Formula One car development blog

Ferrari have again added their fins on the underside of the front wing panels. It is new compared to the last races where these were unnecessary due to lower downforce requirements. While the Italian team have used similar solutions in the past, no other team have found these necessary at the French GP. The fins, as marked in the image, are mainly meant to guide airflow to flow laterally under the wing. It can slightly add to downforce but will inflict natural airflow and therefore ... Read more

The Scuderia Ferrari have understood that everything in F1 these days is about cutting through air as efficiently as possible. The team is now aggresively attacking the molecules by new "knives" located just ahead both sidepods. The elements work similar to those at Renault and Honda in order to increase the pressure at the sidepod air inlet. The difference with Ferrari's design is the angle and the sharpness of the endpoints.

As an upper midfield team these days, Williams is closely looking at the solution of other teams to solve their own problems. When at the beginning of the season the team introduced their double deck front wing, the upper elements closely resembled those of the championship winning Renault R26. Yet with their French update, the lower mainplane has been modified to be a little more curved and now also looks very similar to the Renault car, this time the R27. However, the upper panels... Read more

Toyota's 2007 runner is still lacking pace compared to the team's budget, especially in the hands of Ralf Schumacher. Fortunately the team is improving step by step by introducing new parts. This time around the new aero package includes a new engine cover. The upper part of the image shows that new design, following the trend set by McLaren and new used by BMW and Ferrari too. The extra surface in the upper area allows for a cleaner airflow towards the rear wing and is expected to ... Read more

Ferrari have been working on their carbon rim shields for quite a while now, starting in the beginning of last season. With now also Toyota and Renault continuously running with rim attachments on the rear wheels, Ferrari have now come with front wheel cooling aids glued inside the rim. Contrary to the rear wheel where only a small opening is left for air cooling, at the front the modification is far more modest. A small curved ring is fitted to improve the airflow from the brakes t... Read more

Although it's starting to look rare these days, Renault ran an unstacked front wing to fit the lower drag requirements at Montreal. The upper elements were removed, making the front wing look more like an item from 2005. The team also dropped their mid wing for this race and most likely will retain a similar configuration for the Indianapolis race. While it is visible, note the little gurney flap at the trailing outer edge of the wing. This effectively creates more downforce at the ... Read more

Just like in several races earlier in 2007, Super Aguri is testing a new front wing during Friday practice. In fact it is still the same doubled front wing as earlier this season, and so it appears as it the team is unsure about its performance advantages. Yet again both drivers reverted to a simpler wing without upper planes and with a different curve in the main plane. Note that both of the wings seen at Montreal consist of two elements, contrary to the three part wings that most ... Read more

On some of the highest speed circuits of the calendar, it is important to have as low drag as possible. The best way to do that without compromising downforce is by tweaking winglets and panels to guide air without interfering with it. McLaren have done so by cutting out a slice of the sidepod panel. The new design - in the upper part of the image - allows more air to flow around the chimney instead of being squeezed in the inside of the sidepod panel.

Just like their new front wing, Ferrari made several circuit specific changes. First of all the brake ducts have been sized up compared to the previous races. The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is notorious for its braking requirements and many teams have experienced problems before due to insufficient braking. The second mark points at a much talked about vane added to the upright of the front wheels. It could be considered an unsprung aerodynamic device and it remains unclear why other... Read more

In recent years, teams moved from straight, horizontal elements on their rear wings to curves in all possible ways. This year several teams, including McLaren, Red Bull and Renault have opted for simpler wings in their medium downforce configurations. Williams and Ferrari on the other hand are the exemptions on this rule. The British team have now developed a wing that sweeps up in the centre of the car. It mimics the design of a Renault wing at Bahrain 2006. The design aims to gene... Read more