McLaren MP4-29 Upgrade - Wishbone Wings please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image
Dimi PAPADOPOULOS ‏@f1enigma26s I understand that McLaren and their head of aero Marcin Budkowski parted company .....interesting, wonder where he's off to.
Matt Somerfield ‏@SomersF11m McLaren @McLarenF1 MP4-29 'Wishbone Wings' from above shows the scuplting / trailing edge Gurney Via @SuttonImages pic.twitter.com/n1f8BgP31H please log in to view this image
It means little due to none of the teams pushing (as far as we know), but McLaren were a bit behind on the speed traps, possible due to the somewhat parachutes attached to the rear susp. We may see the team dumping the idea in Monza if it costs them that much. Then again, McLaren could have just been the gentlest with the engines
Was looking at some of judge13's videos and it does seem McLaren have the edge in cornering, like on a whole different planet. http://www.youtube.com/user/theJudge13TV Ratings of cars atm for me: McLaren Mercedes* Not even pushing in this video but consistent and quick. Force India Ferrari-Williams Sauber ----------------- Maybe finishers Marussia * Because it hasn't got a Renault engine. Caterham Toro Rosso Red Bull
With the current view yeah, the FI looked solid in both slow and fast corners, it was nowhere near as tail happy as the Ferrari so it might be engine based with wheel spin and balance which can be further improved. They can also seem to go earlier on the power than the Ferrari as well. But yeah so far the Force India looks like it never left 2013. But Ferrari are said to bring in some big upgrades for Bahrain so that will likely change things.
Looking back at the videos, both Kimi and Alonso were tail happy at times. But Williams look like a proper force coming out of Test 1.
True, but there wasn't that much footage or the Williams so I was a bit reserved as they have always been quick in testing but never really when it comes to the actual season.
McLaren are saying they are financially secure due to contributions from Honda... So does that mean Honda have bought into McLaren?
McLaren is likely to face a protest from one or potentially several teams, according to Sky Sport's technical analyst Ted Kravitz. It's understood that a number of teams are unhappy with the MP4-29's rear-suspension elements which have been developed to bring a major aerodynamic benefit to the car. Red Bull's Adrian Newey described them as "illegal" but the FIA's Charlie Whiting, after more than one team approached him for clarification, declared them legal in Jerez. That doesn't however mean that a team cannot lodge a protest, which would then be heard before the World Motor Sport Council which would make a final ruling. Kravitz expects a number of teams to do so at the opening race of the season and should McLaren's so-called 'butterfly' suspension be found illegal, they could be thrown out of the final race classification and forced to change the design of their car. "We understand from the FIA's technical department headed up by Charlie Whiting that he accepts that it's within the rules," explained Kravitz. "But I can tell you there are quite a few other teams thinking that they're going to have a go at protesting it once we get to the first race because the teams can go to Charlie Whiting and ask, 'What's your opinion? Do you think this is legal?' [But] he can only express an opinion; he is not the final arbiter of what is and is not legal - and we've seen his opinion overturned before. "So I think we might see a protest against the McLaren cars at the Australian Grand Prix because it all centres around these wishbones, which are to support the car and keep the wheels on," he added. "But they're clearly also for aerodynamic benefit, so it's certainly in contravention of the spirit of the regulations. But Formula 1 teams have been getting around the spirit of the regulations for 50-odd years!" It's believed that whilst preparing for a protest, the solution is being investigated by McLaren's rivals in the event any protest fails and they're required to install a similar system to ensure they remain competitive. - See more at: http://www.f1times.co.uk/news/display/08484#sthash.EwD8Bsxv.dpuf
Not sure if this point has been made before, but is anyone else surprised Mclaren ran the butterfly suspension in the first test? They didn't need to run it to get it declared legal, so why let every team see it so far before the first race? The first test was always going to be more about engine reliability and troubleshooting than necessarily going for outright performance, so what did they gain from running it? They've gifted a lot of teams 3 weeks to work on replicating them, for little gain to themselves.
Maybe they ran it just to see if the damn thing is doing what it should be...? In the sense that every lap counts.
Why why does Charlie give an opinion that the teams know can be challenged? Is there not anyone/a committee that can decide the 'legality' before a race? We all know that every team that has the money will 'push' the rules but things like this (visible to everyone) should be protested as soon as they are seen. In fact if I were McL I may even protest them myself to get a definitive view before the first race. I love it when we can see the technical innovations. I would love if say after 3 years all designs and 'innovations' were made public. It would be so interesting to find out exactly what the teams were doing. Unfortunately it's never going to happen as most teams would face bans for the tricks they pull. This year the first races are going to be so crucial to some of the teams. I can't wait.
McLAREN please log in to view this image Like Mercedes, McLaren also tried different cooling configurations, still based around the large double-barrelled outlets seen on the launch car. For Bahrain, these were modified with either a large gurney flap around the outlets or a series of six slots cut into the bodywork. The gurney solution is a simple means to pull more hot air from within the sidepods, one often used by teams at hot tracks. The fishbone-like slots are another ploy used to create more cooling outlet area, but stretch the rules on sidepod openings. The regulations allow for openings for each suspension member to pass through. These are relatively generous, but must each be a single opening and no other 'holes' are allowed in the sidepods, so the teams extend the suspension opening via a thin slot into three adjoining slots. As there is just one opening, even if at some points it's a simple saw-cut thickness wide, it counts as a legal single opening. McLaren continued to run the rear suspension fairings seen at Jerez, but what were 3D-printed prototype fairings have now been replaced with carbon fibre items. This suggests McLaren's initial test of what it's calling internally the 'mushroom' suspension was successful. Although its full legality will not be proven until it's either scrutineered or protested in Melbourne, it's looking likely that it will make it onto the car for the first round. Spy pictures of the McLaren power unit installation have appeared on the internet, showing the car from behind without the top bodywork. Although largely shrouded in heat shielding, some detail was visible. Curiously for McLaren, given its relatively big sidepods featuring large inlet and outlet areas, the car also mounts two coolers above the power unit. One smaller cooler is fitted above the fuel tank and is fed by the inlet below the main rollhoop inlet. In recent years, McLaren has mounted a KERS cooler in this position, so it's likely this is also for cooling the 2014 ERS installation, although this alone is not enough to cool the energy store, MGUs and ERS control units. Additional coolers are probably located in the sidepods. Another larger cooler is mounted above the gearbox, close to the turbo, and appears to be fed from the top section of the split rollhoop inlet. Due to its location, it's possible this is the gearbox oil cooler. The remaining inlet in the rollhoop will be for the fresh air feed into the turbo.