Adrian Newey: “Cars at this level should be art forms”
By James McLachlan2024-08-27T15:19:00
Red Bull Racing legend Adrian Newey unveiled the RB17 at Goodwood Festival of Speed 2024. Newey spoke to Car Design News about his ‘legacy car’ and why the best engineering solutions are often the most beautiful
As expected, the launch of the RB17, Adrian Newey’s swansong for Red Bull Racing, was the source of much excitement this summer. The engineer, one of the foremost of recent times, took a little time to explain the thinking behind the project to Car Design News.
Car Design News: How did design and engineering come together to realise the car?
Adrian Newey: Before you start to get into detail, you have to decide on a philosophy and what you’re trying to achieve. And in our case, I’ve been lucky enough to drive a lot of different cars over the years, from racing sixties classic cars, to le Mans cars, to modern Formula 1 cars.
And I love driving the old sixties cars. But the buzz and excitement and adrenaline of driving a modern Formula 1 car is at a different level. So I started to think, okay, can we create a car where an amateur, who has done a bit of driving, can jump in a car that’s ultimately capable of Formula 1 lap times.