Williams FW44 front wing detail
A look under the front wing of the Williams FW44, which is much less complex than we are used to, as with this new regulation teams can no longer use winglets. Also note the camera mounted on the FOM camera module.
Detail of the floor of AlphaTauri AT03
The AlphaTauri AT03 features a cutout in the floor of the car right in the middle of its length, where there is a section with flaps placed above what would be the flat bottom instead.
Alpine A522 side detail
A good overview of the Alpine A522 from the side, you can clearly see the floor strips protruding from the front corner and the section cut out and rolled up later.
Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri AT03, con parafina
The AlphaTauri AT03 in flo-viz (paraffin) green paint gives us a general idea of some of the airflow currents as it moves through the car.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB18
Red Bull also joined the paint party, although their use of paraffin wax was a little less crazy and more localized as you can see in the image above.
Fernando Alonso, Alpine A522
Alpine probably thought that by using blue paint no one would notice, but they didn’t. In this image you can see how the entire rear of the car is painted, while Fernando Alonso kicks up some gravel as he passes through the track.
Paraffin paint on Max Verstappen’s car, Red Bull Racing RB18
More wax on the Red Bull RB18 towards the end of the first day of testing, albeit with more specific placement than some of its rivals, hinting at clearer flow structures.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB18
Red Bull also swapped one of the RB18’s sidepod panels and engine cover during the afternoon session for one with a succession of cooling gills.
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W13
Mercedes followed suit with Red Bull, changing a panel on the side of the cockpit to incorporate some additional cooling gills.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari F1-75
Paraffin on the underside of the floor of Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari F1-75.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB18
Rear view of the Red Bull RB18 showing not only the diffuser, rear brake duct fins and its unique beam wing design, but also the size of the top cooling outlet.
Lando Norris, McLaren MCL36
By comparison, the McLaren MCL36’s cooling outlet looks a bit wider.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari F1-75
In contrast, the Ferrari F1-75 has a much smaller rear cooling outlet, but this is due to the gills they have implemented on the top surface of the sidepods.
Fernando Alonso, Alpine A522
Alpine has the rear cooling outlet located lower, but it is also complemented by a cutaway section and vents located above the sidepods and on the engine cover. At the time of the image, the A522 wore an asymmetrical design, with the gills on the left side of the body open and those on the right side closed.
Red Bull Racing RB18 sidepod detail
The Red Bull RB18 ‘s sidepods feature a peculiar leading edge design, with the lower lip positioned much farther forward to artificially increase the size of the inlet, while also acting as an airflow conditioner for the hole it creates. there is under the pontoon.
Nicholas Latifi, Williams FW44
The Williams FW44 with laser height sensors installed on the side of the ground to track the attitude of the ground compared to the runway.
The front wing of Fernando Alonso’s car, Alpine A522
The upper edge of the Alpine A522 ‘s front wing is quite different from its rivals, with a wing sticking out from the straight surface.
The rear wing of Fernando Alonso’s car, Alpine A522
A look at the Alpine A522 ‘s rear wing, which is relatively flat, rather than spoon-shaped like other kits. Also note that the rear wing pillar connects directly to the DRS actuator pod, rather than the wing mainplane, which should help aerodynamics as there is a cleaner flow to the rear. bottom of the wing.
The rear wing of Max Verstappen’s car, Red Bull Racing RB18
The Red Bull rear wing also features a single mounting pillar that is connected to the DRS actuator pod, same setup as on Alpine.
The nose of Red Bull Racing RB18
A close up of the cooling hole in the nose tip of the Red Bull RB18, which appears to be part of a swappable panel for a holeless setup.
The front spoiler of Yuki Tsunoda’s car, AlphaTauri AT03
The leading edge of the front wing mainplane is arched, exposing the underside of the AlphaTauri AT03 ‘s nose.
Max Verstappen’s front wing, Red Bull Racing RB18
In contrast, the main plane of the Red Bull RB18 descends and the nose connects directly to the second flap of the front wing sequence.
The front spoiler of Sebastian Vettel’s car, Aston Martin AMR22
In contrast, the Aston Martin AMR22 has a higher center plane with the nose attached to the second element of the front wing.
Charles Leclerc’s front wing, Ferrari F1-75
Ferrari bets on another design, with a sloped main plane and the nose that extends to the leading edge of the front wing.
Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri AT03
AlphaTauri put Pitot tubes into the air intake of their airbox to collect some data and make sure it was working as expected.
Lando Norris, McLaren MCL36, with paint to measure aerodynamic behavior
The McLaren MCL36 sprayed with paraffin so the team can have visual confirmation of which aerodynamic surfaces are working as expected and where gains can be made.
The steering wheel of the Alpine A522
An overview behind the wheel of the Alpine A522 and its various buttons, knobs and switches used to control the myriad functions of the chassis and power unit.
