Formula One car development blog
Slicing off the front wing
Toyota have cut their front wing more than any other team. They ran the possibly smallest front wing present in Monza by reducing the second panel to something just big enough for advertisements. Just like with their rear wing, Toyota follow an unconventional way of thinking. Other teams opted for bigger panels that are positioned a bit flatter, while Toyota favour a small element with a higher angle of attack. Theoretically though, the first option is supposed to be more efficient.
Toyota rear wing philosophy
Many of the fans and engineers have noticed that the Toyota of this year looks a bit unconventional in a way that it looks quite boxy and that there are lots of small winglets added all over the car. While this was reduced by their new front wing introduced in Turkey, the rear wing is still very much different from any other one. The most important difference is the deep mean camber of the wing. The leading egde actually forces air down towards the lowest point of the wing. This design option is visible when looking at the Panasonic banner on the wing, which is hardly visible, while the front surface of the wing at Williams (lower part of the image) can be read completely.
New front wing for Toyota
Toyota have introduced a new front wing at Turkey as previously announced by their technical manager. The new wing has a leading edge that is more towards the design of other F1 cars today and looks like a move away from the body design method Toyota seem to have had with their recent cars. The upper part of the image is the front wing at Hungary while the lower part is the new front wing as displayed in Turkey. Aside the new shape of the base element, a new winglet introduced at Hungary is still present on this new wing. It is attached to the inner side of the end plates to air the white winglet that has been there since the beginning of the season.
Even more airbox wings
Only as recent as at the GP of Germany, new winglet were noted at Toyota, and this time around they have added one more. A little lower than the ones already there is a new wing that has a similar shape to the other white element. Also visible on the image are the gurney flaps at the bottom of these two trailing winglets, resulting in an upward force of the wings, contrary to what one may expect. The aim there is to get more air onto the rear wing and do so in a clean flow.
Updated sidepod flips for TF106B
Toyota continue their impressive development pace with yet another update. This time the winglet in front of the sidepod inlet has been changed in order to gain downforce in the middle of the car. The size of the vertical plate has been reduced while the wing at the inside of it is now pretty similar to that of the one seen at BMW.
Airbox wing evolution at Toyota
This double wing configuration is not new for Toyota but it displays the level of aerodynamic development put into current Formula One cars. an airbox wing at the beginning of 2005 looked mostly like a single stabiliser that created no downforce on its own. The displayed elements are those raced at Hockenheim and is a combined wing with curvatious leading edges on both elements. While the second element has a straight trailing edge and is a stabiliser, the first (red) winglet is not symmetrical and can induce some downforce.
Obligated slot gap spacers
Flexing and stalling wings have been a hot topic in F1 this year. While Ferrari and BMW were asked to strengthen their rear wings, some of the designs also feature a movable wing so that the slot gap between the two horizontal elements gets closed and hence makes the wing stall. In order to prevent these performance gains, the FIA mandated slot spacers that prevent the gap to be closed. It is for all teams a carbon element that connect to both the upper and lower element and makes their relative position fixed.
