Williams FW37 Mercedes

[LookBackTime]

https://twitter.com/tgruener/status/586503394308796417 Rob Smedley, Head of Performance Engineering: We completed the majority of our plan today, unfortunately we didn’t get all the data we would have liked to due to Felipe’s spin in the second session. The spin was caused by a rear wing stall which was easy to rectify so we were confident when sending Valtteri back out. The data and driver feedback from the new parts we have installed seem positive, but there is still more work to do to see where we are in comparison to our rivals ahead of qualifying and the race.

[trinidefender]

https://twitter.com/tgruener/status/586503394308796417

Rob Smedley, Head of Performance Engineering: We completed the majority of our plan today, unfortunately we didn’t get all the data we would have liked to due to Felipe’s spin in the second session. The spin was caused by a rear wing stall which was easy to rectify so we were confident when sending Valtteri back out. The data and driver feedback from the new parts we have installed seem positive, but there is still more work to do to see where we are in comparison to our rivals ahead of qualifying and the race.

I can see a team member talking about the rear wing stalling and it being easy to fix. I didn't see that team member saying anything about a monkey seat. My interpretation of "an easy fix" would be to slightly adjust the AoA of the rear wing and the DRS flap. If you look at the endplates on the rear wing then you will be able to make out plates with slots in them that hold up the rear wing. These plates can be changed to give the rear wing a different angle of attack.

*edit* this isn't necessarily Williams way to adjust the rear wing but just an example on how it is done. Each team has their own methods as rear wing AoA setting is crucial to the track and conditions and has to be able to be done quickly.

On a completely unrelated note I see a journalist who is speculating on the why the rear wing stalled. Two different cases here.

[LookBackTime]

Felipe Massa: The first session went to plan, but this afternoon we had a few issues with the rear wing. Under braking I lost all grip in the rear tyres and as a result the car spun which put me out for the rest of the session. We lost a lot of time, but the team made the changes to Valtteri’s rear wing so the same wouldn’t happen to him. We need to have a strong day tomorrow to set ourselves up well for the race.

The team installed the monkey wing on Bottas car after Massa's accident (see P2 on Sky F1 HD).

[trinidefender]

Felipe Massa: The first session went to plan, but this afternoon we had a few issues with the rear wing. Under braking I lost all grip in the rear tyres and as a result the car spun which put me out for the rest of the session. We lost a lot of time, but the team made the changes to Valtteri’s rear wing so the same wouldn’t happen to him. We need to have a strong day tomorrow to set ourselves up well for the race.

The team installed the monkey wing on Bottas car after Massa's accident (see P2 on Sky F1 HD).

Well then i concede that I am wrong and that the team must really be pushing the rear wing as hard as possible if the simple addition of the monkey seat is enough. Good find all the same.

Now I have to wonder if that is the reason why the cars seem so unsettled this season and last. The lack of downforce means that the team has to push the rear wing to its absolute limit to remain competitive. By pushing it to the limit each race it would mean that there would be moments where small parts of the rear wing would stall, especially on the apex at a corner when a car was at its point of maximum yaw and under hard braking. This for sure can create that uneasy feeling and make the car tricky to drive on the limit. A characteristic noted on this and last years car under certain conditions.

Pure feeling right now but I wonder how much quicker Williams can be if they can move some way toward keeping the rear downforce levels the same but making the rear more stable.

[bhall II]

What exactly is wrong with their sidepod philosophy?

[...]

My theory is that the competing design used by other teams - the long, low-slung vents that exit between the rear wing endplates - helps "drive" the diffuser in much the same way as McLaren's "butterfly" suspension last year. I think the low pressure zone behind the vents effectively enlarges the diffuser by increasing the system's capacity to extract air flow from underneath it. Think of it as creating a pocket.



If so, the effect will be greatest if air flow from anywhere other than under the car is somehow excluded from this low-pressure area. For example, the upwash created by the rear brake duct fins excludes air flow that travels over the floor, outside the end plates. The more this type of undesirable air flow can be kept out of the pocket, the greater the capacity of the pocket to accept desirable air flow from under the car.

The rounded shape and more forward placement of the Williams solution, one in which the vents are also often split and tiered, would seem to make excluding undesirable air flow very difficult, if not impossible.



Of course, this is just my theory, and I've been wrong before.

[Sevach]

Well, this new upgrade closes the forward most exit so you might have a point.

It's a surprising development after Symonds was on record about how good it was and how he was surprised nobody copied.

[bhall II]

It generally tends to be beneficial to close vents whenever and wherever possible. So, I don't know if that relates to my idea or not. But, if you think back to the team's troubles with the Coanda exhaust, Williams hasn't really had a whole lot of luck in this area, and it probably shouldn't be altogether surprising that they have a different idea about how to best tackle this part of the car.

[Sevach]

It generally tends to be beneficial to close vents whenever and wherever possible. So, I don't know if that relates to my idea or not. But, if you think back to the team's troubles with the Coanda exhaust, Williams hasn't really had a whole lot of luck in this area, and it probably shouldn't be altogether surprising that they have a different idea about how to best tackle this part of the car.

True, but they closed the forward one this time, last year they had that opening and the bodywork after that hugged the gearbox.

[LookBackTime]

[Sevach]

In FP3 Massa had the old rear end while Bottas had the new one.

[LookBackTime]

Albert Fabrega ES ‏@AlbertFabrega

Today flexitest carinatum (tea tray) to the top finishers.

[LookBackTime]

[bhall II]

It generally tends to be beneficial to close vents whenever and wherever possible. So, I don't know if that relates to my idea or not. But, if you think back to the team's troubles with the Coanda exhaust, Williams hasn't really had a whole lot of luck in this area, and it probably shouldn't be altogether surprising that they have a different idea about how to best tackle this part of the car.

True, but they closed the forward one this time, last year they had that opening and the bodywork after that hugged the gearbox.

Maybe. Possibly.

I dunno.

Two arguments against my idea: depending on the throughput of cooling flow, pressure behind the vents might not be all that low. And if for any reason pressure is too low, i.e. if the idea works too well, it might mean the cooling system itself is inefficient.

I'm also unsure about the contribution of air flow under the vents, directly over the diffuser.

[LookBackTime]

Today pictures!

[dren]

Well the Williams FW36 was challenging Mercedes for wins, now the FW37, which was designed in similar fashion to the 36, is quite far behind. The PUs are the same between the two. Williams has a new fuel supplier, so maybe they are down on power?

Ferrari may also be actually pushing Mercedes harder than they were pushed last year, so the gap may look bigger because of it.

Symonds noted they worked hard on the nose for the 37 because they lost a lot with the new regulations. Maybe the nose regulations last year allowed enough air in the front to help with the diffuser. Now, they may need to try to slim the undercuts on the sidepods to get more air rearwards?

I think there are a lot of small detailed complex things going on at the front of some of the cars that Williams hasn't gotten to grips with since they are focusing on efficient, slippery cars. Their sidepods could also be designed to flow air inside of them efficiently, too. They are all exhausting air in similar areas, the Williams is just shaped a little different.