Formula One car development blog

Sidepod panels that extend down to the barge boards are the new must-have. Red Bull have created their version on the idea, rather similar to Renault's design. It appears as if the two teams are working together, as on the same day, Renault introduced its Red Bull style engine cover. The new panels help to streamline turbulent air from behind the rear wheel and can potentially add quite some downforce at the back end of the car. Part of that extra downforce is also provided by the n... Read more

Although not spectacular, Ferrari's F2008 is a car in constant evolution. At Barcelona, the barge board were again updated (see image). Previously, the diagonal edge was slightly shorter, while during winter testing there was only a vertical edge. Variations of this diagonal edge barge board was also seen at Red Bull and provides a means of combining the best of both worlds: jagged edged and straight edged barge boards.

It start to look like Toyota is playing a game with us. All the way through 2007, the team used standard mirrors attached to the cockpit sides. Then, at their TF108 launch, it was with great surprise to see that they had chosen to move the mirrors outboard and fix them onto the sidepod panels, similar to Renault's solution on their R27. However, the first three races were again run with a more conventional system. A temporary measure it seems as a completely new design was unpacked ... Read more

Almost one year ago and also at a test session at Barcelona, Honda uncovered its RA107 with elephant ears. While the ears were never raced in 2007, they are back on the RA108. Today, Honda showed off a slimmed down version of their ears. The aerofoils are now smaller but extend higher above the nose. It remains to be seen whether it will be used in races this year, but there is a possibility that the FIA will opt against it, either for security reasons or because it hinders the sigh... Read more

Renault is the first team to have copied Red Bull's overside engine cover. The team must have looked closely to its fellow Renault powered team as the item very much resembles Red Bull's design. The British team introduced theirs at the last test before the start of the season, while Alonso has been busy trying the item in the second day of Barcelona testing. The team also chose to fit their car with the raced front wing instead of the new one in order to better analyse the performa... Read more

Ferrari have once again introduced a completely new concept in Formula One, now by cutting open the nose cone and creating a channel through the nose itself. Although the idea is not new and has been discussed in the F1technical forum extensively, it is the first real implementation.
The idea originates from the fact that the nose cone obstructs the front wing's upward air stream. In the centre of the wing, the airflow previously hit the underside of the cone, creating extra drag an... Read more

Force India continue their development programme on the VJM-01 and introduced a new set of front wing endplates. The new design - in the upper part of the image - sees the removal of the long used bulge at the top end of the endplate. A small winglet behind the horizontal stabiliser was added for that bit of extra downforce. Also noted is a gurney flap that the team added to the wing when used in combination with the new endplate. At the race however, Sutil opted for the previous - ... Read more

Renault have added some extra downforce on the R28 to cope with the braking and acceleration requirements of the Bahrain track. Just like Ferrari, the team opted to create a new front wing with more panel surface, especially in the centre of the car. In Renault's case this means that the nose cone is now deep in between the front wing's upper plane. In addition to that, both drivers are now running with a straight rear wing. The model was already run at Australia and Malaysia, but i... Read more

After Renault did so at their car launch and Toyota at Melbourne, Red Bull have now apparently also removed their outboard mirrors and replaced them with their previous design. On Friday there was no change compared to the Melbourne spec but as of Saturday morning, both cars were adapted with the now more favourable design. While it is unclear if this is a temporary change, it is understood that the move was to solve the reduced visibility.

Red Bull have recently developed a new barge board and introduced it at the Australian GP. It was used again in Malaysia and is likely to stay on the RB4. The new carbon panel also features a jagged upper edge, similar to Ferrari's design of several years. The jags are however not rectangular which makes it different from other designs.
Besides the main panel, there is a new, smaller panel ahead of the main barge board which helps direct airflow around the sidepods. The two boards a... Read more