What happens if a driver crashes his formula one car?

Answer 1

Ayrton Senna 1st May 1994 at San Marino GP

Day before Roland Ratzenburger died.

Day before that, Rubens Barrichello had a nasty accident.

Probably Formula One's darkest weekend.

Answer 2

He's out of the race.

If you're asking about the structural integrity and safety of the car, then I can answer that, too.

F1 cars are built as a monocoque, meaning "one piece", as the chassis is what you see. The only additional bodywork are the wings. Everything else is a strong, solid structure. It is made out of layers of carbon fiber which is an extremely strong material for how much it weight. This not only saves weight but it also creates somewhat of a shell around the driver, protecting him from the impact.

In the event of a roll over, this is where the engine cover comes into play. The air scoop of the engine cover also doubles as a very rigid roll bar if the car were to land upside down. It forms an arch behind the driver that is built into the monocoque thus supporting the weight if it flips. But seeing a modern-day Formula 1 car flip upside down is a very rare occurrence. those cars produce thousands of pounds of downforce that they're pretty much aerodynamically stuck to the track.