2026 Aerodynamic & Chassis Regulations

[chrstphrln]

I have massive doubts that active aerodynamics makes any sense.
There is no DRS, instead there is a push-to-pass button. Okay.
But why the heck should the wings be movable now if every driver can do it on every lap on certain sections of the track anyway?
Why not just leave it at that and save unnecessary weight and error-prone technology?

I think that's a wrong approach.

[BigBeansBoy]

Here we have FIA giving us a sneak preview at the next regs from their teaser video

See flat floor, 2019 style rear wing, inwashing floor fence, large inwashing FW endplates, limited diffuser

https://i.imgur.com/i2fasMS.jpeg

Front wing looks very interesting

https://i.imgur.com/M1nfKIZ.png

Here's a screenshot with both wings from their video. Both seem very much prescribed, but there's some volume for front endplate and footplate that might result in some interesting rule interpretations.

https://i.ibb.co/Y3pqn3Q/2026-preview-1.jpg

Overall, here's what I see from screenshots and especially the rule boxes:

1) front wing very prescribed, reduced to 3 profiles and an elaborate footplate geometry, not sure why it's needed; no indication there will be a front DRS system yet

2) nose detached from the wing like pre-2009 cars and the wing sweep looks a lot smaller finally

3) nose to cockpit fully prescribed, much like it is today

4) no bargeboards or even turning vanes like today, inwash outboard vane looks very unnatural (and goes opposed to how the flow tends to go outboard behind front tyre) and especially the inboard footplate

5) floor inlet is not too low, but much lower than today, since there are no vanes like today it will be a challenge to make it ingest as much air as the rules allow I think

6) splitter and keel look smaller and shorter than today, there is probably some scope for gray areas to enlarge or reduce some elements in this area where these rule boxes meet

7) sidepod inlets have a big sweep, bigger than today I think; mirrors and mirrors stalks look very much the same as today

8 ) there is this curious gray box around the cockpit, hard to tell if it protrudes the green sidepod box, could be the box where the Halo winglets are allowed to be or something like that

9) sidepods are allowed to be as wide as the floor and it will be curious to see how teams will exploit them again, I might make a separate analysis on them later; right now I feel like the downwash solution won't be the clear winner like it is today

10) floor edge and rear corner look like they will be completely flat, but we need to wait for the rules to be released definitely

11) diffuser is much smaller than today, but looks bigger than what was allowed in pre-2022 rule set; the bottom edge of the wall is moved up quite a lot and this will not help keep the dirty air out at all

12) beam wing looks tiny and borderline insignificant, it will have very little interaction with diffuser as things stand and I'm not sure why diffuser is not extended all the way to it, this way it will result in lower efficiency as well as (intended) lower downforce levels

13) rear wing will have 3 elements and 2 will move as we see from the videos; the height of the wing looks much lower than ever before, while the span is decent and it should be a good and efficient design; endplates are almost back to pre-2022 standard

14) rear wing brackets are almost mandated and single pylon solutions won't be possible, while swan neck solutions don't seem to be possible either

If these really are the final 2026 rule boxes, we will get cars as close to spec F1 cars as possible. The (only) good thing is having shorter cars, both with front wing overhang and shorter WB and it's really noticeable on this rule box model. I think there will be some raked cars again, especially if front wing is not as high as it is today.

With all the testing/research on the rain tyre flaps being negligible because of the rooster tail produced by the diffuser, I wonder if they’re weakening the floor/diffuser to try and make rain racing possible.

[organic]

I have massive doubts that active aerodynamics makes any sense.
There is no DRS, instead there is a push-to-pass button. Okay.
But why the heck should the wings be movable now if every driver can do it on every lap on certain sections of the track anyway?
Why not just leave it at that and save unnecessary weight and error-prone technology?

I think that's a wrong approach.

The FIA have explained this themselves. They need the drag reduction at front and rear in order to prevent drivers from lift and coasting halfway down every straight.

The new engine formula requires significantly less drag and active aero was the way to achieve this without losing too much downforce.

[Vanja #66]

MOM (Manual override mode) will be available for one lap only by the looks of it, so if you don't succeed on time you will be stuck. It seems it will be more powerful than current DRS delta, 100kW difference is no small thing and other strategies over the lap will allow the driver to prepare the attack for the optimal place. Like I said earlier, PU strategies and how drivers will use them will be a completely new and interesting aspect next year.

Imagine the defending driver switching PU mode to full power for that one lap and trying to create a 8-9 tenths gap before the main straight with aggressive tyre usage and e-drive mapping focused on acceleration. Doing this for one lap may allow them to keep the position they'd otherwise lose. On the other hand, the attacking driver can back off to 1+ seconds and the get back into 1s gap and get another lap with more power and harvesting. Intelligent drivers and clever track engineering teams will figure things out very quickly.

Full active aero is about 15 years too late in F1 and we are finally getting it. Lowering the drag on straights is a massive step for overall energy efficiency. Hopefully more active elements (like diffuser ramp, maybe some rear bodywork elements) will be allowed in the future

[wuzak]

How much power will be available to the drivers when they engage "manual override". it seems like it is not just going to replace DRS but with the active aero there will be less of a tow for those behind.

I look the look of the cars but I wish they'd gone a bit further with the reduction in size and weight. I still feel the cars are too big and heavy and not optimal for overtaking.

Edit: Power question is answered above.

It won't help much at Monaco.

The current cars are topping out at less than 290kph, a speed at which the boost is 0.

In regular mode the MGUK power reduces 5kW per kph between 290kph and 340kph, and 20kW per kph up to 345kph and is 0kW above 345kph.

In override mode, power remains constant to 337.5kph, then falls at 20kW per kph to 355kph and is 0kW above 355kph.

[AMG.Tzan]

MOM (Manual override mode) will be available for one lap only by the looks of it, so if you don't succeed on time you will be stuck. It seems it will be more powerful than current DRS delta, 100kW difference is no small thing and other strategies over the lap will allow the driver to prepare the attack for the optimal place. Like I said earlier, PU strategies and how drivers will use them will be a completely new and interesting aspect next year.

Imagine the defending driver switching PU mode to full power for that one lap and trying to create a 8-9 tenths gap before the main straight with aggressive tyre usage and e-drive mapping focused on acceleration. Doing this for one lap may allow them to keep the position they'd otherwise lose. On the other hand, the attacking driver can back off to 1+ seconds and the get back into 1s gap and get another lap with more power and harvesting. Intelligent drivers and clever track engineering teams will figure things out very quickly.

Full active aero is about 15 years too late in F1 and we are finally getting it. Lowering the drag on straights is a massive step for overall energy efficiency. Hopefully more active elements (like diffuser ramp, maybe some rear bodywork elements) will be allowed in the future

Why only one lap??

Plus having such low drag cars on the straight will probably make the slipstream effect disappear altogether…won’t it??

[organic]

Plus having such low drag cars on the straight will probably make the slipstream effect disappear altogether…won’t it??

I can see the diffuser differences and focus on inwash of front wing/floor fence we could have strong slipstream still

[Marble]

Has anyone properly that mode Z / mode X ?

Mode X sounds pretty straightforward : minimal drag and downforce for straight-line.
Mode Z doesn't sound clear to me. Does it mean when you're not in mode X, you're necessarily in mode Z for corners (more downforce). Or are there 3 modes ? A standard one, a lower drag/downforce for straights, and a Z mode for specific corners ?

[Just_a_fan]

Plus having such low drag cars on the straight will probably make the slipstream effect disappear altogether…won’t it??

I can see the diffuser differences and focus on inwash of front wing/floor fence we could have strong slipstream still

If they're ripping 50%+ of the drag away from both cars, then they're ripping away the wake which gives the tow to allow for an overtake at the end of the straight. With both cars having the wings "doing the DRS", every car is going to be in a DRS train every lap. It's basically going to be the same as it was prior to DRS being introduced.

[wuzak]

MOM (Manual override mode) will be available for one lap only by the looks of it, so if you don't succeed on time you will be stuck. It seems it will be more powerful than current DRS delta, 100kW difference is no small thing and other strategies over the lap will allow the driver to prepare the attack for the optimal place. Like I said earlier, PU strategies and how drivers will use them will be a completely new and interesting aspect next year.

Hopefully there is no penalty for using it, as using it will deplete the energy store faster.

So it may be available every lap, but the driver will lack energy for the rest of the lap.

Imagine the defending driver switching PU mode to full power for that one lap and trying to create a 8-9 tenths gap before the main straight with aggressive tyre usage and e-drive mapping focused on acceleration. Doing this for one lap may allow them to keep the position they'd otherwise lose. On the other hand, the attacking driver can back off to 1+ seconds and the get back into 1s gap and get another lap with more power and harvesting. Intelligent drivers and clever track engineering teams will figure things out very quickly.

It is only available above 290kph, so mostly on straights.

It will have to be used tactically, and sparingly, as these cars look to be energy poor.

Full active aero is about 15 years too late in F1 and we are finally getting it. Lowering the drag on straights is a massive step for overall energy efficiency. Hopefully more active elements (like diffuser ramp, maybe some rear bodywork elements) will be allowed in the future

What about active cooling ducts?

Piston engine aircraft from teh WW2 era had adjustable exit flaps to control the mass flow through the radiator or cooling fins.

The Allison P-51s/Mustang I/II even had an adjustable inlet.

Could doing something similar also give a drag benefit?

Some road cars have panels to close off or open cooling ducts depending on cooling and aero needs.

[wuzak]

Why couldn't they also copy the pointy noses from 2008, these fat noses are so F2 and ugly

Are nose shapes prescribed in this ruleset?

I imagine that it is defined to some degree, for the frontal impact test, if nothing else.

[Vanja #66]

What about active cooling ducts?

Piston engine aircraft from teh WW2 era had adjustable exit flaps to control the mass flow through the radiator or cooling fins.

The Allison P-51s/Mustang I/II even had an adjustable inlet.

Could doing something similar also give a drag benefit?

Some road cars have panels to close off or open cooling ducts depending on cooling and aero needs.

Yes, absolutely, variable outlet geometry would be a nice add on. P-51 had a variable outlet and at high speeds the whole radiator ducting system actually generated thrust due to massive nozzle outlet velocity.

[Zynerji]

Why couldn't they also copy the pointy noses from 2008, these fat noses are so F2 and ugly

Bring back the Bridge wings from 2008!!!

[Zynerji]

Plus having such low drag cars on the straight will probably make the slipstream effect disappear altogether…won’t it??

I can see the diffuser differences and focus on inwash of front wing/floor fence we could have strong slipstream still

If they're ripping 50%+ of the drag away from both cars, then they're ripping away the wake which gives the tow to allow for an overtake at the end of the straight. With both cars having the wings "doing the DRS", every car is going to be in a DRS train every lap. It's basically going to be the same as it was prior to DRS being introduced.

NASCAR style side-drafting will still work with these big tyres.

[CaribouBread]

Didn't expect the front wing to be that wide still! The footplate still covers the front wheels.

Also, is it just missing in this model or have they removed the front wheel brows? Strange rollback.
I don't quite understand how the teams will square the "inwash floor inlet vane" with the "front wheel wake" circle.

Wonder what sort of suspension changes will get introduced with active aero shenanigans.