Williams FW33

[Formula None]

[beelsebob]

What's interesting about that is that you can see clearly that even though they have a teeny tiny gearbox, the car just is no where near as tightly packaged as some (the RBR/Ferrari for example). I wonder if this is where their aero has gone.

[PlatinumZealot]

It is tightly packaged. You are just viewing it from the top. The gearbox is flat on the floor so the bottom is wider than normal, but there is massive space at the top. Williams have now followed redbull and made a carbon fibre separation bridging the wing support and the back of the engine. Also, a part of the extra girth down bellow is the cooling ducts. Williams need to employ a redbull mailbox solution to improve packaging I think.

[HampusA]

Have to agree, Williams is the only car where i feel the front and the rear of the car is barely attached to each other.

[mrk189]

Beautiful but unfortunately rubbish car. Its not doing justice to its livery..

[beelsebob]

Beautiful but unfortunately rubbish car. Its not doing justice to its livery..

Where rubbish == getting through to Q3 two races running – it started badly, but it appears to have *great* mechanical grip.

[HampusA]

well everything is relative..

[mrk189]

It might sound harsh but having been a die hard williams f1 fan for the past 20something years it gets frustrating being let down year after year. Think about it...its been 14 years since the last world championship!!! 2003 was the next closest thing. Unfortunately, arrogance got in the way of competitiveness and unless heads roll 'literally' I don't think they will get anywhere.

Floating part of the company was a really desperate thing to do and shows that they have exhausted everything else. The only way forward is to get a manufacturer on board but unfortunately williams are too hard headed to do so. Cosworth in 2011 is clearly not Cosworth in the 1980s and early 1990s and it is plain for all to see.

It is clear that their business model isn't working. They continue to lose sponsorship because of this stubborness and frankly I don't see it getting any better any time soon. Sure Coughlan is joining the team but I'm sure he is not a miracle worker and I'm sure it wasn't him alone that made Mclaren so successful.

There has to be a profound change of style. Trying to build an innovative car on a low budget won't work. It might have worked earlier when regulations weren't so thorough but not anymore. The way I see it, they are going the way of Tyrell and I doubt there is a way back.

Rant over.

[xpensive]

This has been said many times before, but Williams was done when they lost BMW, all in the name of independence,
they said no to the best engine on the grid and all the big time sponsors that came with it. Sad really.

[mrk189]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkfmUPvhGGM

Listen to that...

That is what they turned down.

[HampusA]

BMW needs to get back in the game, atleast as an engine supplier for ´13.
I´m missing the legendary engines they used to make which put Ferrari to shame,

[Sebp]

BMW needs to get back in the game, atleast as an engine supplier for ´13.
I´m missing the legendary engines they used to make which put Ferrari to shame,

Sadly I don't think it will happen any time soon as they are comitted to DTM from 2012 onwards.

[Francesc]

New front wing

[gridwalker]

I just tuned in to FP2 to catch the last half hour : before the session got red flagged, I noticed an interesting looking rear wing on the Williams.

It looked like it had a shallow main plane at the edges, with a central scoop reminiscent of the pre-2009 front wings. Does anyone have a screengrab or photo?

[gridwalker]

Hrmmm ... just saw a williams and the wing looked normal. Was I just seeing things?