CoventryClimax wrote:Lycoming wrote:They haven't run pillars in the center of any kind for some time now and I don't recall any regulation will force them to, so why would they run swan necks next year? No pillar at all is better than a swan neck pillar.
LMP cars have it because their wings are much wider and the bending moment is so large that supporting it only at the ends is rather impractical. An F1 rear wing is narrower and thicker, so it can support the bending moment created by aerodynamic downforce without center supports.
The only reason I can think of to have pillars is to limit lateral deflection of the wing, but that doesn't seem to be something the teams care about.
Im pretty certain he centre beams are back for 2014, thats what most are predicting, and swan necks are certainly the best choice, may be hard to implement due to restrictions...
Do they need to be though? Wouldn't it be better to beef up the rear wing endplates and whatever they mount onto?
If there are mandated RW support pillars, are there any regulations regarding them? If they're mandatory, why not use a bit of wire in tension (the thinnest metal-ish thing I can think of) between the bottom of the main wing and a more solid (but still scrawny) bit 300mm below. Heck, if there is a minimum thickness, you could bend it backwards and attach it to the DERS flap, behind the important downforce-generating surface, and you could maybe even use it as a sort of double-DRS thing.