.AlphaTauri still “aligned” despite Tost's no trust comments
AlphaTauri Formula 1 technical director Jody Egginton says that the Faenza outfit remans “aligned”
despite public criticism from team principal Franz Tost.
By:
Adam Cooper
Apr 10, 2023
Tsunoda and Iwasa would be Honda's (HRC's) preferred lineup.
.Come along with me behind the scenes of my 2023 Pre-Season training camp in Dubai.
Jet skis, dune buggies and boxing!
.Junaid #JB17 @JunaidSamodien_
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Motorsport Italy - The technical director of the Faenza team analyzes the package of upgrades that have been brought to Melbourne: the AT04 has a modified floor in various parts which should allow the car to find more aerodynamic load and better balance.
Having a basis on which to start development, we will see a series of changes appear up until Imola, when a second block of important innovations will make their debut, but growth will be gradual, race by race.
Jody Egginton, Technical Director: "We have brought a new floor to Melbourne and the innovations concern every aspect of the floor edge, although I'm not sure if it is right to define it as a big change. I'd rather talk about lots of small updates: starting with the design of the floor which allows for a different manipulation of the flow that descends from the sides of the body towards the floor".
Egginton: "We have also worked to reduce losses due to the rear tyre. That messy flow that is caused by the tire greatly affects the performance of the speaker. The new aerodynamic map is worth a few points, and is slightly biased towards the performance that can be obtained with higher ground clearance when the single-seater is at low speed. We believe we have found a good working foundation on the floor. This is the first step of five or six evolutions foreseen this year."
Egginton: "We found that the data correlated well, so we can now work on developing bellies and increasing the energy of certain vortices. That in and of itself is an upgrade that makes flow structures healthier"
How much is this package worth in terms of lap time?
Egginton: "There are two aspects that must be considered: the increase in downforce, which can be worth up to a couple of tenths, but also the improvement in the flow pattern on the floor."
When will the next development be?
Egginton: "It is scheduled for Race 6 at Imola, together with updates to the bodywork. But first, we will have some new parts arriving in Baku that had not yet been brought to the track and also some parts in Miami."
"So there will be things visible at almost every event. We have adopted a quite different strategy compared to last year, when we brought bigger packages but limited to a few races."
Egginton: "We are trying to solve our problems. At the moment at low speeds where we don't have enough downforce."
The Red Bull RB19 has suspension that maximizes the anti-dive effect in front and the anti-squat effect in the rear. Will you also go in that direction?
Egginton: "That's a really good question. If we think back to the beginning of '21, when we studied the ground effect regulation, each team had an idea of how to develop the front suspension layout, and, in fact, last year we saw some quite different solutions."
"Before the teams began the actual design work, they had an understanding of the bottom that was likely to be very different. So it's possible that a team using a rather extreme pull rod solution already had a curb concept closer to the one they're using now."
"Thinking about the future, therefore, it is necessary to think about what kind of fund we will have. I wouldn't say that the pull rod scheme is much better at the moment, but Red Bull is certainly extreme and has the fastest car."
The Red Bull front suspension takes the anti-dive effect to an extreme…
Egginton: "Yes, the anti-dive effect is taken to an extreme due to aerodynamic reasons. It is not a choice used for mechanical purposes."
"Sure, we have a view on what's best kinematically, but it's the aerodynamics that have the final say. Everyone comes to similar solutions, but there are some extreme solutions out there. The pull rod has some advantages and the push rod has others."
"The choice of layout must be balanced with the development of the floor and the type of frame you want to build the following year".
Motor IT: With ground effect cars it seems that there is a certain difficulty in finding a balance of behavior in all phases of the curve…
Egginton: "Yes, the data with the previous regulation were rather refined. We had worked a lot on cornering balance with a high rake car."
"But we have gone from a single-seater that at times was traveling with a static rear height of 160mm to one that turns very low. A new balance must be found, after having come to terms with porpoising, which can give results in lap time."
"When we have found the right balance, then we will be able to think about how to change the balance with mechanical solutions…".
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The 22-year-old went from Japanese F4 to his drive at AlphaTauri in the space of just three years. Since his points-scoring debut in 2021, Yuki has certainly caught the eye of many. But 2023 is a huge year. With Pierre Gasly leaving for Alpine, Tsunoda is now the team leader. How he performs this season will have a huge impact on his future in the sport.
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