2023 Mercedes-AMG | Petronas F1 Team

[AR3-GP]

Shouldn’t we wait until this hits the track at least before calling that?

If this car is actually worse than the previous spec…that would be some feat.

[Juzh]

Shouldn’t we wait until this hits the track at least before calling that?

If this car is actually worse than the previous spec…that would be some feat.

Unlikely, this is mercedes, not 2018 ferrari

[PlatinumZealot]

Still zero pod

I read Toto's words very carefully. This design is a testing step to remove certain factors from the equation. This does not have to be chosen design. They could change it after a couple races. And as whether it is zero-pod or not, depends on the overall size.. you could say it is an evolution of it.. but then again this design is not the final one. Just a crude one for testing.

"Toto Wolff:
It's a lack of comprehension of what it is that makes this car such a nasty piece of work

I think what we're trying to do with the upgrade is to create a new baseline and for us to take question marks out of the equation and say, this is not the problem now that we have gone to a different concept.

This is what is happening with the front suspension and we are looking at bodywork solutions that are more conventional than ours, and that are going to create a different airflow.
https://au.motorsport.com/f1/news/wolff ... /10466352/"

[PlatinumZealot]

Expecting a zero-pod-ramp-undercut.

[Cs98]

That’s not the exclusive purpose. But if a team were to repeatedly tell a non-truth in regards to the technical aspects of the car, I should think “F1technical” would be the website you can talk about it.

Anyways, I made my point. Now I look forward to seeing the performance of the new spec car.

You literally had Wolf state they would change the pods if the science dictated that in February 2023.
"there are no sacred cows, if it requires a change we will do so according to the data"

At the time it is very plausible the data backed up continuation of the pods. Since then they've had their tests which brought up issues that meant a change was required. A fact backed up by this statement from Elliott after FP1 in Bahrain on the 3rd of March:

Toto already said we’ve got a different bodywork coming; it won't be the same as other people’s and it won’t be the same as we’ve got, it’ll be different.

“It’s part of the normal development. We have got a very different sidepod coming – I say very different, a different sidepod that’s coming. I think Toto said that in the press. But it takes time to bring that. It takes time to make the bits, it takes time to change the bits that go underneath the bodywork to fit, so we’ll bring it as soon as we can,”

If a team gives a concept time to come through given that Budget caps don't allow for a total redesign, they should really be allowed to do so without being called liars. Would you do so on the Ferrari thread for example, as their upgrades missed target and they have their own design path? Where would the technical value be in that?

Because we already have provable statements from the team to state they had to be absolutely sure they were wrong and they would change if data dictated.

A point that's compounded because they had windtunnel issues and actually fired staff because the margin parameters were not met(according to formulaUno). So there is smoke to the fire of why there is confusion surrounding their quandary.

And we also have verifiable statements from them during this season that the new side pods will look nothing like the other teams and that putting a “RB style” pod on the car will change literally nothing. From the pictures we’ve seen so far, they look pretty similar to other teams. At least in so much as what they can legally change on the car. They obviously can’t move things like the SIS.

[JordanMugen]

It's almost like having some way of guiding and aligning the airflow to the (upper) rear of the car (beam wing, diffuser, rear wing etc) when the car is in yaw is important...

If this sidepod bodywork helps Mercedes' issue of unpredictable downforce in yaw, that would be quite something!

But I'm sure they had good reasons to suppose the launch-spec W14 was the superior prospect to start the season.

[AR3-GP]

But I'm sure they had good reasons to suppose the launch-spec W14 was the superior prospect to start the season.

Maybe a character building exercise?

[Just_a_fan]

But I'm sure they had good reasons to suppose the launch-spec W14 was the superior prospect to start the season.

Maybe a character building exercise?

Or a stop-gap car whilst they built the real W14 having decided at the end of the winter that they needed to change lots of stuff.

[taperoo2k]

It's almost like having some way of guiding and aligning the airflow to the (upper) rear of the car (beam wing, diffuser, rear wing etc) when the car is in yaw is important...

If this sidepod bodywork helps Mercedes' issue of unpredictable downforce in yaw, that would be quite something!

But I'm sure they had good reasons to suppose the launch-spec W14 was the superior prospect to start the season.

I guess we'll probably see several upgrade packages for the W14 over the season. It might well be the test bed for the W15, with incremental performance gains. I think they need about 1 second to get near Red Bull, I don't think they'd get that with one upgrade package.

I think the far more important part of this upgrade are the changes to the suspension and other parts of the mechanical platform of the car. Get those right and Mercedes should then be able to run the car lower to the ground without any unwanted bouncing etc.

[AR3-GP]

It's almost like having some way of guiding and aligning the airflow to the (upper) rear of the car (beam wing, diffuser, rear wing etc) when the car is in yaw is important...

If this sidepod bodywork helps Mercedes' issue of unpredictable downforce in yaw, that would be quite something!

But I'm sure they had good reasons to suppose the launch-spec W14 was the superior prospect to start the season.

I guess we'll probably see several upgrade packages for the W14 over the season. It might well be the test bed for the W15, with incremental performance gains. I think they need about 1 second to get near Red Bull, I don't think they'd get that with one upgrade package.

I doubt it. They'll have taken a wallop out of the budget cap with this current package that included new front suspension, floor, diffuser, sidepods and all the underlying chassis architecture that was modified to fit it.

[chrisc90]

Be a big test for their suspension given last years performance at Monaco with the bumps.

[mendis]

I am going to miss the zero pods. It was an engineering Marvel.

[taperoo2k]

It's almost like having some way of guiding and aligning the airflow to the (upper) rear of the car (beam wing, diffuser, rear wing etc) when the car is in yaw is important...

If this sidepod bodywork helps Mercedes' issue of unpredictable downforce in yaw, that would be quite something!

But I'm sure they had good reasons to suppose the launch-spec W14 was the superior prospect to start the season.

I guess we'll probably see several upgrade packages for the W14 over the season. It might well be the test bed for the W15, with incremental performance gains. I think they need about 1 second to get near Red Bull, I don't think they'd get that with one upgrade package.

I doubt it. They'll have taken a wallop out of the budget cap with this current package that included new front suspension, floor, diffuser, sidepods and all the underlying chassis architecture that was modified to fit it.

They likely have enough budget left for a certain number of upgrades and tweaks at certain tracks. This is the baseline from which Mercedes will be working from going forward. Looks like the concept they've chased for the last few years has been well and truly ditched. I'd guess for the next few races they'll be working on different set ups to find what works and what doesn't.

[CaribouBread]

Will be interesting to see if the drivers have any comments regarding the suspension 'feel' seeing as this is a significant change in geometry mid season. Specially from Lewis. My amateur assumption would be this sort of anti-dive geometry to have less tyre feel, will this negatively impact Lewis, as he's already said he doesn't have a good feel for the front?

[mendis]

With such a big upgrade do they have money left to build any further upgrades for this year?