These changes to the aero rules seem to have hit the low-rake runners the most, but you could also argue that these teams also went out of their way to recoup their losses.
So let’s take a look at what Mercedes has done in response to the challenges involved, and why it may suffer more than its peers.
Aggressive soil
When Mercedes finally revealed the new floor of its W12 in pre-season testing, it appeared that it had some of the most sophisticated solutions on the grid. Here are the details.
Mercedes AMG F1 W12 floor
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
- The teams in this region have been rolling up the edge of the ground for some time. However, so that part of the air flow from the top and bottom of the floor flows together at different speeds, Mercedes has added a series of increasingly smaller wave sections for this year. This should help reduce some of the losses associated with the changes in regulations that prevent the use of slots and fully closed holes in the ground.
- While regulations dictate that the floor taper towards the rear tire, Mercedes like a number of teams have decided to give up some of the available floor space and create an additional cutout. This creates a Z-shaped cutout in which part of the floor is led back to a parallel edge before it tapers again in front of the tire. At Mercedes, the parallel section is quite short compared to, for example, Red Bull.
- In front of the rear tire, Mercedes offers a number of solutions, including a collection of outwardly angled fins that have been wrapped in for an aerodynamic effect. They have three bands of different shapes and lengths that are designed to direct the flow between the edge of the diffuser and the side of the tire. Then, unlike anything else on the grille, the bottom is angled up towards the rear edge, where a Gurney flap has been attached to the underside of the bottom.
- Mercedes has made significant efforts to increase the size of this flow path into the coke bottle area, changing the shape of the side boxes to raise the cooling outlet. In the meantime, the shape of the floor has also been redesigned so that the floor drops under the gearbox and crash structure, creating more space for the air.
Despite these extensive changes, it is clear that under certain conditions the W12 was not as stable as the drivers would like it to be, which means it has a lot to do as the season progresses.
And since Mercedes has apparently worked harder than some of its competitors to make up losses with the construction details of its flooring, you’ll need to study the impact of some other 2021 regulation changes to understand where they’re losing.
The winglets that are attached to the lower half of the brake duct fence will be 40 mm narrower in 2021. This doesn’t seem like a big deal as everyone suffers the same fate, but there is a difference in where these winglets are oriented relative to the ground in front of them, depending on the rake angle of the car.
As such, the two groups would have used them differently, and it appears that their narrowing hindered some of the work they did for the low-rake runners.
In addition, the strakes in the diffuser have been reduced by 50 mm, which would logically damage the high-rake runners if they did not already see a loss here compared to their counterparts.
For the low-rake runners, however, their diffusers were designed to work with the advantage that these bands are closer to the ground and cause proximity. If this benefit is now removed, your diffuser is likely to be less effective.
Red Bull is playing catch-up …
The RB16B has a new rear suspension for 2021 based on the arrangement Mercedes used last season.
In both cases, the main reason for implementation is aerodynamics as the teams try to position each of the suspension elements in more convenient positions.
Red Bull was unable to fully adopt the Mercedes design as it would have required more tokens than were available to it. However, changes could still be made that will undoubtedly improve the flow through the rear of the vehicle.
The position of the tie rod is the main difference for Red Bull (highlighted in blue). It moved this to the front of its assembly, effectively flipping the wishbone over to allow the rear leg to mount as high and rearward as possible.
Of course, it should not be underestimated how great the structural challenge is. While the optimal aerodynamic positions can bring you extra performance, it’s only worth it if you don’t add a significant amount of weight to the car that would offset any gains.
Mercedes AMG F1 W11 rear suspension
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
The lower rearmost suspension element of the Mercedes W11 / 12 is on the rear impact structure and not on the gearbox carrier.
Red Bull couldn’t get as far as Mercedes with its design as it would have needed more tokens to change the design of the crash structure as well.
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