Mercedes AMG F1 W03

[marcush.]

the story says the Coanda exhaust feature considerably smaller diameters to speed up the flow at lower revs to achieve a broader range of the exhaust working as an aero help-at the expense of a fair amount of top end power.
If you stick on a this much different exhaust to your engine ..I´d assume the map for the big endpipe diameter map is very different to the small diameter map.

[hardingfv32]

the story says the Coanda exhaust feature considerably smaller diameters to speed up the flow at lower revs to achieve a broader range of the exhaust working as an aero help-at the expense of a fair amount of top end power.
If you stick on a this much different exhaust to your engine ..I´d assume the map for the big endpipe diameter map is very different to the small diameter map.

1) In all our discussions about the Coanda Effect style exhaust systems, I do not recall anything about exhaust outlet size. I can appreciate that a smaller size would have a different effect, but I am not sure that you characterize the benefit correctly. I would say some discussion is required.

2) The new rule controls torque output. There is no reason that you can not change the exhaust and then correct for it with your engine map to get back to the baseline torque.

Brian

[alvinkhorfire]

I am sorry if this article was posted before.

As you may have correctly guessed, the recent slump in car performance is because they have tried to overly optimize the car setup based on double DRS.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/19064856
Why Mercedes are struggling
That's because they have developed themselves in a direction to go slower, all because they have been trying to get more consistency from the rear tyres to help race performance. And that is linked to the 'double DRS'.

HOW HAVE MERCEDES TRIED TO FIX IT?
To solve that rear tyre wear problem, since the Canadian Grand Prix in mid-June Mercedes have removed quite a lot of the downforce-producing devices on the front wing and are never running anywhere near maximum front wing angle.

That reduces the amount of front grip. They've probably lost something like 50-60kg of front downforce so they are running the centre of aerodynamic pressure much further rearward.

The benefit of that is that it will balance the car better so tyre degradation will reduce. But it comes at the cost of a slower overall pace. So the car feels better to drive, but is slower.

HOW CAN MERCEDES SOLVE THE PROBLEM?
Mercedes have a very conventional rear-end aerodynamic treatment and are not trying to exploit the exhaust gases for aerodynamic effect in the way McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull are.

There is 0.2-0.3 seconds a lap in trying to do that - all produced from greater rear-end grip.

So if Mercedes want to improve, they would be better advised to build that kind of exhaust system. That would give them better rear-end grip, which would enable them to put the front downforce back on without suffering the rear instability they had earlier in the year.

If I was them, I would be thinking very seriously about getting rid of the 'double DRS', unless I was absolutely on top of which circuits it will provide a benefit at and which it will create a deficit.

[marcush.]

They have gone public with their statement of leaving the car as it is having analysed the performance is to be found just in tyre understanding ...only to start start moving aero balance to the rear from then on .. removing total df ...but not rocketing straight line speed ...?
I think their rear downforce is quite draggy compared to others .And as they have not found a ways to gain more at the rear without sacrificing even more drag counts they started to shed front df...
Is this a DDRS? maybe ...as the system seems to have only one setting that is workable...

[clipsy1H]

i was so busy in last month! Can anyone tell me what improvements brings Mercedes for SPA?

[Joie de vivre]

they'll run with no FW ..

[Morteza]

Guys I have a question. How exactly has longer wheelbase actually helped with W03? The car still has the problems W02 had last year.

[marcush.]

A very good point .What is driving the performance? Wheelbase ? I very much doubt this .The team is notorious for committing to standalone features on their cars which make it easy to pinpoint as possible causes for underachievement..as
always it creates a situation were it´s all too easy to stop short of finding the real answer to the open questions...this maybe is much more a team thing than a characteristic solely to find on w03.

[godlameroso]

The Mercedes is a very good car, especially above 200kph, unfortunately there aren't many turns in F1 that are above that speed. In Spa, there is only Eau Rouge, Pouhon and Blanchimont. The turns where the downforce is inconsistent are in the 140-190kph range, precisely the speed where most F1 turns occur. Below that the Merc's mechanical grip is as good as anyone else's.

[marcush.]

The Mercedes is a very good car, especially above 200kph, unfortunately there aren't many turns in F1 that are above that speed. In Spa, there is only Eau Rouge, Pouhon and Blanchimont. The turns where the downforce is inconsistent are in the 140-190kph range, precisely the speed where most F1 turns occur. Below that the Merc's mechanical grip is as good as anyone else's.

? Silverstone is high speed corners galore..but W03 did not perform at all ....the twop tracks they excelled were Monaco and Sepang ..right?

[FoxHound]

Anyone seen this spec exhaust?
It was doing the rounds at an exhibition yesterday in Holland.





A return to the upright elements on the front wing?

[wjpbill]

I did notice the exhaust in the twitter pics that Mercedes released.

Been back through images and I can't see it anywhere before - anyone else?

[elf341]

That is the exhaust they tested at the young driver's test in abu dhabi last year.

It looks like a W02 with an early-2012 W03 front wing on.

[wjpbill]

Well done, it's been bugging me and I couldnt' work out why!

[gilgen]

Well done, it's been bugging me and I couldnt' work out why!

The car is at least two years old (it has to be, for demo purposes). It has just been re-clothed to bear some resemblance to the 03.