Formula One car development blog

McLaren have updated the cockpit ears by repositioning them to the height of the sidepods. It remains to be seen if this is a measure taken for Monza only or if this will be a permanent development. The winglet itself has largely retained the same shape with a rounded outer edge to decrease induced drag. To further improve on that side effect, the trailing edge of the stabiliser tips are neutral towards the airflow. In effect this winglet will do the same as in its previous location... Read more

As part of a new rear wing package introduced at the Nurburgring, McLaren have dropped their horns that were fitted on the McLaren cars since the beginning of 2005. The elements were designed initially to improve airflow on the rear wing under yaw. However, the new rear wing introduced now has a bumped middle section similar to the rear wing of Ferrari. It obviously improves performance under yaw and makes the horns useless. Additionally, dropping the horns will reduce overall drag ... 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.

As with any other team at Monaco, McLaren have sought for solutions to increase downforce with a minimal drag penalty. They have come up with an extra winglet fixed in between the central rear wing supports. The new item simply doesn't stretch the whole rear wing because of the technical regulations. Due to its small size, it will only add a tiny bit of downforce to the rear end of the car while not adding too much drag. In fact the winglet will cooperate with the rear wing just abo... Read more

As all teams have brought updates to Barcelona, Ferrari and especially McLaren are catching most sights. The Woking based team have developed a front wing with a "bridged" upper element over the nose cone. While most other teams attach their upper flaps onto the nose cone McLaren may have developed an improvement to that. The new layout obviously has increased potential if air above the nose needs to be conditioned. It also allows changing the angle of attack of it, contrary to the ... Read more

McLaren continue to develop their new mirrors located hidden behind the front wheels. Lewis Hamilton's car was first seen with the two extra mirrors at the latest Bahrain test. While the usual mirrors were still present, the outboard ones were fitted to the sidepod vane. It was a similar solution to what Renault had come up with. The similarities continue however as during the Sepang test, the outboard mirrors had an extra support to prevent the mirrors from shaking under high speed... Read more

All aerodynamicists in F1 agree that these days the performance gains come in details, rather than revolutionary designs. Now McLaren have relocated the front nose camera position to gain an extra bit of speed. Ferrari have also adjusted the location of the camera so that it would not prevent the front wing from working efficiently. In fact one might even think that it helps the front wing in some cases. Since engines are now hardly different in terms of power output, every little a... Read more

The test in Barcelona from 12 to 14 February saw McLaren introduce a few new aero bits, including small wings on each side of the monocoque. The idea is copied from Renault who have been running similar devices since the Canadian Grand Prix of 2006. Only available to Alonso during the test, the 'ears' are positioned like an airplane wing and therefore do produce lift instead of downforce. The primary reason for such a compromise is improved airflow towards the rear of the car where ... Read more

McLaren have impressed in the testing season so far as their cars have often proven to be the fastest among the competitors. While that may not be important, the team is also experiencing very few mechanical problems. In fact only 3 problems arose in the last few weeks of testing, with the last one being yesterday on Alonso's car. The car was fixed surprisingly fast and McLaren have stated the problem was caused by a testing program in that area of the car. Just like with a previous... Read more