McLaren MP4-26 Mercedes

[mclaren777]

Something unusual going on behind bargeboard (as it was with R31) or its just me...?

Possibly?

[ringo]

good lord, that's one ugly mutha trucker... I couldn't help it. Looks like a star wars reject.

Brake ducts seem to be out of the way of the wide sidepods.

The high nose may not have to be too high since the air is going over as well as to the side. However i still think higher would be better.

The car is a long one, and i think this year longer cars will have the advantage in increased floor area. They just have to run enough rake to prevent boundary layer restricting the flow.

I would like to see how the radiators are located relative to the L shape.

[RacingManiac]

Makes sense ...

Too late for you to agree with me ... cos I've just changed my mind.

It's lower and less raked when compared to the 25, looks cleaner, but this brightened photo has a separate steering arm, just a little above the lower wishbone.

I think it'll be hard to integrate a rack that low to be inline with the lower wishbone, consider they are pretty much at the bottom of the tub.


I am guessing though that they purposely went with the lower pickup on the suspension to get that clearing that they are looking for for the upper sidepod airflow...

[Intego]

I would like to see how the radiators are located relative to the L shape.

I'm not quite sure if it's necessary to form this extreme L-shape. The upper quarter of the inlets seem to be useless, because there the air strikes on the border of the radiator. They could have slimmed the inlets because of their additional cooling inlets on top of/behind the airbox.
Otherwise, if they've had closed the sidepods up there, dirty air would mix with clean air, wouldn't it?

What a pity that the sidepod inlets look like ugly Korean consumer car design, but if it's efficient, I like it.

[feynman]

I would like to see how the radiators are located relative to the L shape.

Well that is one definite advantage in assembling the car as part of the launch.

In answer to your question, exotically ...

[tadzio89]

and one more:

[Germanengineering]

I would like to see how the radiators are located relative to the L shape.

I'm not quite sure if it's necessary to form this extreme L-shape. The upper quarter of the inlets seem to be useless, because there the air strikes on the border of the radiator. They could have slimmed the inlets because of their additional cooling inlets on top of/behind the airbox.
Otherwise, if they've had closed the sidepods up there, dirty air would mix with clean air, wouldn't it?

What a pity that the sidepod inlets look like ugly Korean consumer car design, but if it's efficient, I like it.

I like it. I think the the shape of the sidepods has to do with adding more downforce to the car not just cooling it.

[Intego]

BTW, why do EDIT:so many posters say they moved so much weight to the outside? I don't see that! Are eyes bigger than brains? Sorry

[timbo]

BTW, why does everyone say they moved so much weight to the outside? I don't see that! Are eyes bigger than brains? Sorry

Radiators are heavy and they moved them outwards.

[Spencifer_Murphy]

BTW, why does everyone say they moved so much weight to the outside? I don't see that! Are eyes bigger than brains? Sorry

Radiators are heavy and they moved them outwards.

Sorry but I can't see how they've been moved outwards? Does anybody have a comparison picture?

I ask because earlier somebody said that they've moved the weight higher. Well if you look at the side-by-side comparison with the MP4-25 the sidepods on the -26(thigh outer higher bits) are just as high as the sidepods on the -25. If anything the weight on the -26 has been lowered in that example.

[ringo]

BTW, why does everyone say they moved so much weight to the outside? I don't see that! Are eyes bigger than brains? Sorry

Radiators are heavy and they moved them outwards.

They've flipped them over. They now have a lower CoG.
I thought it was outwards but after looking at it, it's not really. The fatter part is just at the bottom with most of the water.



i see a button that says flap? wing button?

[timbo]

BTW, why does everyone say they moved so much weight to the outside? I don't see that! Are eyes bigger than brains? Sorry

Radiators are heavy and they moved them outwards.

They've flipped them over. They now have a lower CoG.

But a higher radius of gyration.

[feynman]

BTW, why does everyone say they moved so much weight to the outside? I don't see that! Are eyes bigger than brains? Sorry

Radiators are heavy and they moved them outwards.

But all radiators always go out to the edge of the sidepod anyway, they are all full width.

McLaren may have added a little bit at the top corner, or conversely they may have instead actually scooped a little bit out of the inside, McLaren's have always been a bit light on cooling requirements.
What I'm saying is without a direct compare to previous radiators, both length and angle, it's not really automatic to say it's either heavier or lighter just cos it is laid out like that.

Me, I'd say the cooling is hurt by being put in the dirty air (that nice chunk of clean airflow is now being sent straight to back of the car, the inlets are dominated by dirty air, so the cooling efficiency is dowm, so the rads needs to be made larger, so that's why they're a bit heavier.

[timbo]

But all radiators always go out to the edge of the sidepod anyway, they are all full width.

Usually there would be undercut and so the main area of the radiator is closer to the inside.

[ringo]

Kinda .. but in this case the centroid is lower, so it would be difficult to calculate that exactly. The lateral movement of mass is not as great as the vertical.
When taken with the whole car i can't really say what the compromise is.
Radius of gyration is important for rotating inertia, if the object is not radially symmetrical, it's difficult to say what the effect of the radiators will be since the water mass hasn't moved much laterally. It in fact had a greater movement vertically.