2022 Mercedes-AMG | Petronas F1 Team

[izzy]

Scarbs thinks Merc will be on the front row in Bahrain.

Well I agree! The evidence says they have too much downforce doesn't it? It's when the car bottoms out with downforce it stalls the flow. The other teams would love to have that problem

Of course they have to sort out their suspension and have this new floor ready. Also AMuS says Red Bull are 20kg overweight, that's enormous.

[AeroDynamic]

Scarbs thinks Merc will be on the front row in Bahrain.

Well I agree! The evidence says they have too much downforce doesn't it? It's when the car bottoms out with downforce it stalls the flow. The other teams would love to have that problem

Isn't that also because Mercedes were deliberately running their car lower a lot more than other teams though? I didn't analyse this myself but that's the rumours.

[izzy]

Scarbs thinks Merc will be on the front row in Bahrain.

Well I agree! The evidence says they have too much downforce doesn't it? It's when the car bottoms out with downforce it stalls the flow. The other teams would love to have that problem

Isn't that also because Mercedes were deliberately running their car lower a lot more than other teams though? I didn't analyse this myself but that's the rumours.

They were running it low weren't they. But still, they have travel, that they must have planned, and they're fast in the slower corners before it bottoms out. I can see it might be a harder problem to solve if they're low start with, but "all" they have to do is manage that last few mm and now they know where those mm are. Well let's see, it's hard not to wish things at this point

[Just_a_fan]

Well I agree! The evidence says they have too much downforce doesn't it? It's when the car bottoms out with downforce it stalls the flow. The other teams would love to have that problem

Isn't that also because Mercedes were deliberately running their car lower a lot more than other teams though? I didn't analyse this myself but that's the rumours.

They were running it low weren't they. But still, they have travel, that they must have planned, and they're fast in the slower corners before it bottoms out. I can see it might be a harder problem to solve if they're low start with, but "all" they have to do is manage that last few mm and now they know where those mm are. Well let's see, it's hard not to wish things at this point

I think they'll end up with some devices on the edge of the floor. They are the only team without some form of clever geometry / slashes / indents / winglets - all they have is a slight up-flick where the strakes meet the floor edge.

I would have thought some device - probably a couple of slots such as Red Bull use - correctly placed will allow some air to more easily flow in to the diffuser and reduce the effect of the "choke" - in effect acting as a bypass door. Sure, this might reduce the maximum downforce slightly, but if it makes the car consistent and free from porpoising then it'll help them find lap time.

[shamyakovic]

Well I agree! The evidence says they have too much downforce doesn't it? It's when the car bottoms out with downforce it stalls the flow. The other teams would love to have that problem

Isn't that also because Mercedes were deliberately running their car lower a lot more than other teams though? I didn't analyse this myself but that's the rumours.

They were running it low weren't they. But still, they have travel, that they must have planned, and they're fast in the slower corners before it bottoms out. I can see it might be a harder problem to solve if they're low start with, but "all" they have to do is manage that last few mm and now they know where those mm are. Well let's see, it's hard not to wish things at this point

They were also trying to run the suspension as soft as possible, that increased the bouncing... they were trying to find the limit

[mstar]

i maybe not as optimistic but hoping (if rumours are correct), they will have some new floor bits for 1st race which help them. Having said that it seems ferrari and RB are planning some upgrades too. So maybe merc will be 3rd behind ferrari and RB.

[izzy]

Isn't that also because Mercedes were deliberately running their car lower a lot more than other teams though? I didn't analyse this myself but that's the rumours.

They were running it low weren't they. But still, they have travel, that they must have planned, and they're fast in the slower corners before it bottoms out. I can see it might be a harder problem to solve if they're low start with, but "all" they have to do is manage that last few mm and now they know where those mm are. Well let's see, it's hard not to wish things at this point

I think they'll end up with some devices on the edge of the floor. They are the only team without some form of clever geometry / slashes / indents / winglets - all they have is a slight up-flick where the strakes meet the floor edge.

I would have thought some device - probably a couple of slots such as Red Bull use - correctly placed will allow some air to more easily flow in to the diffuser and reduce the effect of the "choke" - in effect acting as a bypass door. Sure, this might reduce the maximum downforce slightly, but if it makes the car consistent and free from porpoising then it'll help them find lap time.

Yes they have so much data now, we can only try to imagine what they're trying to do with slots as you say or vortices that behave differently as the floor lowers or speed reaches some threshold. And the new floor stays, what about them? They're a bit kludgy by F1 standards aren't they, they new floor might have something a bit more tuned.

[dans79]

I would have thought some device - probably a couple of slots such as Red Bull use - correctly placed will allow some air to more easily flow in to the diffuser and reduce the effect of the "choke" - in effect acting as a bypass door. Sure, this might reduce the maximum downforce slightly, but if it makes the car consistent and free from porpoising then it'll help them find lap time.

See I was thinking it was the opposite. I was thinking the floor edge accoutrements, worked with the tunnels, and other bits to direct flow from under the floor out, to seal the diffuser from wheel squirt and wake at lower speeds. At higher speeds, when the car squats down, the vortices would collapse and the air under the car, would stay under the car, thus reducing floor generated downforce.

[izzy]

They were also trying to run the suspension as soft as possible, that increased the bouncing... they were trying to find the limit

yes a bit higher but softer, better traction as well I suppose, and yes more lovely data.

[dren]

I think they'll end up with some devices on the edge of the floor. They are the only team without some form of clever geometry / slashes / indents / winglets - all they have is a slight up-flick where the strakes meet the floor edge.

I would have thought some device - probably a couple of slots such as Red Bull use - correctly placed will allow some air to more easily flow in to the diffuser and reduce the effect of the "choke" - in effect acting as a bypass door. Sure, this might reduce the maximum downforce slightly, but if it makes the car consistent and free from porpoising then it'll help them find lap time.

I'm not sure if that's what the intent is with the cutouts/winglets along the floor edge. Mercedes were opening the throat area by cutting the inner most strakes during testing. I figure that's where we will see the changes. I wonder if having their cooling intake at the floor is causing issues.

[Jozsusz]

I think they'll end up with some devices on the edge of the floor. They are the only team without some form of clever geometry / slashes / indents / winglets - all they have is a slight up-flick where the strakes meet the floor edge.

I would have thought some device - probably a couple of slots such as Red Bull use - correctly placed will allow some air to more easily flow in to the diffuser and reduce the effect of the "choke" - in effect acting as a bypass door. Sure, this might reduce the maximum downforce slightly, but if it makes the car consistent and free from porpoising then it'll help them find lap time.

I'm not sure if that's what the intent is with the cutouts/winglets along the floor edge. Mercedes were opening the throat area by cutting the inner most strakes during testing. I figure that's where we will see the changes. I wonder if having their cooling intake at the floor is causing issues.

They just wanted to try that option.
If you start to cut the floor and place some bits there like RB does, the car will lose downforce. This team doesn't like compromises, it's clear that first they didn't want to do anything with the floor's edge because they don't even want to lose 0,1% of the downforce.
I guess they'll cut some edges and put some bits there for a quick fix but I'm pretty sure in the long term they're looking for another solution.
The car is a beast though, it has crazy amount of downforce.

[zibby43]

Translation: Merc source says they are confident that they will be in the mix at the front if the tweaks they’re working on work and they can run the car low. If the tweaks aren’t successful, it’s unlikely they will challenge RB/Ferrari at the first race.

[dans79]

https://twitter.com/GiulyDuchessa/statu ... cE-IH9SZnA

Translation: Merc source says they are confident that they will be in the mix at the front if the tweaks they’re working on work and they can run the car low. If the tweaks aren’t successful, it’s unlikely they will challenge RB/Ferrari at the first race.

Honestly, I think this is a little fake dram on the part of the team. I'd be willing to bet they have been working on the issue since it was first seen in Barcelona! I expect come Fp1, they will have some kind of fix, it might not be perfect, but probably good enough for the 1st race!

[Big Tea]

They probably don't want to look too good in case there is a technical change before the race.

[Just_a_fan]

I still think the Red Bull is the car to beat. People are talking up Ferrari but Red Bull just went about their work really quietly with no obvious pace through the 6 days. Then right at the end they put in a lap that wasn't exactly hanging on by the finger tips. That car has lots of performance on tap and Red Bull clearly haven't shown their hand yet. A bit like the early days of the hybrids with Mercedes.

I expect Mx to have a comfy lead in the title race over the first handful of races.