Mercedes introduced a new rear wing at
the second pre-season test, the design of which retained a similar
layout to its predecessor, although the aim is of course to make the
overall structure more efficient.
You'll note that where the team had
previously used two support pylons (left, yellow), there is now only a
singular inverted Y-Lon (right, yellow), providing additional rigidity.
This design change has also led to them reducing the aligned slot gap
separators (yellow) to singular element to match the pylon change.
The top flap which previously featured two V grooves, for drag
reduction, has also been altered, reducing the V grooves to a larger,
singular item.
The rear wing endplates have also seen
a small revision, with the serrations extruded upward, in order to
further maximise the upwash effect they're generating.
Mercedes used perhaps the largest and most
outwardly complex Y100 winglet (Monkey Seat) on the grid in 2014 (below),
with the exception of the specification they used in Monza. It is a
surprise therefore to see the team using a similar specification to
the Monza one throughout the test (Green), indicating the team have either taken another direction or are making gains elsewhere.
About the small Y100 winglet. I was watching Peter Windsor talking about the test yesterday. Apparently the more complex Y100 wing came off while Lewis was on track. Maybe that's why they where running the smaller winglet.
ReplyDeleteAbout the small Y100 winglet. I was watching Peter Windsor talking about the test yesterday. Apparently the more complex Y100 wing came off while Lewis was on track. Maybe that's why they where running the smaller winglet.
ReplyDelete