Front wheel covers - this seasons must have...

[scarbs]

However they might be too wide for the max width regulations, depending on Mac front track dimensions, as they clearly are placed outside the tyre profile . Most other teams keep the fairing inside the buldge of the tyre.

[Keir]

This is true.

[Spencifer_Murphy]

They are tyre slashers! James Bond style! lol

Just playing.

I thought that the brake ducts (which I assume these are part of in an aero-sence) were not allowed to protrude beyond the rim. Maybe I'm getting confused, but back in the 70's (I think) didn't Mclaren have brake ducts which extended beyond the tyre in order to improve FW aero efficiency (or something like that). They were banned and ever since they have been much smaller almost appearing as if they were not allowed to protrude beyond the rim, let alone the wheel.

I'm probably wrong, but I don't know the exact regs regarding this area of the car, and I can't look them up as really I should be writing my dissertation - not posting on F1T, but damn it I can't help myself lol!

[dumrick]

I thought that the brake ducts (which I assume these are part of in an aero-sence) were not allowed to protrude beyond the rim. Maybe I'm getting confused, but back in the 70's (I think) didn't Mclaren have brake ducts which extended beyond the tyre in order to improve FW aero efficiency (or something like that).

To my knowledge, the team that took advantage of the possibility of extending the ducts to benefit improve FW efficiency was Toleman in the TG185, in... 1985 (duh!). Notice how they match the upper surface of the FW, effectively extending the plane.



Stricter rules limiting the size of the ducts were introduced for 1986, if I recall correctly.

PS: I hope people don't start to think I'm a pain in the a** by constantly bringing Tolemans and Benettons of the 80's to the discussions, but I believe they were some of the most inovative F1's ever (and that's how I became a fan).

[benjabulle]

and R.Byrne had another "interesting" idea in 1986 with the B186, people telling it was already on the TG185. The drawing of G.Piola is speaking by itself :

[dumrick]

Is that a front flexi-wing????
I never knew that, although those wings until the B189 were all very peculiar. What I read was that they used to work so close to the ground that, although being very efficient, they induced variations on front downforce when the car pitched. That would be the reason why in the B189B the single plane was displaced upwards, disappearing in the John Barnard "influenced" B190.

[benjabulle]

just a moveable aerodynamic device, which was absolutely forbidden of course....

[dumrick]

No wonder Ferrari has been so "experimental" on these fields also, since they got Rory onboard...

Still off-topic (I'm so sorry ), but related, do you have any idea, at the light of that "torsion bar in the front wing" what was the purpose of the wires that came from the center of the nosecone to the tips of the end plates in the B187, B188 and B189 (all had that kind of front wing, apparently).

[kNt]

A new Idea on how to exploit the brakeduct area. I haven't found a rule where the front wheels must be situated, so putting them a lot more inboard would free up a large, kind of 2nd front wing area directly linked to the wheel.

Don't know if it would help as moving the wheels inboard is a disadvantage but it would surely look wierd.

[axle]

LOL - I don't think it would handle very well after that!

[Henning]

...or go down to just one wheel at the front. You can then have ducting to it from both sides

[Shredcheddar]

Interesting thinking. My impression is that even if the wing plan area would potentially be enough to offset the loss of cornering capability due to track width reduction and an even less optimal suspension geometry, the inefficiency of working right next to the wheel's wake would doom the wing's effectiveness.

But you really never know. I mean, seriously, Tyrrell raced a six-wheeler, so.