Extended Sidepod panels

[Michiba]

Hi All, long time reader first time poster...

Has anyone noticed the differences (if any in the sidepod panels between BMW and Renault? Seems to me that the ones on the BMW are concave whereas the Renault has a convex curvature. Does this mean they serve different functions?

Sorry but I don't have pictures to show this, perhaps someone can help me out.

Son

[roost89]

Is it in general for the sidepods?
I've had a wee look and they do appear to be different. Most notably in the part that comes from the outer-most part of the sidepod to the bottom of the sidepod. I think the purpose would be in the control of air-flow around the car.

[mx_tifoso]

Welcome to F1T 'Michiba',

The link below will lead you to a thread on the Novelties for this season, 2008. And the last two of the four posts are dedicated to the sidepod extentions used by three teams, McLaren, BMW, and Renault. Included within the posts are links to other sites, as well as to our own development blog here, where in-depth explanations of the sidepod extensions are offered.

I hope this is of use to you and that you enjoy your time here.

F1Technical- 2008 Novelties

[Michiba]

Thanks for the responses.

I've seen those links, however, at the last race, I noticed that the BMW and Renault extensions were shaped differently.

From what I saw, the trailing edge on the BMW's was concave whereas the Renault had a convex trailing edge.

My point was that though they have opposing solutions, do they have the same function? Or is it different?

One would assume that they did the same thing since Renault was trying to copy the function of the BMW's but seem to have done it in an opposite way.

[mx_tifoso]

You're welcome.

I would highly recommend that you go directly to one of our local aero guys for this sort of inquiry; 'Ogami musashi'. As well as a number of others might be of great help, but he is the one that stood out the quickest in my mind. Thats if you want professional responses! But I'll give it a try nonetheless.

BMW Sauber & Renault sidepod barge board development:



BMW Sauber: http://www.formula1.com/news/technical/ ... 7/510.html
Renault: http://www.formula1.com/news/technical/ ... 7/509.html

The different shapes of the trailing edge might be due to different necessities bodywork-wise, so the different shapes are designed according to the specific dimensions of the individual car, and how and which way incoming air needs to be directed(air-flow management). Since these panels are basically the same in overall shape and size, the little differences in design from team to team are to meet the requirements of their own car. So even if different variations are used, the overall function remains the same.

A prime example would be a front or rear wing design, different angle of attacks have different effects, and each team uses unique settings to reach their goals and/or desired handling characteristics. Same goes for these 'bargeboard/sidepod extensions'.

I hope that this is an improvement over my previous response . Keep the questions coming whenever you have them...