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2006: Flexing down the rear wing

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Yet again it was Ferrari that unsurprisingly had also developed a flexing rear wing that would bend backwards slightly to reduce drag at higher speeds. Few races later the upper element moved downward under the air pressure and created a rear wing that was actually stalling since the slot gap closed. Although several other teams tried to copy the system in order to gain top speeds they never really match the stunning Ferrari. Among the copycats were BMW Sauber, Renault and Midland. As soon as it became obvious teams spent large amounts of money, the FIA decided once again to ban the system and introduce a mandatory gap spacer as displayed in the image (on a Toyota). As of Canada, it became clear this was becoming more of an FIA season than any other Formula One season before.

Comments

By mini696 on 17-11-2006 at 06:59

I thought it was McLaren who first tried the flexing wing-mount structure.

By DaveKillens on 17-11-2006 at 16:19

Back in the \'60\'s when wings were first tried, there were deaths and bad accidents as a result of wings being improperly mounted or failing. From this terrible experience the FIA learned that wings must be rigidly mounted, with no allowance for movement or flexing. Since then, we have seen very few accidents as a result of wing failure.
But the attempt to allow the rear of the wing to flex downwards as a result of air pressure has been around just as long, because it\'s a lovely way to get decent downforce at lower speeds, while having lower drag at higher speeds. Of course, at higher risk to driver safety.
That was done simply by making the trailing edge of the wing of a less strong or more flexible construction. But over the years w ehave seen many unique attempts, from the closing of the wing gaps to flexing of the endplates.

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