So much work goes into each part of a Formula One car that it’s a little mind-boggling when you start to think about it. Even the mundane parts you rarely think about have to come from somewhere. Case in point: the life cycle of a seemingly ordinary suspension bolt.
Part number RB12-FS-00663-02 is a camber bolt, no doubt necessary to ensure the front wheels contact the ground at just the right angle so as to account for the insane cornering forces exerted on the tires. Of course, it has to be just right.
The bolt isn’t just ordered from somewhere, and put into place. Someone has to design the bolt, machine the bolt, and inspect it to make sure it’s okay. Then, in the case of hyper-organized F1 efforts, someone has to also catalog the bolt, label it, store it neatly into a cubbyhole and then retrieve it when it’s finally ready to go.
Red Bull Racing designs, produces and inspects over a million F1 parts a year, per the video’s description.
While it’s hard to imagine that teams manufacture all of their fasteners, certain highly specialized parts like this little front suspension bolt certainly are.
h/t to Road & Track!