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Wrong! Mercedes definitely modified the inlet for the chasis as well as the cooling and the radiators was positioned differently. As toto put it "it was a big surgery "Vaexa wrote: ↑12 Feb 2024, 00:42Mercedes did not change any structural components for their Monaco update other than front suspension geometry (and even then, I believe they still reused the same pickup points). Certainly not the tub.trinidefender wrote: ↑11 Feb 2024, 23:34The chassis probably had to be modified when the new sidepods were put on. Wouldn't be feasible to change them back for those races. Also means that they learn less of the new concept reducing potential performance that they will be able to extract from the new package
Mercedes opted to lower the front arm of the upper triangle, thereby increasing the anti-squat to keep the aerodynamic platform of its own car as stable as possible, and consequently those of its customers, such as Aston Martin and Williams. But what stands out quite clearly is the compromise found on the push-rod by the former world champion team. In fact, the push-rod arm is positioned rather horizontally, especially when compared to the competitors' specifications. This is a compromise that tends to favor the aerodynamic effect of the profile over the purely mechanical part, which will be more difficult to control, especially when it comes to shock absorber excursions. However, in the design of any suspension, designers always make important compromises, whether in terms of angles, attachments or positioning of the internal suspension components. For this very reason, the Mercedes rear suspension is the first major new feature of this 2024 F1 season
I find it interesting that Mercedes not only switched to rear push-rod (which brings some risks with it as it's quite a drastic change, at least in some aspects) but also seems to have gone for a very aggressive push-rod concept that differs from what other teams (like Red Bull) ran last year. Gives me some hope that they have a good reason for making the change and they have something specific in mind with the overall concept, rather than making the change simply to eliminate a variable. If you recall, Mercedes said one of the reasons for the new sidepod spec was more just wanting to eliminate the question around whether the zero-pod was at fault, rather than an overarching philosophy that was driving the decision. But it seems like they're not just copying other teams' design with the suspension. Makes me excited to see what they show on Wednesday!Luscion wrote: ↑12 Feb 2024, 19:19Snippet from Formu1aUno article - https://formu1a.uno/ecco-perche-la-nuov ... -stagione/
Mercedes opted to lower the front arm of the upper triangle, thereby increasing the anti-squat to keep the aerodynamic platform of its own car as stable as possible, and consequently those of its customers, such as Aston Martin and Williams. But what stands out quite clearly is the compromise found on the push-rod by the former world champion team. In fact, the push-rod arm is positioned rather horizontally, especially when compared to the competitors' specifications. This is a compromise that tends to favor the aerodynamic effect of the profile over the purely mechanical part, which will be more difficult to control, especially when it comes to shock absorber excursions. However, in the design of any suspension, designers always make important compromises, whether in terms of angles, attachments or positioning of the internal suspension components. For this very reason, the Mercedes rear suspension is the first major new feature of this 2024 F1 season
Not without having the chassis crash-tested by the FIA. That was not reported anywhere.Gabriox wrote: ↑12 Feb 2024, 16:49Wrong! Mercedes definitely modified the inlet for the chasis as well as the cooling and the radiators was positioned differently. As toto put it "it was a big surgery "Vaexa wrote: ↑12 Feb 2024, 00:42Mercedes did not change any structural components for their Monaco update other than front suspension geometry (and even then, I believe they still reused the same pickup points). Certainly not the tub.trinidefender wrote: ↑11 Feb 2024, 23:34
The chassis probably had to be modified when the new sidepods were put on. Wouldn't be feasible to change them back for those races. Also means that they learn less of the new concept reducing potential performance that they will be able to extract from the new package
For a team that "doesn't under the regulations", Mercedes have still been very fast!stonehenge wrote: ↑10 Feb 2024, 23:35It’s the same story for the suspension. Anti-dive anti-squat isn’t a silver bullet—it comes with tradeoffs. It’s all about whether you correctly understand how to make all areas of the car work well together. That’s something Mercedes has yet to show in the past two years. They need to make a big step this year and prove they understand the direction they need to take, even if they ultimately aren’t as quick as Red Bull because the regulations won’t change that much in 2026 and they need to get the hang of this before 2025.
15:42 (bit earlier if you want context)There was in some of his language a certain hint of slight frustration, not massively but you just feel that maybe they thought there was a bit more they could do.
