Team Principal Gunther Steiner was aware that the renderings show it at an earlier stage in development and there is more to come when the VF-22 first hits the track in Barcelona.
Aside from the livery, which is an evolution of last year’s design, there’s a lot for us to chew on that differs from the renders and show car that FOM showcased last year.
Perhaps the most obvious difference is the team’s approach to the sidepods with a very narrow intake used to feed the radiators within.
A relatively large undercut can also be seen under the sidepod, which aligns well with the suspension members to allow airflow to be directed around the sidepod without stealing too much of the entrance to the venturi tunnels below.
Haas VF-22
Photo by: Haas F1 Team
Behind it, the body of the side box widens outwards in order to comply with the prescribed maximum dimensions. Because of this, they also taper very quickly to a ramped sidepod design, which is something we’ve become accustomed to in recent years, suggesting the radiators have galloped in a similar fashion too.
As you’d expect, Haas tried to make the rear of the car as narrow as possible as well, with a very slim cooling outlet seen in the render that would likely have to give way to something more expansive on the stretches that require more cooling.
Nothing can be seen at this stage either of the cooling plate with fins, which the regulations allow.
Returning to the front of the car, we can see that the VF-22 features a push-rod front suspension, as opposed to the tie-rod arrangement we’ve come to expect from McLaren. This also suggests that Ferrari is following a similar path.
The rendering also shows that Haas took a different approach to the design of the front wing endplate than the F1 show car, with a half-height camber that tilts the surface outward, rather than the inward camber seen on the examples can be seen from FOM.
The trailing edge of the endplate is also straight, while the show car has some curvature. This will no doubt offer different aerodynamic characteristics, especially if we consider the dive plane mounted in a similar position.
The team also opted for the four front wing elements, representing the maximum of the offering, with the top pieces swept up in the central area to encourage them to work, exposing the bottom element and main aircraft to feed them and improve flow into the subsoil.
Haas VF-22 nose detail
Photo by: Haas F1 Team
The top three elements of the wing are connected with a stub nose design that hovers over the main aircraft.
The leading edge of the main plane curves more upwards in the central part of its span and has two arcs (red arrows) that follow the curvature of the nose.
These could create small vortices similar to the ones we used to have, although probably not as severe, on the last wing generation where the neutral section hit the flapping wing section creating what is known as the Y250 vortex.
The small arcs can also be driven harder when hitting the nose (red arrows) due to the geometry of the top flaps.
The VF-22 follows in the footsteps of its predecessors when it comes to roll bar and airbox design, with a triangular design that Ferrari is expected to return to again this year.
Meanwhile, the small shark fin design seen on the show car’s engine cover will be replicated on the VF-22. It has the dual gooseneck mounting post design, although Haas modified the design to match the characteristics of the rear wing.
The rear wing shown by Haas follows the regulatory conditions it must meet, but appears to have a higher downforce configuration than the show car, with a deep Gurney flap also present on the trailing edge of the upper flap and a V-groove, which is cut into the wing element to reduce some of the drag it would create.
Like the show car, the render shown by Haas does not have a DRS actuator or pod, but it will be present on the car when it is tested preseason.
The beam wing returns in 2022 after not having been present since 2014. And while it’s possible to have a two-piece design, it appears, at least from the rendering, that Haas decided to use just a single piece that mounts to the crash structure—a butterfly-like design to obey the regulations regarding its be kept close to the exhaust tailpipe.
It’s also worth noting that when it came to the shape of the diffuser, the team used a much more boxy design than the stylistic variant shown on the show car. Framing the diffuser are the skirt-like brake duct winglets that we were expecting, along with another pair mounted higher on the brake duct fence.
The differences shown compared to the show car and renderings provided by FOM, even for a design that was earlier in development, make it clear that there is still scope within the regulations for teams to come up with different interpretations.
Hopefully we’ll be treated to some of these when the rest of the teams start revealing their cars next week.
