Mercedes GP W02

[Ferraripilot]

I agree with the above being a possibility. Although Nico has been stating it's been difficult to get the front end to bite in higher speed turns. Probably a front downforce issue?

Also, MB using their new rear wing with smaller movable element makes sense, but I'm still unsure how much. With a small piece one can actuate it earlier at the exit of the corner as one feels when rear downforce is not needed so much. The downside is that a larger moveable element relieves the back end of more pressure probably hindering top speed a tiny bit. So I am sure they are deciding which is best at the moment. Use the smaller wing earlier but with less top end or use the larger unit later with more top end.

[Ganxxta]

They really need heat resistant paint

About the RW: I think thats why they test both, to figure out which one is better, fits better to the car/driving style...

[JohnsonsEvilTwin]

Seems to me that the shorter wheelbase will be an advantage this season with all the reports that large steering inputs significantly increases wear

Could you expand on this?

Thank you

[LotusF1]

very cool rear wing by MGP. Massive mainplane which on its own stalls therefore losing drag and when the flap is down works very strongly. opposite of mclaren which have a similar 50/50 main and flap which obv gives less drag but when the flap is operated and therefore is upwards but is less strong in normal conditions...

i like the mercedes idea...much more elegant and thought through...cool...they basically achieve what mclaren do without losing downforce...

[Onch]

Not sure if this has been reported before, but the blue ring that can be seen on the driveshaft is very probably a torque sensor.
The shaft is locally magnetized so that flux lines stay within the metal, applying a torque will cause the flux lines to 'exit' the shaft. Inside the ring are some sensors that will read the magnetic flux, hence the torque.

[f1gang]

look at diffuser..

[madly]

Autosport live says:

10:20 Someone who didn't tell us their name asked: Mercedes was the first team to let go of development in 2010 and concentrate on the 2011 car very early. Yet they are floating for an aero upgrade in Bahrain. Why is that? Are they trying to hide something from the others until the last minute, or they are just painfully slow?

AUTOSPORT F1 editor @eddstrawF1 says:

They definitely aren't hiding anything. The car looks pretty bad on track – lacking front end grip and forcing the drivers to work hard to get it to do what they want, which is never a good way to carry speed through corners.

The car seems to be something of the order of 1.5 seconds off the pace, which is definitely a big problem. Ross Brawn has said that the plan was to launch a "plain" car for the start of testing and then do a big upgrade for Bahrain, but you can be sure that the plan wasn't to run a car with such plain performance.

The team has been switching between two versions of its front wing – one with two slots cut in the main element – suggesting aero problems. Our technical consultant, Gary Anderson, firmly believes that a two-element front wing is more unstable than a three-element one, and it's possible that this is to deal with airflow separation problems.

Nico Rosberg was at his fastest running this wing yesterday, so we will probably see a new front wing based on that concept. There will also be new exhausts – Brawn has promised an innovative design – as well as other aerodynamic revisions. Although it would be an exaggeration to call it a B-spec car, this will be a major package and bolting it on at the eve of the first race is not something you would do in an ideal world, as it will change the characteristics of the car. Also, new exhausts can lead to overheating problems.

This is not the kind of schedule you would design, unless forced to by circumstances, so the team has a lot of work to do.

[mtec80]

I think, that the current 'testcar' isn't that bad as described by some pesimists - those lap time as Schu did last week and Nico did yesterday - these times must be run first. And those who say, that Ferrari and RedBull did not a fast quali-lap at all are not realistic.

Ross Brawns states in anintervie for motorsport-total.com (I've ried to translate it):
"In the aerodynamics area, we have some surprises that we will only show in Bahrain first." We will present the innovations not too early to the competitors.

[luca]

Was he referring to the Bahrain test or to the Bahrain GP?

[mtec80]

It was not very clear from this statement but related to other interviews I guess he means the 4th test...

[kalinka]

I can only explain Merc's current situation with W02 if they again went for a bad design route early in the beginning of 2010 ( when they abandoned the W01 ). Later they realised the wrong route and went for a complete overhaul, and actually they're behind another teams in design time...? Really just guessing. It's strange.

[ringo]

The car is good but i think the suspension is not setup properly.
A fast time means the car can go fast if in the right conditions. We saw this last year with the w01, at times it was as quick as anything else, then it came out of the sweet spot and turned to crap. That says more about the technical team behind the suspension design.
Looking at the exhaust they have now, you can see that they still don't get how it works. it will be interesting to see the new solution.

[Lorenzo_Bandini]

14:21 Martin Brundle gives his take... "Drivers will bitch like crazy but I'm really liking what I'm seeing out on track. They are really having to drive the cars, loads of mistakes

"Mercedes has poor traction, McLaren looks shocking as if on cold tyres, Red Bull+Ferrari+Renault Lotus Lada+Williams all pounding round"

[mtec80]

Again, I don't think, that the MGP is a dog -- look here a comparison between Massa and Schumacher from today - same stint - same track condotions:

14:57 Massa Outlap - 1:28.5 - 1:29.0 - 1:29.5 - 1:29.3 - 1:29.6 - 1:29.7 - 1:29.8 - 1:29.8 - 1:30.1 - 1:30.2 - 1:30.3 - 1:30.3 - 1:30.3 - 1:30.8 - 1:31.5 - Inlap

14:54 Schumacher Outlap - 1:27.6 - 1:27.8 - 1:28.2 - 1:28.0 - 1:28.8 - 1:29.7 - 1:28.7 - 1:28.9 - 1:29.4 - 1:29.3 -1:29.6 - 1:30.3 - 1:30.8 - 1:31.3 - Inlap

Guys, to be honest but I think here are a lot of wannabe professionals. Also comming with Gary Anderson, who anaylze the MGP - sorry but is Anderson not the one who is responsible for several Jordan, Ford and Jaguar cars - all of them very succesfull cars *ironic off*. Would he be a good engineer he would be working for a team...

Common - let's wait until the saison starts - the you all can bash the Mercedes... or you start up to kiss their a** in case of beeing competitive from the beginning

[Formula None]

Testing spec W02 has 4 exhaust outlets, 2 aimed at diffuser's upper surface, 2 aimed at starter slot:



Probably allows them two test two options by simply adjusting a valve rather than spending time on changeovers.