[yqpY4iw6]

Virgin certainly do run on a limited budget, but the decision not to start with a model program was a mistake. A model program need not cost the earth, and in conjunction with a strong CFD base is what everyone else does - why tie one hand behind your back? The beauty of a model is that changes can be made very quickly, and there's an awfull lot to be said for having a physical model of the car to look at. I've spent hours lying on my back underneath wind tunnel models with some of the very best aerodynamicists who tend to make changes 'on the fly'. Adding a wax or clay fillet or a radius takes just a moment and you have the results a couple of minutes later. You just can't do this with a 2D computer screen. As high tech as F1 is there's still development done with 'tin and tape' which often leads to new avenues to explore. Many times I remember sitting in the tunnel late at night with a very well know aerodynamicist as he would utter the dreaded "just one more run" which would inevitably lead to another hour or two as we would cut and shut our way to some usefull gains (not all the time!). All the top teams have their own tunnels and well staffed model shops, but a high quality 50% scale model can be done on a budget and tested in commercial tunnels - I know because I've done it.