2013 F1 car livery vote pt. 1: The bottom six
Thanks to everyone who voted in the exclusive Crash.net 2013 car livery poll this summer - almost 30,000 votes in total were cast over the last two weeks, which is an astonishing number and makes this quite the definitive word in what fans around the world really think about the looks of the current generation of F1 cars on the grid.
Check back tomorrow to find out which are the top five liveries on the 2013 grid and which one you reckon to be the best-dressed F1 car of the season: will Lotus retain their crown? You'll have to wait and see!
But for right now, it's time to unveil the liveries that did not impress you. We'll start this two-part run-down with the six cars at the bottom of your estimations, starting with a pretty big shock at who failed to make the cut...
6th place: Red Bull - 5.77 out of 10
Last year: 4th place
Yes, that's right - the three-time championship-winning team fails to make the cut in your eyes as far as car livery design goes! We can only speculate as to why it failed to win you over despite four Grand Prix victories so far this season - perhaps the drinks brand is simply too familiar and ubiquitous these days? Maybe you're tired of seeing Sebastian Vettel's wagging finger as he moves inexorably closer to a fourth title in 2013? Whatever it is, even perking the car up with Infinti's purple patches hasn't won you over to its charms this season, and if we're honest we're more than a little surprised - but pleasantly so!
7th place: Force India - 5.30 out of 10
Last year: 8th place
It seems that Force India's distinctive white, green and orange ensemble still doesn't really succeed in managing to really seize your imaginations. Nor is it growing on you by the look of things - its overall vote is actually slightly down on 2012 although it nonetheless manages to advance a position in the final standings thanks to a precipitous decline in the popularity of one of their rivals. Not even impressive early-season form in the hands of Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil has made the Force India look any better in your eyes; that's a shame, but the people have spoken and you're simply not all that impressed, and so be it.
8th place: Toro Rosso - 5.14 out of 10
Last year: 9th place
Despite a crash in support for their big brother squad it's up one spot this year for Toro Rosso, although in truth their rise in the standings is - like that of Force India - because of a slump in the appeal of one of their rivals rather than any sudden liking for the 'retro' drinks branding being sported by the team this year. It seems that in car livery as in so many other areas of its operation, Toro Rosso is simply content to jog along at its own level without showing much aspiration to think bigger or differently. Which is a shame, as they obviously have something there when they put their mind to it.
9th place: Sauber - 4.96 out of 10
Last year: 10th place
Sauber are also up one position in this year's vote, and in their case it's genuinely hard earned. Their overall score is up by over half a point on what they finished with in 2012 which is a big improvement - but then, so is the livery design! Last year's car looked like a plain white shell dipped front and back in a vat of dark paint almost by accident, but this year's is a huge step forward and altogether sleeker - although it retains the admirably very Swiss, stubbornly anti-style austere approach to design that stops it from becoming truly popular with the masses.
10th place: Williams F1 - 4.89 out of 10
Last year: 7th place
Remember we said that Force India and Toro Rosso gained a place primarily because of a big slump in support of one of their rivals? Well, it was Williams we were talking about. They've lost over 0.7 in their score year-on-year, which is a massive drop considering the car is essentially unaltered. Maybe that sense of lacking anything new anywhere in their package undermined their vote, or maybe that big 2012 vote was artificially boosted by the car having been a Grand Prix winner in Spain by this point in the season. Without that allure, it seems that this year's car is just looking tired and dull.
11th place: Marussia F1 - 4.05 out of 10
Last year: 12th place
And the winner of the wooden spoon is once again Marussia. We were shocked by this result last year, but this time around it simply confirms that the team's red and black livery just really isn't pushing your buttons. Not even having Jules Bianchi set the thing on fire in Germany can make it burn any brighter in your eyes! Even we thought this year's livery was a retrograde step on its predecessor (which we liked a lot at Crash.net Towers!), but in fact Marussia's average vote is slightly up on 2012 and of course the team actually gains a place in the final standings - albeit on account of HRT no longer being in the running!
