As the team ramps up preparations for the all-new era of F1, there are suggestions from Maranello that parts of their plan include a complete engine overhaul.
The Italian team was on their way back last year when a series of FIA technical instructions on fuel flow measurements resulted in a drop in performance.
The lack of competitiveness on the horsepower front, coupled with a car that was too dragging, meant Ferrari had its worst season in Formula 1 in decades.
Ferrari is working on an improved engine for 2021 which it hopes will reduce the deficit over the benchmark Mercedes powerplant. However, more ambitious work will be done for next year.
According to sources, Ferrari is ready to take a risk on an innovative engine that, if it worked, could prove to be a game changer in sport.
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The work is the result of the efforts of Wolf Zimmermann, who was entrusted with developing the concept for the engine that will power the cars of the new era.
One change that is to be adopted is that Ferrari is treading the Mercedes path of separating the compressor from the turbo – an idea that Honda also switched to a few years ago.
While both elements are currently located on the transmission side of the engine in the Ferrari, the two elements will be on both sides of it from next year – connected by a shaft.
But beyond this philosophical change, it goes without saying that Ferrari goes one step further – and actually brings the compressor into the six-cylinder intake box with a completely new arrangement for the intercooler.
Such a revolutionary change would not only result in increased performance, but also open up more aerodynamic possibilities through a more compact overall engine layout.
Reducing the size of the engine would also provide a weight advantage that could help with both the center of gravity and the location of ballast.
The new design idea will be a major challenge, both in terms of increasing performance and ensuring that reliability is not compromised.
While some at Ferrari have preferred the team to go ahead with a more traditional power unit design and use an evolution of the version used in the SF21, the Italian team is determined to make the most of the possibilities offered by the new 2022 regulation.
That is why the new concept is being pushed so that Ferrari can take off at the beginning of the new Formula 1 era.
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