Formula1Giorgio Piola

technical analysis2004-05

01 Australia Grand Prix

2

BAR 006 - additional rear wing profileThe 006 in Melbourne featured an additional rear wing, con-nected to the rearmost edge of the engine cover, with the end-plates mounted inside the rear wheels. And on the main rear wing, two intermediate vertical fences have been added, split-ting the airflow in three, hence increasing the pressure of the flow and the downforce produced.

Williams FW26 - re-profiled front wing endplates

The front-wing endplates of the FW26 sported an interesting change to the bottom edge, with a squared channel instead of the rounded one seen previously. This is thought to be a de-velopment of the venturi channel introduced since the end of last season, designed primarily to reduce the pitch sensitivity of the car's front end.

Williams FW26 - multiple sidepod fins The FW 26 sported multiple fins, with the main one in front of the rear wheels doubled up. Another triangular fin was placed over the under tray of the car, in front of the rear wheels. The inclination of the fins should direct airflow around the rear of the car more efficiently, reducing the turbulence as the airflow hits the rear wheels.

02 Malaysia Grand Prix

3

McLaren MP4-19 - new front wingMcLaren tried to correct a chronic lack of downforce at the front of the car by introducing a new front wing featuring a deep spoon profile and a double flap, successfully increasing front-end grip and stability. At the rear of the car (not pictures) additional air vents improved heat evacuation from the side-pods, benefiting engine reliability.

Sauber C23 - radiator configurationNo particular changes from Melbourne, but it was possible to sneak in the garage and get a closer look at the naked sidepods that hid an asymmetrical cooling system, with the right sidepod housing an unusual V-shape radiator, placed horizontally so as to reduce the sidepod section size. This configuration looked very efficient and other teams sported similar solutions.

Renault R24 - idepod air vents and chimneysTo control engine temperatures the R24 sported very big chim-neys coupled with additional air vents placed on the top edge of the sidepods. They doubtless had a negative impact on the aerodynamic efficiency of the car, but in this case the reliability gains justified the sacrifice.

03 Bahrain Grand Prix

4

Williams FW26 - rear wing finsA similar feature to that already seen on the BAR 006, the FW26 sported two inner vertical fences within its rear wing. The solution provided a better management of airflow. By dividing the wing into three sections, it increased the airflow pressure in each, raising overall downforce.

Williams FW26 - barge boardsA subtle change to the front aerodynamics with the introduction of a stepped plane, with a vertical profile, to the bottom of the barge boards inside the front suspension. This created a better seal between the bottom of the car and the ground, diverting airflow underneath the car more efficiently.

Toyota TF104 - chimneysToyota concentrated on improving rear-end aerodynamics with these new engine-exhaust chimneys that were lower, longer and horizontal, as on the BAR 006. Although one might imagine this solution to worsen hot-air extraction from the sidepods, it in fact proved very efficient in aiding airflow over the rear of the car.

04 San Marino Grand Prix

5

Williams FW26 -

additional wing profile above rear axleThe FW26 sported an additional wing profile placed on the top of the rear axle. Used in practice but then discarded for the race, the idea was to raise rear downforce in order to correct an aerodynamic imbalance in the car that made it overly pitch sensitive at the front.

Renault R24 - rear-wing endplatesAt Imola Renault's endplates sported a vertical air vent not dissimilar to a solution seen on the Minardi since Melbourne. This design provided less drag at high speed allowing the team to run a more aggressive wing profile without raising overall drag.

Ferrari F2004 - engine cover evolutionThe engine cover adhered more closely to the engine, almost becoming a second skin, allowing for a reduction of about of 30mm in the height of the rear bodywork (1), and narrower chimneys (2). The Italian team also slightly reduced the over-all width of their mid-wing, originally introduced in Australia.

05 Spain Grand Prix

6

Bar 006 - new rear wingThis brand-new design featured completely new profile, flap and endplates. The elements possessed a sinuous profile, characterised by a double-curved edge, and on the inner side of the endplates a small step was added, effectively functioning as an airflow splitter, reducing drag and increasing the efficiency and downforce provided by the flap.

Williams FW26 - rear wingThis design still featured the intermediate vertical fences introduced in Bahrain, but with their height reduced by 50 percent. This satis-fied both the FIA's requirements and those of the high-speed Barce-lona circuit.

Jaguar R5 - rear wingThe intermediate fences on the Jaguar were the biggest on the grid, to the point of looking illegal. But a clever design got round the rules. Each element was in two pieces, the upper piece directly con-nected to the flap, hence becoming part of it, and the lower piece being part of the main wing profile.

06 Monaco Grand Prix

7

Renault R24 - bargeboard developmentThe R24 sported an unusual, additional turning vane connect-ed to the vertical bargeboards, to improve airflow efficiency around the bottom of the car. The horizontal design resembled similar elements used as main turning vanes by other teams.

Ferrari F2004 - chimneysThe slow Monaco circuit makes efficient engine cooling dif-ficult, hence Ferrari's adoption of chimneys on top of the side-pods for better hot air venting. The design inevitably increased drag, but that is not a concern in Monte Carlo.

Ferrari F2004 - front-wing endplates A change to the lower section of the endplate, moving from the previous, rounded channel to a flatter design, not dissimi-lar to that previously seen on the Williams FW26. The change was functional, intended to reduce the sensitivity of the car to ride-height variations.

07 Europe Grand Prix

8

Ferrari F2004 - front axle barge boards Introduced in Monaco and refined for the Nurburgring, Ferrari's unusual-looking barge boards were housed within the front suspen-sion. From the European race onwards, they were elongated, pre-senting a knife-edge like bottom profile. This reduced turbulence and improved the efficiency of the airflow towards the bottom of the car.

Renault R24 - front wingThe R24 sported a new front wing in Europe, or rather it returned to something resembling the original design seen at the car's launch. Rather than the central deep spoon profile featured so far, now only the side extremities were raised, with an almost flat central section. The team's engineers considered this configuration more efficient as well as less sensitive to ride-height variations.

McLaren MP4-19 - cooling problemsEngine failures plagued the first half of McLaren's season, an issue related to the nature of the V10's installation and the car's tight rear-end packaging. As well as engine vibration, the cooling difficulties that had hampered the MP4-19's development remained and venting sufficient hot air from the sidepods was still a particular problem.

08 Canada Grand Prix

9

Toyota TF104 - rear wingNot a completely new solution, but one not used thus far in 2004, the TF104's rear wing featured a new profile with up-wardly-curved edges. The benefits were greater downforce with less drag, a definite asset on Montreal's main straight.

Williams FW26 - illegal brake ductsWilliams, like Toyota, were excluded because their front brake ducts were too wide. Under the rules no part of the duct could be more than 120mm away from a line parallel to the inner side of the wheel - Williams exceeded it by around 30mm, which would definitely have improved their braking efficiency relative to the opposition.

Toyota TF104 - illegal brake ductsToyota, like Williams, were excluded because their front brake ducts were too wide. Under the rules no part of the duct could be more than 120mm away from a line parallel to the inner side of the wheel - Toyota were just 3mm over, which Mike Gascoyne said was purely due to wheels' camber angle.

09 USA Grand Prix

10

Ferrari F2004 - front wing changesAs seen in Canada, a single-element front wing, to keep drag low, but this time with the addition of a saw-tooth profiled flap to add downforce. The additional cuts into the outer rear edge of the wing element improved airflow close to the end-plates, reducing drag on the straights.

Williams FW26 - additional wing profile Williams adopted a medium-downforce configuration add-ing the full-width additional wing on top of the rear axle, as seen in previous races. According to their engineers, impact on straight-line speed was minimal. The team also increased chimney size due to the humidity and high temperatures at Indianapolis.

10 France Grand Prix

11

Williams FW26 - side viewA similar concept to Ferrari's F2004, with the front of the sidepod narrowing towards the bottom, with inclined chim-neys on top. Unlike the Ferrari, the side shark vents were not removable. Towards the rear, an increased bodywork section featured a mid wing. At the very back the bodywork narrows, covering the torsion bars in a similar way to the F2004.

Williams FW26 - nose wingletsAn interesting feature of this revised FW26 was two curved winglets placed on the foremost point of the chassis. These two elements, which recall similar devices used by Tyrrell in 1998, had the function of increasing downforce at the front end, improving its handling precision.

McLaren MP4-19 - new sidepodsThe sidepods were shrunk in the bottom-front section. Also visible in the drawing are the hot air vents on the top of the sidepod, just in front of the double winglets. The rear of the car increasingly resembled that of the Ferrari F2004, with the bodywork covering just the area of the torsion bars.

11 Great Britain Grand Prix

12

Sauber C23 - new engine cover1) Hot air vents on the top of the sidepod rather than the outer edge.

2) Lower, more sculpted rear bodywork, with taller chim-neys.

3) Horizontal element in front of the rear wheels, connected to the engine cover by two curved fences.

4) An additional mid wing just behind the onboard camera support, giving the car better balance.

BAR 006 - additional sidepod wingletsThese elements had the clear function of dividing airflow in two, with one portion directed outside the car to reduce turbulence, and the inner portion directed straight on to the rear wing to increase downforce. They also emphasised how chimney design could be used to influence aerodynamics and not just cooling.

12 Germany Grand Prix

13

Toyota TF104 - new noseA new, visibly narrower (3) nose design, sporting curved instead of vertical pillars (2) connecting the nose to the front wing. The end-plates featured revised side winglets (1) with a much thicker leading edge than seen previously.

BAR 006 - FCP systemAt Hockenheim BAR introduced the Front Clutch Package, a sys-tem not dissimilar to the Front Torque Transfer device tried by Ben-etton in 1999, designed to help the car’s entry into corners under braking. The FIA ordered its removal after Friday practice, but a stripped down version with no electronic control was later accepted at Monza.

Renault R24 - front wing Another change to the Renault’s front wing occurred in Germany, where the endplates sported a particularly sculpted entry profile at the bottom edge. The main wing profile retained the central, deep-spoon shape, featuring extremities slightly higher than the main profile level. The adjustment was designed to reduce the car’s front-end pitch sensitivity.

13 Hungary Grand Prix

14

Williams FW26 - new noseWilliams ditched their famous walrus nose in a favour of a high-er, far more traditional design, complete with new front wing. The old nose was particularly sensitive to side winds and the new one reduced the car’s pitch sensitivity and improved its dynamics under braking and on the entry to corners.

BAR 006 - new winglets BAR continued their endless development of the 006. The wing-lets, an evolution of those seen briefly at Silverstone, were, in fact, cleverly-shaped chimneys, designed to improve both airflow management and hot air venting. More efficient engine cooling was of particular benefit in Hungary’s high August temperatures.

14 Belgium Grand Prix

15

Williams FW26 - new wingletsThe FW26B’s revised rear bodywork featured newer, much bigger, winglets on top of the sidepods and eliminated the shark-like vents present on the older version. The solution was very effective on the long straights at Spa and was used for the remainder of the season.

Ferrari F2004 - front wingA hybrid solution of sorts from Ferrari. The same new wing profile introduced at Hockenheim, but in combination with the flap used in Canada and the USA. This mix provided a very good balance between top speed and downforce.

Ferrari F2004 - third front damperOne of the secrets of the F2004’s perfect balance and its smooth behaviour over the kerbs was its accurate suspension. The front was a development of the 2003 version and still featured a horizontal third element to efficiently control the roll and pitch of the car. Small and light, the element could be easily changed or adjusted during practice.

15 Italy Grand Prix

16

Williams FW26 - new front wingA new design featuring a double-S profile very similar to the one used since the start of the season with the walrus nose, but with the side extremities clearly higher than before. This configuration, which provided less downforce than the central deep spoon profile seen in Hungary, had been successfully tested at Monza the week before the race.

Williams FW26 - rear wing A new, very narrow design, with a slight s-shape to the lead-ing edges of the upper and lower wing elements, and a saw-tooth notch cut into the tall, narrow endplates.

16 China Grand Prix

17

Williams FW26 - front wing endplatesA change to the inner, knife-edge profile at the bottom of the endplates. Rather than running parallel to the ground it bends downwards, forming a wider venturi channel which provides additional downforce and reduces turbulence around the front wheels. Similar solutions will be important in 2005, when front wings must be higher and hence naturally less efficient.

BAR 006 - front wing endplatesA sculpted inner-edge profile, part bending downwards and part running parallel to the ground. An extra step forms a ven-turi channel, improving downforce and reducing turbulence around the front wheels. Williams sported a similar solution at the same race.

Toyota TF104 - new chimneysThe widest chimneys seen so far, whose primary function was not to expel hot air, but to control airflow over the bodywork. Although only a minor change, the effects were significant in improving the car’s stability in all sectors of the circuit, as proven by Olivier Panis’s strong qualifying performance.

17 Japan Grand Prix

18

Williams FW26 - new turning vanesA shorter, less sculpted design than previously, with a saw-tooth type profile (2), coupled with a pointed extension to the lower edge of the sidepod (1), very similar to the one used by Renault since Monaco. The underbody was also altered, split into two parts with the foremost including the splitter which acted as a ballast location (3).

Jaguar R5 - light chassisJaguar provided Christian Klien with a new, lighter B-version of the R5 chassis, which was tested the week before the race. The revisions were not in the external shape but mainly in the carbon fibre and composites moulding concept. In particu-lar the team managed to make the wall of the chassis slightly thinner so reducing the weight, but at the same time making it stiffer.

Minardi PS04 - new endplate wingletsThe Italian cars retained the same general configuration seen in China, but the endplates of the front wing featured wider, curved winglets, shaped to reduce the effects of turbulence created by the front wheels, while also adding a small amount of downforce.