Mercedes GP W02

[NewtonMeter]

Personally, I'm not overly concerned.

I really do believe that they'll make a step up and be able to challenge the powerhouses. And I also believe the collective bandwagon jumping is premature.

For me, as a fan of the team, I will be satisfied with a win on merit. Once that has been achieved, I will consider the season a success.

And I think it's possible. Daimler has had some more input into the car (tyre sim technology IIRC) and the team just seems more organised and methodical.

I believe with the current package, the team is only really concerned with the mechanical aspects such as reliability, suspesion and tyre behaviour as this was their weakness last year and they seem determined not to make the same mistakes. The aero on the car seems very straight forward and plain and is a sure sign more is to come.

I also believe the pretty bad (let's be honest) reliability skewed the picture somewhat. Let's not forget that on the two days in which the car ran well, Michael did pretty good times.

Yeah, the dropoff was quite nasty, but I do believe that can be ironed out with some decent setup work and tyre choices.

What I don't like much is Ross Brawn initially saying that at the new spec will arrive at tests 3 and 4. And now he's saying it will be available at Bahrain. Whether he means the test at Bahrain or the first race, I don't know. He said in his latest interview that the spec has recently been finalised, so I guess it's reasonable to assume he means the Bahrain test. But perhaps they found a few shortcomings and want to gives themselves the extra time to do a proper job at mending them and not do a quick and nasty botch job, in which case I'm all for it.

My hope for the Barca test however, is for them to do many laps which are consistent. If it's not awefully fast laps, I wouldn't mind that much, as long as it's not dead slow ones. Also, I would hope for them that the results match the models.

[NewtonMeter]

Schumacher on bbc

After three of the four days of running, Schumacher has set the fastest time in Jerez with a lap he recorded on the second day. He admitted it was on the gripper 'super-soft tyres' that many of the other teams had not run.

Which would explain the dropoff.

[Med4224]

Those examples are few and far between and really borders on hair splitting to find faults........ The really successful cars have all tended to share those traits regardless. Kind of the point really in the context of Mercedes.

every successful car is clean looking
but not every clean looking car is successful

"Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler." Alber Einstein

[JohnsonsEvilTwin]

@ Tarzoon

Other teams also used the supersoft tyre, Massa and Barrichello both used it.

[tarzoon]

Other teams also used the supersoft tyre, Massa and Barrichello both used it.

Barrichello is not the best example and Massa is AT LEAST 6 tent(h)s slower than Alonso. As you said before, let's hope the car comes together in Bahrain with the final bits, civil protests permitting (not being funny here).

However, I still wonder (considering the comparison correct) if the wheelbase is that much shorter, particularly after last year's performance

[JohnsonsEvilTwin]

Other teams also used the supersoft tyre, Massa and Barrichello both used it.

Barrichello is not the best example and Massa is AT LEAST 6 tent(h)s slower than Alonso. As you said before, let's hope the car comes together in Bahrain with the final bits, civil protests permitting (not being funny here).

However, I still wonder (considering the comparison correct) if the wheelbase is that much shorter, particularly after last year's performance

I will find the excerpts of whos time was done using which tyre.
It should be note that the W02 time was set with over 10 laps worth of fuel on board.

[Med4224]

Other teams also used the supersoft tyre, Massa and Barrichello both used it.

Barrichello is not the best example and Massa is AT LEAST 6 tent(h)s slower than Alonso. As you said before, let's hope the car comes together in Bahrain with the final bits, civil protests permitting (not being funny here).

However, I still wonder (considering the comparison correct) if the wheelbase is that much shorter, particularly after last year's performance

Doesn't matter who was on which tyres or what fuel
times are meaningless unless you know all the facts
Schumacher's time on top is nice to see, but it is meaningless

We don't have enough stats to compare the teams.

Sauber were second one day of testing, please tell me how that fits into this?
Does that mean sauber will be in the running this year?

Oh dear Lord

[Raptor22]

Splitting hairs really, and quite frankly, effectively a new car (minus the 'compromises' he mentions) is exactly the impression that Ross Brawn is giving with his comments. Why would you choose not to test anything that you're going to be using all season until Friday morning in Bahrain? It makes no sense to me at all. You have such limited testing time as it is.

Attention to detail is all, and the best people always have a bit of an OCD complex. They make sure things are flush, there are no jagged leading edges, they don't create any unnecessary or risky changes in airflow, things are symmetrical and lined up with each other...... You saw it with Colin Chapman, today with Adrian Newey and his group of people and I see it with Renault this season as well. With some projects you can probably get away with something average, but you're on the bleeding edge in this sport.

typical fan boy thinking.

Aerodyamics you can simulate foarly accurately with CFD so you can fit a part on sunday before the race without ever running it and be 95% confident it will work.
me cha nical de vices are a nother story.

It fa ir ly o bvio us to the trained eye that the W02 is a very basic machine. The side pod mouldings are uncomplicated as is the rear bodywork. It pretty obvious they are hiding things away and therefore its a safe guess that a lot of the innovation with lie in the interpretation of the aerodymics.
The mechanical systems need testign which means you want:

easy access under the body work.
Uncomplicated routing of wiring plumbing etc so access areas that may be a problem.
You want fairly simple aerodynamics that allows for mechanical changes to be separated from aerodynamic performance.

tHERE IS NOTHING in the Merc storyline that smacks of last years problems

[jav]

Can anyone clarify the homologation situation this year? The W02 appears to have the shortest wheelbase... something I would not have expected with the moveable rear wing. Is a longer tub/wheelbase (second) car still possible within the rules?

[segedunum]

every successful car is clean looking
but not every clean looking car is successful

That's kind of the point. Think about the logic there.

The fact that not every neat and tidy car with attention to detail is successful is irrelevant. The fact that cars that are successful and are moving forwards are, is. Ergo, regarding xpensive's original point, the car is most unlikely to move forwards without those traits.

[NewtonMeter]

Can anyone clarify the homologation situation this year? The W02 appears to have the shortest wheelbase... something I would not have expected with the moveable rear wing. Is a longer tub/wheelbase (second) car still possible within the rules?

What does the wheelbase have to do with the moveable wing?

[jav]

Can anyone clarify the homologation situation this year? The W02 appears to have the shortest wheelbase... something I would not have expected with the moveable rear wing. Is a longer tub/wheelbase (second) car still possible within the rules?

What does the wheelbase have to do with the moveable wing?

I would expect down force applied outside of the wheel base to have a cantiliver effect with the wheels providing the moment supports. Normally, front and rear overhung elements can be adjusted to produce the desired front/rear loading. With a moveable rear element and a stationary front, I would expect the swings in balance to be more drastic on a short wheelbase car due to the decreased overhang ratios... No?

[segedunum]

typical fan boy thinking.

No, it really isn't.

Whether you can simulate aerodynamics is completely irrelevant. It's the thinking behind what you simulate, the time you spend and how you then build it that really counts, not the simulation itself, and how you arrive at what you build and put it on the car. That still requires good human intervention and why the best are paid as much as they are.

The notion that you can throw random things into a CFD workstation, get something that increases downforce and theoretically makes the car faster, throw it into a wind tunnel and then build it and put it on the car is a process that many teams have gone backwards on. Williams is a case in point.

It's by no means an automated process as you're implying. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.........

It pretty obvious they are hiding things away and therefore its a safe guess that a lot of the innovation with lie in the interpretation of the aerodymics.

Hmmmm. It's Rumsfeld's unknown unknowns again. I'm somewhat curious as to how it's 'pretty obvious' that they are hiding things away that they aren't testing. I think that would be called 'hope' rather than anything else.

[timbo]

Those examples are few and far between and really borders on hair splitting to find faults........ The really successful cars have all tended to share those traits regardless. Kind of the point really in the context of Mercedes.

So, 312T4 was flush etc.? It was pretty successful car.
Oh, and Benetton of 1995 looked not as pretty as Williams or Ferrari.
And none of the cars of spikey era (2006-2008) looked flush to me
Problem is, had RedBull built a car that looked like W02, and Mercedes looked like RB7, I don't see you praising Mercedes and bashing RedBull. You'd probably go on about overly long wheelbase, makeshift exhaust solution etc.
Just my impression.

[Med4224]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsp ... 399262.stm

Brawn: "We didn't have a good car last year - we didn't hold up our side of the bargain - but if we can do a great car then there's no reason why he or Nico Rosberg shouldn't win races."

I don't like his "if" part