Paddles Levers located on either side of the back of a steering wheel with which a driver changes up and down the gearbox. Paddock An enclosed area behind the pits in which the teams keep their transporters and motor homes. There is no admission to the public. Parc Fermé Restricted area of the pit lane in which the FIA's technical commissioners inspect the cars after each race to make sure they conform to technical regulations. Since the 2003 season, the cars must be taken into the Parc Fermé after the qualifying session. They are not cleared until Sunday morning. Penalties Penalties for drivers' breaches in Formula 1 regulations range from a warning to a lifelong suspension from the sport. Other possibilities include fines, suspensions for one or more races, and deduction of World Championship points. If drivers commit sports related or technical violations during qualifying, the racing commissioners can cancel all their qualifying times. See also Drive Through Penalty and Stop-Go Penalty. Petrol See Fuel. Pick-up Refers to small materials adhering to the sticky surface of a racing tyre. Pit Board A board held out on the pit wall to inform a driver of his race position, the time interval to the car ahead or the one behind, plus the number of laps of the race remaining. Pitch The tendency of the front or rear of the car to move up and down, independently of each other, in reaction to changes in the road surface or aerodynamic loadings acting upon the car. Pitch Sensitivity Pitch sensitivity is key to good handling. On a car that has low pitch sensitivity the aerodynamic balance doesn't shift around as the car pitches up and down over bumps, or tend to shift its centre of gravity under acceleration or braking. Pit Lane This is where changes to the car take place during the race. A speed limit of 80 km/h is in place during the race and qualifying and 60 km/h at other times. On circuits with especially tight pit lanes, most notably at Monaco, the speed limit can be reduced even further. Pitot Tube A pressure measuring instrument used to measure fluid flow velocity, and more specifically, used to determine the air speed. These are regularly seen on various points of the car at test sessions where they want to measure the air speed. Pit Stop During a regular pit stop in a race a team of mechanics replaces the tyres, although additional changes may occur such as adjustment of wing angles or fitting a new nosecone and front wing. From 2010, in-race refuelling has been banned. Pit Wall Separating the pit lane from the track this is where the team owner, managers and engineers spend the race, usually under an awning to keep sun and rain off their monitors.  PlankA hard wooden strip (also known as a skid block) that is fitted front-to-back down the middle of the underside of all cars to check that they are not being run too close to the track surface, something that is apparent if the wood is excessively worn. Points System A number of points systems have been used in the Formula 1 World Championship but currently the first ten drivers in each race are awarded points. The winner of the Grand Prix is awarded 25 points with the subsequent finishers earning 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, and 1 point respectively. The same points system is used for the manufacturer’s championship with both drivers counting towards the team's total. Pole position First place in the starting order for the race, which is given to the fastest driver in qualifying. Practice The periods on Friday and on Saturday morning at a Grand Prix meeting when the drivers are out on the track working on the set-up of their cars in preparation for qualifying and the race.  ProtestAn action lodged by a team when it considers that another team or competitor has transgressed the rules. Pushrod and Pullrods The diagonal bars between the car's body and the suspension arms where they are attached to the wheels. Either a pushrod or a pullrod is used as they only differ in the way they are attached - a pushrod angles downwards from the body, pushing the wheel into contact with the track (shown right) where as a pullrod angles upwards, pulling the wheel downwards.  |