Standard chassis bump-stops must be fitted in the standard position.
However, the Toyota MR2 does not use a chassis bump stop, it has a damper bump stop. In light of this, the committee have taken the view that for the 2009 season the bump stop forms part of the damper and therefore can be considered to be "free" - but must be fitted.
For the 2010 regulations, the committee are proposing to regulate the use of bump stops as a separate entity to the suspension damper. Fitment of bump stops will be mandatory and they can be either standard or plastic (polyeurathane) and will be subject to minimum and maximum heights. Further research is required to determine sensible limits for these heights and we expect to have more information to pass on the in next three weeks. The two main reasons for this change to the regulations are that uprated bump stops should offer a handling (and potentially safety) improvement while at the same time reducing the cost of the components.
The scrutineering at Angelsey revealed that most competitors had standard bump stops fitted, and that some competitors had modified them to be either taller or shorter. One competitor was found to have no bump stops fitted, and one competitor had polyeurathane versions installed.
Regards,
Patrick Mortell
Formula Official
