Mclaren Mercedes MP4-25

[f1rules]

every information you pass is appreciated, but too say they are far behind schedule because of a suspension part, they said themselfes they just finished the night before which is normal i think,

[thestig84]

every information you pass is appreciated, but too say they are far behind schedule because of a suspension part, they said themselfes they just finished the night before which is normal i think,

It wasnt because of the suspension wishbone, that was just spares most probably. Just the guy doing the wishbone knew more about the car and told a bit more info. Just said along the lines of same as every year build is behind, launch car is what they could get out for the day and test car what they can get out in time to get a base line. I shouldnt have put the 'very behind' a few posts ago, bit ott.

Not really much of a revelation I guess. I think they arent doing a redbull and missing the test so they can get the data on the new front tyres asap and put it in simulator. Just my view.

[marcush.]

every information you pass is appreciated, but too say they are far behind schedule because of a suspension part, they said themselfes they just finished the night before which is normal i think,

It wasnt because of the suspension wishbone, that was just spares most probably. Just the guy doing the wishbone knew more about the car and told a bit more info. Just said along the lines of same as every year build is behind, launch car is what they could get out for the day and test car what they can get out in time to get a base line. I shouldnt have put the 'very behind' a few posts ago, bit ott.

Not really much of a revelation I guess. I think they arent doing a redbull and missing the test so they can get the data on the new front tyres asap and put it in simulator. Just my view.

this is the one point that should ring everybodies ears....you just have to have a benchmark test to get an idea of if things correlate from theory to reality....and
as a matter of fact start to work on fudge factors ...but of course you will only know with a bit of confidence when you got correlation consistantly ...in all conditions you are facing during the development....to miss deliberately the first test with the intention to finetune aerodetailing is of course playing with fire or a sign of great confidence for the simulation you are doing.

[PlatinumZealot]

I think the first tests will be mainly to establish reliability of all parts. The wings are parts that won't break or wear down, so no need to test with the race wings right away. Therefore, I think they will initially run the "show" wings in the first tests.

[marcush.]

this is true to an extend but of course everyone faces this proving of reliability ,so the sooner the better.
Rest assured the first day will also bring good information on:
basic settings need for change of car model if simulation setup does not give the required balance.
Tyre temp and pressure rise when pushing closer to the limit validation of correct layout of all components.
to drop this test ,your allowance for things to fail is zero...any team with problems on their technical soundness will instamntly be relegated to the back ,the key is to amass as many hot laps under all possible conditions ,not to cruise around,of course .So I ´d say the first stint will be bring her up to temps and start to feel comfortable ,check the parts in a break ,to mbe sure of the systems and then go thru the performance gauging process .
then adjust your modeling to the findings and start to optimise the setup until you are peaking out.
next step is to bring new parts coming from recent development before the car ever ran.

[Pup]

Hmmm. What to make of this? The 'dead zone' comes full circle?

via Atlas...

I've heard a rumor from "a friend of a friend" that the McLaren extended engine cover is a little sneakier than people perhaps think. We know there is a "cooling" duct in there somewhere - and the rumor I've heard is that they are ducting air into the rear wing (and yes, I mean into - their rear wing main plane was hollow last year, which is how they ended up with an effective three element top rear wing) and due to clever positioning of exit ducts they are able to make the wing assembly stall at high speed.

I love rumors like this. So far fetched, yet so intriguing. They just won't die.

So is there room in that fin for a wee puff of air?

[mstar]

respected journalist James Allen reported that he heard rumours over the winter that mclaren were dissapointed with the final aero figures (just like ferrari) now these could be rumours or true like last year when we heard from some german websites that mercedes were concerned how competitive the mp4-24 is. i hope this time round the rumour is not true

[f1rules]

i quess we will know if the stalling theory is true or not when we see the top speed traps at the first GP,
If it does, then saying the duct is there for cooling electronic, is a nice disguise

[Pandamasque]

Wouldn't stall create more drag (as well as less downforce)?

[Pup]

I don't know if "stall" is the right word - maybe it is. My take is that this is about shooting air into the low pressure area behind the wing, lessening the drag. But personally, I don't know how you could vent anything into or out of a hollow wing, since the regs call for "closed sections"

But you could certainly channel air under a wing. But how to make that speed dependent without some sort of a valve? Surely anything of that sort would be deemed a movable aerodynamic device.

Ignoring all that - if there were no outlet, only an inlet which would allow the internal pressure of a hollow wing to vary with the speed of the car; well, then you could change the shape of the wing...

Highly illegal, of course, but difficult to detect.

But then any pressure you could add or subtract would probably be dwarfed by the external pressures on the wing.

[mstar]

i am not convinced unless I see it on the track. Don't you think others would of also had this idea too? mclaren cnt be the only people to see this and put it on the car.

[Pup]

Like I said, it all seems a bit far fetched.

Speaking of bendy bits, is anyone else here bothered by the fact that the top edge of the airbox and fin sags in the middle? It's aesthetically distracting to me, and is begging for a reason for doing so.

[outer_bongolia]

Like I said, it all seems a bit far fetched.

Speaking of bendy bits, is anyone else here bothered by the fact that the top edge of the airbox and fin sags in the middle? It's aesthetically distracting to me, and is begging for a reason for doing so.

I actually quite like that it's curvy. I don't see any reason why it should be like that, but definitely gives the car a sense of flow.

[Agerasia]

I don't know if "stall" is the right word - maybe it is. My take is that this is about shooting air into the low pressure area behind the wing, lessening the drag. But personally, I don't know how you could vent anything into or out of a hollow wing, since the regs call for "closed sections"

But you could certainly channel air under a wing. But how to make that speed dependent without some sort of a valve? Surely anything of that sort would be deemed a movable aerodynamic device.

Ignoring all that - if there were no outlet, only an inlet which would allow the internal pressure of a hollow wing to vary with the speed of the car; well, then you could change the shape of the wing...

Highly illegal, of course, but difficult to detect.

I actually think you are on the right track.
I would say it's going under the wing. The outlet looks tiny but the input would be from the airbox above the drivers head so would always be under positive pressure. There may even be a chamber in the fin causing it's slight bulge.
This picture gives it away to me

[thestig84]

Hmmm. What to make of this? The 'dead zone' comes full circle?

via Atlas...

I've heard a rumor from "a friend of a friend" that the McLaren extended engine cover is a little sneakier than people perhaps think. We know there is a "cooling" duct in there somewhere - and the rumor I've heard is that they are ducting air into the rear wing (and yes, I mean into - their rear wing main plane was hollow last year, which is how they ended up with an effective three element top rear wing) and due to clever positioning of exit ducts they are able to make the wing assembly stall at high speed.

I love rumors like this. So far fetched, yet so intriguing. They just won't die.

So is there room in that fin for a wee puff of air?

I heard this rumor from my friend today too! He did say it was a rumor for him too. The fin will be more cylinder like when final version arrives. It is an exciting idea!!