leading into the long right-hand throw of turn three, I had to restrain and remind myself that the engine’s throttle response is absolutely immediate and that the rear tyres will simply not tolerate any full-throttle nonsense.

The same goes when it comes to gear changes, progressing up the gears will get jolts of power from the rear, but will die down once it gets closer to sixth gear and the level of vibration from the steering wheel can get quite significant while waiting for those three red lights to appear on the steering wheel before shifting up a gear.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 56
Halfway through my hot lap, it suddenly occurred that this F4 car is simply a larger more powerful version of a go-kart sporting a 125cc two-stroke engine - rather responsive and eager to wag the rear end during turns when too much power is applied, but it was merely a fleeting thought as I quickly sunk into a good rhythm and began to brake later into corners, trying to probe deeper into the car’s abilities.

Then, out of nowhere, I spot of black piece of debris that’s now flicked towards my helmet and the thought of experiencing Felipe Massa’s unfortunate incident flashed before my eyes before flinching away from a...light ‘thunk’.

This was followed by a sudden need to perform a face-palm on myself after realising that it was actually some rubber chunks that had broken off one of my front tyres.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 45
Thankfully, by the end of my stint, I was glad to be out of the car after just a few laps and by that time, my hands and neck were now feeling somewhat stiff and my left shoulder a little battered - things that F1 drivers are accustomed to and at a more intense level.

Although my experience was only for a few insignificant laps in a F4 car, it has undoubtedly left me inspired and wondering...if I could ever turn back the hands of time just so I could join these young ‘uns on an exciting path that could one day lead to the pinnacle of motor racing - Formula 1.

Formula 4 (SEA) - 60


Keywords