Formula 1
Well, the rumors have been rife for some time about disparity between RBR's Vettel car and the rest of the grid. Now it appears some retired F1 drivers and engineers have managed to expose something truly odd going on at RBR only with the Vettel car.
A lot of people claimed Webber had sour grapes when he complained of the playing field not being level in seasons gone by. Several race teams who had examine race telemetry could not explain the performance RBR was able to get out of Vettel's car, especially exiting corners. Now it seems they have stumbled over a big clue, exposed by Vettel's huge Singapore race win margin.
Traction control has been banned for several years, to ensure that it isn't an issue all race teams use a F1 control package for the engine management. During the F1 traction control years cars had a very similar sound, especially when power was applied as a car exits a corner. F1 enthusiasts will recall that sound, that deep rattle gun like reverberation as the traction control took care of managing the engine power. Now it appears, for Vettel's cars and for Vettel's car alone, that sound is back!
The speculation is that RBR engineers have found away around the F1 control package to offer Vettel a traction control advantage over the rest of the field. Ironically for Webber, only the Vettel car exhibits the alleged behavior!
Some F1 engineers speculate RBR is using some smart mechanical design so that KERS gets feedback from the suspension loading. Giving Vettel the equivalent of a hybrid electromechanical traction control system. They have offered track audio recordings as evidence.
[flash=420,315]http://www.youtube.com/v/8DwXOPN7ZIM[/flash]
Ironically, a week or so after the rumor surfaced, Webber has ended up on pole and the early reports from Japan are that the Vettel sound has disappeared!
In defense engineers from RBR are rumored to have linked the unusual sound to Vettel short shifting due to gear box problems. But in the last few races Webber has also been required to short shift and his car did not exhibit that sound.
A fleet of media and F1 connected engineers are now scouring footage and audio from past races and seasons to see if they can find a pattern of audio that will either support or dismiss the speculation.
But there is one thing that is confirmed, if RBR has found to have fiddled with KERS or traction control Vettel's car is illegal.