Since the 2021 Formula 1 season, the Official FIA Safety Car and Medical Car have been from two different companies, instead of just Mercedes-AMG as in earlier years. The other company has been Aston Martin which, like Mercedes-AMG, also has a team taking part in the F1 World Championship.
Aston Martin will again provide the Official FIA Safety Car and Official FIA Medical Car for the 2023 season. The Vantage will again be used for Official FIA Safety Car functions but for the Official Medical Car, Aston Martin is providing a new and very powerful SUV, the DBX707. It replaces the DBX used previously to transport medical personnel quickly to the site of an incident during the race.
Aston Martins will again be seen in the lead during F1 races this year as the company again provides Official Safety and Medical cars. The Vantage Safety Car and DBX Medical Car will be used at 12 races while the others will see the cars from Mercedes-AMG. The first appearance of the cars will be at the third round which will be in Melbourne, Australia.
Driven by the FIA’s appointed driver, Bernd Maylander, the Vantage Safety Car has been developed purely for its F1 role by the engineering team at Aston Martin in collaboration with the FIA. Using the experiences from the Vantages that compete in GT events around the world, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Vantage Safety Car has been adapted for maximum speed and handling.
Special features for race use
Extra features on the car are FIA Safety Car livery, bodyside mounted radio antennas, an LED rear numberplate and a bespoke, roof-mounted LED light-bar, developed by Aston Martin. Incidentally, last year’s Vantage Safety Car inspired the Vantage F1 Edition which is the fastest, most track-focused Vantage to date.
Inside the Vantage Safety Car, the driver and passenger have access to the FIA’s Marshalling System, which displays lights corresponding to any warning flags being shown (just as inside each of the F1 cars). For purposes of record and also for spectators worldwide, the car is well covered by cameras inside and out for live TV footage.
550 ps for Medical Car
The DBX Medical Car has an output of 550 ps/700 Nm to give a claimed 0 to 100 km/h times of 4.5 seconds, essential for the SUV to reach an incident site as quickly as possible so that the Dr. Ian Roberts, the FIA Medical Rescue Coordinator, can provide assistance on the spot. The spaciousness of the DBX allows emergency medical equipment to be carried on board. It can therefore carry a lot of equipment, from fire extinguishers to a defibrillator and a large medical kit bag.
Like the Vantage, the DBX Official Medical Car has FIA-approved racing seats equipped with a 6-point safety harness, the marshalling system, and even TV screens so the crew can see exactly what is happening in the race while on stand-by in the pit lane each time the race is on.
“It is a continuing source of pride for myself and the whole company to see our cars playing a crucial role in Formula 1. Vantage and DBX will feature at 12 Grands Prix this year and, as much as I hope they won’t be called upon too often in the races, I think we all know they will be busy again as F1 enters this new era. We’re excited to be part of the show!” said Tobias Moers, CEO of Aston Martin Lagonda.
It’s a familiar sight at the Formula 1 World Championship – the car that is in the lead when there’s been an accident on the track, or the weather conditions are very bad. It’s a Mercedes-AMG and it leads the field of F1 cars around the track while emergency work is being done or to await weather conditions improving.
It’s been this way for 25 years, and for 20 of those years, Bernd Maylander has been at the steering wheel of the Official FIA F1 Safety Car provided by Mercedes-AMG. Even the colour scheme of the car with its silver paint and black decor has stayed the same.
But for the 2020 season, things will change. The AMG GT R will take its position at the racetrack with a new look this weekend. The car will prominently support the Formula 1 campaign ‘WeRaceAsOne’ by featuring its rainbow key visual on the flanks and on the bonnet of the car. The eye-catching design symbolizes the sports commitment for diversity and inclusion.
Formula 1’s return to racing this weekend in Austria – the start of the 2020 season – will be used as an opportunity to thank people all over the world for their strength and resilience in the fight against the global COVID-19 pandemic. The sport will also show its unity in the fight against racism and its commitment to do more to address inequality in Formula 1.
As a sign of this commitment, rainbow visuals and the hashtag #WeRaceAsOne will feature on all Formula 1 cars and around the racetrack. The rainbow was chosen as it has become a symbol that is used internationally to bring communities together.
In addition to the ‘WeRaceAsOne’ campaign, the call to ‘Drive Safely’ will be visible on the bonnet the Official FIA F1 Safety Car, addressing fans at home who are watching the race on TV or via livestream and reminding them to always drive in a careful and considerate way.
Maylander’s ‘company car’ also uses the hashtag #PurposeDriven to promote the FIA’s commitment to safety, sustainability, gender equality and diversity, and points out the FIA Action for Road Safety with mentions on the roof and tailgate of the car.
From a technical perspective, the Official FIA F1 Safety Car remains unchanged. It is still powered by a 4-litre 595-bhp V8 biturbo engine, and it has sophisticated active aerodynamics and intelligent lightweight construction. The installed AMG Track Package provides roll-over protection and the ceramic high-performance composite brake system ensures strong stopping power.
The FIA requirements for the Official FIA F1 Safety Car have always been. It must be able to maintain a high minimum speed so that the tyres and brakes of the Formula 1 cars do not lose too much temperature and the engines do not overheat. With a top speed of 318 km/h and 3.6 seconds to accelerate from zero to 100 km/h, the AMG GT R has enough performance to qualify for the role at the front.
In addition to the Safety Car, the Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Estate is also on stand-by at every race for emergencies. The Official FIA F1 Medical Car of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship will also have the new design.
In addition to the Safety Car, the Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Estate is also on stand-by at every race for emergencies as the Official FIA F1 Medical Car of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship. It will also sport the new design.
This weekend’s race will be the first of two that will be held in Austria’s Red Bull Ring. The second round will be held the following weekend. The weekend after that will see a round run in Hungary and then on August 2, the F1 teams will cross over to England for a race at the Silverstone Circuit. The British circuit will also host a second race the following weekend (August 9), after which will be events in Spain, Belgium and Italy.
The Red Bull Ring in Austria where the first two rounds of the 2020 F1 championship will be run. Spectators will not be allowed to attend and have to watch on TV or their mobile devices.
The series of races in Europe will end on September 8, by which time the organisers should have been able to schedule additional races. The plan is to have races resuming in Eurasia, Asia and the Americas and finish in the Middle East venues of Bahrain and Abu Dhabi. In total, it is hoped that 15 to 18 races can be run before the year ends.
It will be a new environment for the participants as there won’t be spectators. The risks of close proximity of crowds spreading the coronavirus have led to an agreement that races can be run, but spectators cannot be present in the stands. The events will therefore rely entirely on TV broadcasts and livestreaming over the internet.
Participants will have to go through strict screening and minimise their numbers in the pits. The organisers say that should anyone show a positive result when tested for COVID-19, it should not affect the race which will go on. Hopefully, there will be no evidence of the event causing transmission of the coronavirus so that governments in other countries will have more confidence to allow races to be run in their countries.
