History of Formula One Regulations - 1950s: No Thought Given To Safety

1950s: No Thought Given To Safety

See also: 1950 Formula One season, 1951 Formula One season, 1952 Formula One season, 1953 Formula One season, 1954 Formula One season, 1955 Formula One season, 1956 Formula One season, 1957 Formula One season, 1958 Formula One season, and 1959 Formula One season

Although Formula One races had been taking place since 1948, it was not until 1950 that the World Championship was established. Safety was almost a non issue in the first 10 years of racing and technological progress was extremely slow compared to modern standards. All of the circuits that Formula One raced on in the 1950s had no safety features; the general mentality was that death was an acceptable risk for winning races, and as a result very few regulations were changed during this period.

1950–1953
Engine specs set at 1500 cc maximum size for engines with a compressor (supercharger or turbocharger) or 4500 cc for normally aspirated engines. No weight limit. Note that in 1952 and 1953, the World Drivers' Championship was run to Formula Two regulations (maximum capacity of 750 cc for engines with a compressor or 2000 cc for normally aspirated engines), but the Formula One regulations remained unchanged, and numerous non-championship Formula One races were held during this period. Also for 1952, crash-helmets were made compulsory; but these helmets were made with dubious materials and looked like medium-sized dinner plates.
1954
Engine specs amended to allow 750 cc maximum engine size with a compressor or 2500 cc for a normally aspirated engine. No weight limit.
1958
The use of commercial petrol became compulsory and alcohol-based racing fuels were no longer permitted.

Read more about this topic:  History Of Formula One Regulations

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