Mercedes GP W02

[Joie de vivre]

instead of running with this old fw, they could experiment with new end plates and so on

[marcush.]

that´s the old wing ..but I think I saw Rosbergs W02 with something different just a few minutes ago.the transition of main wing to endplate looked different ...but I could be wrong..

[elf341]

I also saw that Bob Bell is at the track, which would seem very surprising to me during such a critical time for WO3 development unless he were there to oversee testing on new parts.

[marcush.]

come on ..a tech director would and should be at the track as well at least from time to time.But he seems to prefer a observatory outside role at the track ..Rosberg was genuinely surprised to see him and jumped from the car to greet him and shake hands..so it seems unlikely he was present in the morning for the morning briefing ..
At this time of the year the main decisions are all taken and he can well afford to go to the races,I would expect Willis to have a look as well ?

[onewingedangel]

With Willis back at base in a pretty much pure factory role, it allows Bell to split his time between the races and factory - which could be important if he wants to keep an eye in on returning to a Team Principal role in the future.

[Hemsy]

Mercedes could indeed be testing new parts which is why Bell is present at the track to see the results firsthand. But new parts doesn't necessarily mean something visible. It could be new mechanical components like a modified suspension.

[yener]

Ferrari is already testing the "wo3" wing.



Just like I told. They will get no advantage from that wing because everybody will have it and they have enough time to make it work

[wesley123]

So because it got an open nosecone hole they are testing it?

[ringo]

So..
In summary, W02 = back to the drawing board.

I just went back to the start of the thread and was reading some of the posts.
It was like time travelling. Felt sorry reading some of the hopeful posts.
If they only knew!! W02 was as bad as first envisioned.
No podiums, now wins. And the W02 of shumacher occasionally mugged by a force India or a Torro Rosso.
W02 was dead in the water from inception.

I am glad they got some new people to point out the flaws and weed out the bad habits.

[Cocles]

Ferrari is already testing the "wo3" wing.



Just like I told. They will get no advantage from that wing because everybody will have it and they have enough time to make it work

Is there an article to go with that photo? That'd be helpful. As it is, that photo doesn't really tell us much. A nose cone hole can also be used for cooling.

[Tyler]

Surely if Merc really do have a front wing f-duct in the works, they've shown their hand too early.
Just look at Red Bull and McLaren's pace of development - a lot quicker than Mercedes GP!
It didn't take all that long for almost the entire paddock to copy McLaren's F-duct last year and now the teams have a greater insight into how the system works so surely they could have it on their cars at the start of the 2012 season, nullifying any advantage Merc would have had through this innovation?

[raymondu999]

Or MGP are working on something bigger, and have sent other teams on a wild goose chase, spending time and money that could have been spent on other developments

[JohnsonsEvilTwin]

Agree that this F duct wing could be a foil. Just by diverting a teams attention for a week will have meant mercedes could have gained more lead time.

But, I think its a bit of both. Mercedes looked at the idea, saw it's potential and investigated it. Only to be disappointed in the outcome. Result means they themselves are a week or 2 down on rivals, so they publicly tested the concept to intentionally turn heads.

It worked.

[aleks_ader]

Agree that this F duct wing could be a foil. Just by diverting a teams attention for a week will have meant mercedes could have gained more lead time.

But, I think its a bit of both. Mercedes looked at the idea, saw it's potential and investigated it. Only to be disappointed in the outcome. Result means they themselves are a week or 2 down on rivals, so they publicly tested the concept to intentionally turn heads.

It worked.

Yes it work just for some 48h! I dont think they spend more time with that!

[aleks_ader]

Any pics from young drivers tests?