Formula One car development blog

It's a God's gift, Caterham's new nose cone on the CT05. While the visual appearance may not have been the top priority for the team in terms of aerodynamic development, the modified nose cone is a whole lot better looking that before. True, it could still be better, but such as the rules that strange looking noses are currently a good solution to keep airflow underneath the nose.

In any case, Caterham did not change much to the concept of its car, retaining the matte black cone tha... Read more

One month ago, at the Austrian Grand Prix, Force India introduced a major aerodynamic upgrade package on its VJM07, including a modified nose cone and different bodywork around the engine and exhaust. The difference is obvious around the "Claro" logo when comparing the Canadian specification to the car running at Silverstone. Tighter packaging is an obvious aerodynamic advantage and proved possible even while retaining the location of the oil cooler above the exhaust pipe, fed by th... Read more

Williams introduced a new cooling solution on its FW36 this weekend at Germany by adding a series of small apertures on the legality fin of the airbox cover. The small extension on the airbox cover is there only to fit the minimum area rules of the bodywork, but Williams have found a new use by creating fins to provide engine cooling.

Many teams have small apertures in this area for cooling, but Williams' solution surely is elaborate. The team have seemingly chosen to use shark gill... Read more

Along with its brand new front wing, brake duct modifications and floor edge updates, McLaren changed the configuration of the rear of its MP4-29 in Austria. A new diffuser was part of the car's aerodynamic upgrade package, featuring different curves at the outer extremities, allowing for a little more expansion in the diffuser. The winglet sloping around the edge of the diffuser has now been cut back, making it a very similar configuration to the diffuser that the team ran in the r... Read more

Toro Rosso have introduced new sidepods on their STR9, removing the curvature on top of the sidepod in favour of a new, more gradual slope towards the rear suspension. Looking from the back of the car it is obvious what the team have tried to achieve as the hot air exits are now closer to the floor, converging towards a design used by Red Bull and Mercedes AMG. In fact, more and more teams are going this direction as Force India had a similar sidepod update, leaving McLaren to be th... Read more

As part of a fairly large aerodynamic update for its MP4-29, McLaren have introduce a long overdue front wing update, getting rid of the rather bulky previous design that looked dated in comparison to items seen on front running cars.

The new front wing only appears to have the leading edge of the base plane and parts of the endplates in common with its predecessor, but other than that everything is new. Still a three-element wing, the insides of the flaps have considerably changed,... Read more

Sahara Force India have introduced a considerably aerodynamic upgrade for its VJM07 at Austria, including several front wing tweaks. As indicated in the image comparison, the front wing endplates now have one additional separate turning vane in an attempt to get more airflow outboard of the front wheels. The underside of the endplates have also slightly changed, dropping an edgy curve in favour or a nicely rounded profile.

Interestingly, the team have also opted to move the attachme... Read more

Ferrari have introduced a considerable upgrade package for their F14 T in Montreal, including a new floor and this more apparent new bodywork. Fernando Alonso was seen on track with the new bodywork layout while at the same time Kimi Raikkonen ran with the older configuration, allowing the team to do immediate comparisons in the pitlane and back in Maranello.

The update includes the removal of the air outlet around the exhaust, allowing for sleeker upper bodywork. The tradeoff are s... Read more

Red Bull Racing have finally had to abandon their camera mounts inside the nose cone after the FIA requested a modification. It appears that FOM was not all that happy about Red Bull's layout, making it impossible to have a sideways or rear facing camera within the mounting. After the front facing view was found insufficient as well, Red Bull already made a modification to the camera aperture in Spain, but have now had to abandon the layout.

Instead, the RB10 now features "tradition... Read more

In an attempt to resolve its unstable rear end, Ferrari introduced a new rear wing assembly in the Spanish Grand Prix, following comparison tests during Friday's FP1 with the older twin pillar layout. On Saturday, both cars featured the displayed single pillar rear wing, a design including a curve around the exhaust pipe and a single, central pillar to provide support to the rear wing.

Ferrari previously ran two pillars with fairly long chords connecting to the bottom of the rear wi... Read more