Insulation failure sparked sad Hamilton's F1 Grand Prix exit

摘要

London - A hairline split in the side of a rubber tube surrounding the Mercedes spark plug was the cause of Lewis Hamilton's retirement from the Formula 1 season opener in Australia, Jonathan Nobel reported for Autosport. The English driver was forced to withdraw from the race in Melbourne after his car engine dropped a cylinder at the start of the race. The team initially suspected a wiring issue was to blame, but it has now revealed that the real cause was a small split in the side of the blue rubber tube. The tube is supposed to insulate the current flow into the plug, but the tiny split led to the spark cutting a hole clean through its side instead.