Williams FW31

[PNSD]

shot of the diffuser from williams ... quite nice, looks like there is an element joining the rear wing endplates and the diffuser...

[tk421]

I also like the looks of the FW31 so far. Williams and Renault looking like they had similar ideas for the nose, and to agree with an earlier post, the sidepods seem to have what I guess I would call "shoulders" very similar to BMW's interim car. I've always been a fan of this team, so I hope they do well. One of the big questions for me is, how will the flywheel-style KERS stack up to the competition? Can't wait to find out!

[xpensive]

Possibly the FW31 is the result of a "bread-and-butter" approach to F1, when Williams is just not a such well-funded team anymore, which is rather obvious by the livery.
Said livery will change later with more sponsorship we hear, but as I understand things, most confirmed sponsors would rarely miss the instant publicity when the car is presented.
This is why I'm afraid that what you see is what you get, sponsor-wise.

[mx_tifoso]

AT&T are the title sponsors but only have spots on the front wing.

Allianz is still shown on their website.

[xpensive]

I agree, it's all very strange. Any ideas on the non-presence of Allianz WB?

[Chaparral]

Dont know about Allianz but theyve suffered huge losses lately - I wonder how long RBS will hang in as a sponsor given they are about to post the largest company loss in British history - $60 billion. I hope this car works for them - Im a long term fan and if you could go by looks theyd win both WDC & WCC

[modbaraban]

Allianz have extended their sponsorship contract for 2009, AFAIK. Not sure why their stickers are missing on the bodywork.

http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2008/11/ ... nsor-deal/

[xpensive]

Perhaps Allianz found out thet the flywheel-KERS was a hoax and threatened to sue in order to get out?

[Scania]

what is the function of the hole beside intake port?

[mx_tifoso]

F1Technical development blog- Williams FW31's unique airbox inlet

And it has already been discussed in this thread. Please read the first page at least.

[xpensive]

There's no reason for you to be rude mx, certainly not to a newcomer.

[WhiteBlue]

I agree, it's all very strange. Any ideas on the non-presence of Allianz WB?

In the German press they say Allianz is firmly fixed in their sponsorship. No idea why they have left their logos out.

I don't expect Williams to suddenly learn how to design good aero after 5 years of failure. But their KERS could be something really special. We will see it in the fullness of time.

[xpensive]

I agree WB, Williams KERS concept is most interesting engineering-wise, but I got confused when I read yesterday it was all mechanical with some kind of variable transmission. Then, when Sam Michael suggested that they won't run it until mid-season, I got rather suspicious.

[WhiteBlue]

There seem to be a lot of confusion about the Williams KERS. Unless the KERS system description on the Williams site is a red herring the journos must have mixed something up.

[modbaraban]

Is it just me or the front wing is much widens towards the front wheel and is quite a lot narrower at front. Look at the angle of the endplates. It's like this -> \====/