What I wanted to start with is the typical sidepod comparison - what we all like to obsess over as if smaller is empirically better; we don’t have overhead shots but we do have a very good side-by-side comparison with RB and Mercedes from similar angles. The Ferrari is quite a different angle but still illustrates the size of its pods:
What’s evident to me is that the maximum width of each is actually very similar - despite the general narrative focusing on the RB having such miniscule sidepods. Indeed, I think it could be argued that the maximum width of the RB is actually slightly wider than both Ferrari and Mercedes (look at the distance between pod and floor slots for reference).
The RB does seem to have the narrowest minimum width - and the shape of its pods (a quite dramatic reduction rather than the smoother line of both of the other cars) mean that it maintains its minimum for longer - but not by that much. But it also flares out slightly at the end - seemingly requiring more heat dissipation for the Honda - whereas the Ferrari continues to narrow right to the end.
So my view here is that there really isn’t much to choose from between the top three in terms of overall sidepod size; they have very different philosophies but I’d be surprised if overall volume is actually much different across the three.
