V8s are going to be a big step backwards from last year's
V10s.
The obvious effect will be a decrease in horsepower, with 20% of
the engine being chopped off. Mind you, with the 98kg minimum
weight rule, the loss of cylinders and capacity will NOT result in
any adtantages in the momentum department.
At face value, the loss of power may seem to be correctable by an
increase in revs, but that's not the case either. If anything, it's
even worse now: with a V10, the worst vibrations occur between
14,000 and 16,000 revs, which wasn't a problem since the engines
spent most of their time at 18,000+ rpm anyway.
In the case of the V8s, however, the vibrations start becoming a
problem at 16,000 and only get worse from there.
The weight restrictions would allow designers to use cross-plane
crankshafts (instead of the usual flat-plane ones for racing
engines) with counterweights to minimise vibrations, but even then,
that would reduce engine response and itself limit revs (owing to
the larger mass of the crankshaft).
It'll be interesting to see how the engineers work their way out of
this one.
