Long stints today for Mark Webber, Michael Schumacher and Jenson Button

Let’s focus on the McLaren Vs Mercedes stint for an instant, because they seem quite comparable. Both completed the same number of laps and both did 4 stints (actually JB’s first stint was cut in half, but we’ll consider it as one). The data are in the table below. The laps include the in and out laps of course, and the average laptimes disregard the peaks (which may represent either the driver easing up or facing traffic).

Comparison between Schumacher's and Button's race simulations

As we can see above, it seems that Mercedes are quite close to McLaren’s pace, although we can’t tell who’s ahead at the moment. We don’t have solid information of the tyres used (we believe that MS started on softs and moved on to the hard option, whereas JB started on the medium), and we don’t know the condition of the tyres (where they used, scrubbed in, brand new, etc). We also don’t know exactly how much the drivers were pushing, and whether they were using KERS (I presume they were, since KERS reliability is something that also needs to be tested). All in all, however, Mercedes’ long stints are much better in comparison to their 2011 pre-season testing, and let’s not forget that the other teams had one extra week in Jerez to get their cars dialed-in. An interesting observation has to do with tyre degradation; with the exception of the last stint, Button’s McLaren seemed to keep its tyres in better shape throughout the stints than Schumi’s Mercedes and Mark’s Red Bull. Again, it could be a factor of how hard the drivers were pushing, but overall we can see that Mercedes are there or thereabouts.

Red Bull’s pace, on the other hand, is a bit more difficult to decipher. Theirs was not a full-race simulation, therefore if Mark’s 3 stints are compared to MS’ and JB’s 1st, 2nd and 3rd stint, then Red Bull was massively faster today. If, however, they are to be compared with MS’ and JB’s 2nd, 3rd and 4th stint (which is what I believe), then we have the following picture:

Schumacher Vs Button Vs Webber

As you can see in the average lap times for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th stint, Mercedes is a bit faster. Of course, that’s not a conclusion; it’s not even an observation. But it’s an indication that Mercedes are not far off the pace (if at all). I am afraid, once more, we cannot decipher Ferrari’s lap times, because they were on completely different testing schedule, doing shorter runs and focusing, again, in data acquisition. Hopefully we’ll get more from them tomorrow.

Stay tuned…

• “We don’t know what fuel loads others are running” – We do know, down to the liter, and we are quite worried
• “There is room for improvement” – I don’t see us making Q2 this season
• “I feel comfortable in the car” – I am not afraid it’s going to kill me
• “The car gives me a good feeling” – Those engine vibrations tingle me down there
• “We have some work to do to ride kerbs better” – I lost two fillings and bit off a chunk off my tongue
• “McLaren look strong” – But we are stronger
• “It’s a long season ahead” – Which we will be starting from the 7th row of the grid
• “The engineers have worked really hard over the winter” – And that was the best they could come up with…
• “We are focusing on data collection” – Because we cannot focus on performance
• “We had a minor overheating issue” – We are shipping in an extra supply of power drills
• “Lap times mean nothing at this stage” – Poker face, poker face, poker face…
• “We will finalize our aero package in Melbourne” – And start working on the 2013 car immediately after
• “We may not be the fastest, but we are not the slowest either” -This is “ree-dee-koo-loos“

Having said that, I believe the following diagram paints a very interesting picture of today’s testing times. I have not included Ferrari, because they were focused on shorter runs and data acquisition, but we have some interesting “semi-conclusions” to draw anyway (click on the image to enlarge):

Barcelona 2012 pre-season testing - Day 2 - 22/02/2012 lap times

It’s clear that Red Bull and McLaren tried a few quali-style laps at the beginning of the session (with considerable fuel onboard though, at least 40-50kg) and then focused in long-runs, race simulations. We know that both teams are conservative during testing, so we can assume that they were carrying fuel worth at least 1 – 1.5 seconds / lap for their quali runs. Besides, last year’s benchmark from testing was Schumacher’s 1:21.2 laptime, and we are positive that this will be eclipsed during this winter pre-season tests, as was eclipsed the similar Jerez benchmark (set by Rubens Barrichello in 2011), and by quite a margin.

From the looks of it, it seems that Red Bull may have a slight edge on McLaren, both in terms of single-lap pace and race pace, but it’s very close to call either way. You can see that the Red Bull diagrams in their long runs are, on average, seated a bit lower than McLaren’s. Red Bull, however, were doing a race simulation today, and one can see that in the decreasing lap times of every stint; on the other hand McLaren seem to have been working with comparable fuel loads from stint to stint, and we can’t therefore draw a solid conclusion. Tomorrow’s and Friday’s test will help clear up the picture a bit more.

Mercedes’ pace is encouraging. They were able to post good laptimes at the start of their stints. Nico’s last stint, in particular, was quite good. He started with a 1:24.750, and did a total of 20 laps, averaging 1:26.769 (disregarding the peaks, which represent a driver taking it easy for a lap). Assuming that the car had at least 22 laps of fuel in it (a safe margin of 2 laps), then assuming a consumption of 2.65kg/lap and a time penalty of 0.35 sec/10 kgs, it’s easy to calculate that the car had at least 58kg of fuel onboard, i.e. it suffered a time penalty of minimum 0.35 x 58 / 10 = 2.03 seconds, i.e. an “empty” tanks run would be around the 1:22.7 mark. Since we expect the times to drop to 1:21.0 dead, then it’s reasonable to assume that Mercedes were actually carrying a lot more fuel than 58kgs for this stint. All in all, Mercedes’ first showing is encouraging and we hope they can get some more mileage tomorrow, so we can have a better picture.

As the testing days go by, we will be able to get a clearer picture, comparing the laptimes and also comparing the trends (for example, you can tell a lot of how quickly the tyres are degrading from the laptime deterioration slope). I do get the feeling that Mercedes are holding back a little bit at the moment, and they will continue to hold back this week. As I said, let’s not read anything into headline laptimes because they are completely misleading. Force India were fast today, but they were focusing on very short stints, and they were clearly doing setup optimization work…

Williams look to have fallen in the clutches of Caterham, by the by…

3D model of the HRT F112

 Edit (a few hours later): Andrew Benson is reporting that he contacted HRT and this is the old car (2011). It appears that HRT amuse themselves by building pages for the new car, naming it F112, and then putting pictures of the old one (since, apparently, very few people are actually busy with building a new car for the 2012 season). Unless they are planning to race the old car, in which case this is both the F111 and the F112, all rolled into one. Seriously, what are these guys thinking?

Again, a big thank you to all…

W03 in Barcelona, 2012 pre-season testing

The front wing is a complete redesign (1). Mercedes have produced this three-element front wing (which is the first time they are adopting the concept), which has all these intricate and elaborate details, with very pronounced cascades and turning vanes under the nose. The nose itself (2) represents a slightly extreme interpretation of the rules, with the side bulges rising very high in comparison to the height of the nose. The smoothed 3-D surfaces between the bulges look very well thought-out and designed. It definitely looks to be more efficient and less draggy than, say, Ferrari’s or Sauber’s solutions. Behind the air intake for the engine (which, as we have already said, has 2 exposed structural members) we can see an additional air intake (3) for gearbox / hydraulics cooling. The front suspension (4) utilises pushrod architecture. Finally, if rumours about their front F-duct are correct, this (5) is the entrance of the air going into the air valve that we described in our previous blog posts.

W03 - Barcelona launch 2012 - overhead view

The exhausts (6), as we have already explained, are situated quite far forward, but this is not expected to be the final solution. As you can see in the picture below, the car was running yesterday (20/02) during filming with additional gills right next to the exhaust outlets, so we expect to see similar solutions from Mercedes during testing. The rear beam wing is supported by a swan-neck mount (7), similar to other solutions already seen this year. The rear suspension (8) features a pullrod (like all other 2012 contenders) and heat shields. Finally, as you can see (9), the DRS mechanism is not apparent. It seems that all hydraulics are directed via the endplates and they will be using a step motor to operate the rear wing upper element.

Cooling exits by the exhausts during W03 filming, yesterday

All in all, this seems to be a very contemporary and elegant interpretation of the rules, with a lot of scope for development. Provided that the basics of the car are OK, then Mercedes should be able to take the next step and challenge the top 3 teams with a bit more credibility and consistency.

Mercedes W03 in Barcelona - Extremely slim and low sidepods

….and a few hours later, even more photos prop up – better ones…

Mercedes W03 spy shot - During filming (a)

Mercedes W03 spy shot - During filming (b)

The sidepods are amazing. Not only they are non-existant at the back, they also feature a heavy undercut under the air inlets, making them, arguably, the tiniest and slimest sidepods I’ve ever seen in a modern F1 car. Some say that it’s aerodynamicists who rule the game in F1, but I’m ready to argue that it’s still mechanical engineers. Without them, this tight packaging (and all the nice aero benefit that comes with it) wouldn’t have been possible.

What the author of this clip is suggesting is that the duct has two different functions. In straights, it channels the air through a central tunnel of an “air valve” towards the main components of the front wing in order to stall them (i.e. minimize drag and downforce). Then, in corners, the air is re-directed via the air-valve to the part of the front wing that is at the inside (i.e. in left-hand corners, it channels the air to the left part of the front wing). However, the reason for doing this is exactly the opposite. The air passes under the wing elements creating additional downforce and, at the same time, it brings the whole left part of the wing closer to the ground (it therefore negates the roll effect to the wing).

It’s a very interesting idea. The author argues that the air is directed via the central channel between -1 / +1 degrees of turning, whereas it is directed via either the left or the right channel when the degrees vary from between 1 to 6. Such a system is completely passive and it doesn’t involve driver’s input, nor does it incorporate moving parts. Having said that, it’s clear to see why such a system would be very sensitive inside a corner, where the rate of turning is never steady and consistent. A sudden correction of a slide, for example, would cause the airflow to switch to either the central channel or the exact opposite, meaning a completely different aero balance at the front. It would also be a challenge for the aerodynamicists to ensure that the airflow detached and reattaches smoothly and quickly.

It is rumoured that Mercedes haven’t binned their front F-duct program, and that they will be running a revised version of it during the Barcelona pre-season tests (starting tomorrow). It will be interesting to hear the drivers’ comments and, more importantly, get some info from the journalists on track on how the cars seem to behave, visually. To anyone how hasn’t read it, I strongly recommend subscribing to Autosport Plus and reading Jerome d’ Ambrosio’s track-side impressions from Jerez testing…

Roll on Barcelona, 21st of February…….

Mercedes W03 - first decent spy shot from Silverstone shake down