2023 car comparison thread

[JordanMugen]

Is anyone else finding the lack of creativity of the 2023 cars disappointing?

Almost all of the cars launched so far seem to be some combination of 2022 Red Bull and 2022 Ferrari features (with honourable mention to 2022 Alpine), with little in the way of risk-taking -- unless I am mistaken that is!

The same old themes of round or staggered sidepod inlets, aggressive undercuts, wide downwashing sidepods, scooped out tub pods, cannon radiator outlets etc...

Same, same... Have the concerns of the 2022 regulations making the cars all look the same arrived a year late -- or did all the 2021 cars all look superficially the same at the same overview level anyway?

Last year we feared all cars would look the same, and they didn't. But this year they definitely all look alike.

It looks just like anything else we have seen so far

All the cars are looking pretty the same

All cars look the same so far.

Also it makes me sad to see such quick design convergence across the grid. Seems like we'll be having Ferrari and Haas on one side and 7 other lookalikes and whatever Mercedes ends up looking like.

[organic]

Convergence makes sense. I don't hate it

And I still don't think they're only taking Ferrari/RB features, and even when they do they're sometimes taking them further like Aston martin's sidepod shape

Alfa Romeo stuck with their interesting front wing. Their sidepods aren't really like any other team's on the grid still in '23. They've taken the wide cannon exit to the extreme. They've also swapped to pushrod rear so theyre the only Ferrari PU going in that direction

Williams have the largest sidepod undercut of any team including larger than the RB18.. so we'll see how that plays out. They've also got some of the most aggressive detailing around the Halo of any car so far. Also their front suspension setup is unusual

Haas have that very interesting engine cover as well

For me McLaren is the only car that I've not really found anything interesting

[JonoNic]

It's not a surprise that designs are converging for most teams. Three more seasons left of this era (including this one). So copy parts of the successful cars of last year. Develop it then maybe you can find something for season 2024 and work on perfecting it for season 2025.

[edgelo]

Let’s see it

[organic]

Let’s see it

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fo4CuNTWcA ... ame=medium

Take the RB18 out of there

[edgelo]

Take the RB18 out of there

It’s wrote on the picture “R19 livery” and this way we can see how similar are all the cars to it in the side view.

[Venturiation]

so mercedes will be the only car very different with other? why did no one copy them?

[Vanja #66]

so mercedes will be the only car very different with other? why did no one copy them?

If Merc keeps zeropods with slight changes, I'll be keeping my mouth shut until after the first few races. If they also changed from zeropods, then the matter is settled clearly...

[Holm86]

I wonder how well the old MP4-26 sidepods would do with these new aero regs, seeing all those deep sidepod ridges.
They also featured a flat outside surface, to manage wake from the front tires.

[jumpingfish]

I suspect that they will remain the same as last year, but now W14 will be fast. It will turn out like in previous years with a rake.

[F1NAC]

I wonder how well the old MP4-26 sidepods would do with these new aero regs, seeing all those deep sidepod ridges.
They also featured a flat outside surface, to manage wake from the front tires.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/imag ... w&usqp=CAU https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ ... _FP2_1.jpg https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/imag ... A&usqp=CAU

Draggier? Inlets are bigger than anything

[timbo]

I guess if we look at the cars from the previous era, if the bargeboard complexity is removed, than we would get pretty similar looking cars as well.

Also, I guess, one may argue that the better the understanding of the rules and aero testing/CFG/mechanical testing techniques are, the closer the cars are to the "optimum" design, and thus are less different.

But I wonder, what the regs should be to encourage diversity? Maybe a freer front wing/nosecone rules can promote more differences further downstream?

[aran.vtec]

so mercedes will be the only car very different with other? why did no one copy them?

If Merc keeps zeropods with slight changes, I'll be keeping my mouth shut until after the first few races. If they also changed from zeropods, then the matter is settled clearly...

Maybe there is benefit in the merc design but the skill and resources needed exceeds what the other teams are capable of ? or it could be pride to go and "copy" the design philosophy of your main competitor (Ferrari/Redbull) would already be a sign of defeat ? guess we will have to wait and find out not long now until we get some answers

[organic]

so mercedes will be the only car very different with other? why did no one copy them?

If Merc keeps zeropods with slight changes, I'll be keeping my mouth shut until after the first few races. If they also changed from zeropods, then the matter is settled clearly...

Maybe there is benefit in the merc design but the skill and resources needed exceeds what the other teams are capable of ? or it could be pride to go and "copy" the design philosophy of your main competitor (Ferrari/Redbull) would already be a sign of defeat ? guess we will have to wait and find out not long now until we get some answers

Swapping from their concept to a full RB/Ferrari-style a whole year into a 4 year aerodynamic regulation set was imo never really on the cards. If they swapped then they'd be a year behind working on the same problems and just be playing catch-up, like other engine manufacturers were for most of the hybrid era. That's not a way to win titles which is what merc is in the sport to do.. instead they're banking on their concept to work and for their development paths to be as fruitful as they initially expected, and that things will come good

[Holm86]

I wonder how well the old MP4-26 sidepods would do with these new aero regs, seeing all those deep sidepod ridges.
They also featured a flat outside surface, to manage wake from the front tires.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/imag ... w&usqp=CAU https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ ... _FP2_1.jpg https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/imag ... A&usqp=CAU

Draggier? Inlets are bigger than anything

I know they're quite a lot bigger, but you could possibly close off the inner part, so you only had the outside part of the inlet, and then a straight ridge on the inside

Kinda like the old Ferrari sidepods, just pushed further out