bill shoe wrote: ↑22 Feb 2019, 00:08
I'm extremely skeptical that a well-executed carbon case vs. a well-executed aluminum case has a weight difference of 40 lbs (18 kg)!! If Williams could remove 40 lbs from the gearbox casing for £5 million then their cheque would be in the mail to Mercedes today.
The other thing that doing this would mean damage to the Williams Advanced Engineering side as it shows that there isn't much of a trust of their own technology, so why market it. It would provide a PR own goal and it would also harm other parts of the overall company.
tomazy wrote: ↑22 Feb 2019, 01:59
ESPImperium wrote: ↑21 Feb 2019, 20:37
The rumour i heard last year when Williams were considering a switch to a carbon case gearbox from Mercedes was that it would cost them £5m per season, and the weight reduction was 18 kilos. The Carbon case would shift the weight centre of the car further forward, meaning more front end bite. And that extra 18 kilos would be worth .7 of a lap, and that 18 kilos would be better used for ballast, ballast that would be lower in the car. Overall, it could be worth just over a second of a lap.
However, to manufacture their own carbon case would cost would be estimated £12m a year, and without a customer supply it wouldn't be profitable. Also the fact the aluminium cases have a better crash resilience, where if a car gets a rearward impact or goes into a wall backward, the likelihood the driveshaft will be torn out is much less, meaning a possibility of less grid penalties.
I think Williams will keep a aluminium case until the team is taken over or someone in the team takes a stand and takes the step. Or will they wait until the standard gearbox, that looks more likely.
Even if we say that the cf gearbox is 18kg lighter, this does not mean 0.7s a lap. The car would not be 18 kg lighter (18kg of extra fuel is about 0.7s a lap) but would still be at the minimum weight limit.
The weight distribution is regulated by regulations, and I am cerain that Williams can get to the entire spectre of regulations with the balast they have available now.
The only positive then is a lover cog, but there is not that much time lost for 5m.
Yes the regulations state a weight distribution, but it means that the weight can be placed more advantageous areas lower down, meaning roll inertia is minimised with the suspension. That may also help tyre wear in some cases as well, an area that Williams have been okay with, it may make them much better.
