RB20 speculation

[-wkst-]

Why should they waste money for a basic design in the 3rd year of the regulations in the cost cap era.

[Blackout]

These inlets are no ram air intakes anymore, now they look like air sucking devices, and actually they remind me of some rear brake intakes RB used in the past

[Cs98]

Why should they waste money for a basic design in the 3rd year of the regulations in the cost cap era.

They wouldn't. It looks like a reasonable evolution on what they had in multiple areas. RB always leave it to the last moment to manufacture parts, so this is the car for now, more updates will probably follow in the early races.

[Cs98]

These inlets are no ram air intakes anymore, now they look like air sucking devices, and actually they remind me of some rear brake intakes RB used in the past

My aero knowledge is limited, but it feels like by doing it that way you can divert the maximum amount of air possible to the undercut and then suck your intake air from higher up in the airstream.

[kediown]

https://x.com/therealjackster/status/17 ... 46018?s=20

Looks indeed a very small SP inlet (15 to 17 seconds into video). I also don't see an underlip anymore, but maybe that is just the blurriness.

The undercut looks way massive from this vid

[AR3-GP]

The sidepod inlet looks inverter. Like overbite instead of underbite.

[Cassius]

From editor at MotorsportTV and chief editor at Motorsport TR

Red Bull has confirmed it is staging a 200km shakedown at Silverstone today.

But initial information is that this is just a "launch version". So they seem to be saving the real changes for Bahrain.

Not sure how reliable this journalist is but red bull have obviously done this in the past. In '22 for instance the car was radically changed on the final day of preseason testing

Yes, that was in the first year of the new regulation. Now we are in the 3rd year in a budget cap era, so it doesn't make sense to produce parts just for a shakedown and 3 days of testing unless you want to keep something very radical secret until the first race. But that contradicts with Waché/Newey's statements about the RB20 being another evolution.

[AR3-GP]

From editor at MotorsportTV and chief editor at Motorsport TR

Not sure how reliable this journalist is but red bull have obviously done this in the past. In '22 for instance the car was radically changed on the final day of preseason testing

Yes, that was in the first year of the new regulation. Now we are in the 3rd year in a budget cap era, so it doesn't make sense to produce parts just for a shakedown and 3 days of testing unless you want to keep something very radical secret until the first race. But that contradicts with Waché/Newey's statements about the RB20 being another evolution.

It's possible that they are running late with aero. This could have pre-empted a shakedown bodykit that is not the final Bahrain spec.

[Vanja #66]

The sidepod inlet looks inverter. Like overbite instead of underbite.

Think they'd shoot themselves in the foot and boldly go where W14 wanted to go?

[Luscion]

https://x.com/therealjackster/status/17 ... 46018?s=20

Looks indeed a very small SP inlet (15 to 17 seconds into video). I also don't see an underlip anymore, but maybe that is just the blurriness.

The undercut looks way massive from this vid

Took a still from the vid and sharpened it a bit, seems like the undercut is indeed massive, similar to the AMR24

[Cs98]

The sidepod inlet looks inverter. Like overbite instead of underbite.

Think they'd shoot themselves in the foot and boldly go where W14 wanted to go?

They already did it with the engine cover and nose attachment

[AR3-GP]

delete

[AR3-GP]

The sidepod inlet looks inverter. Like overbite instead of underbite.

Think they'd shoot themselves in the foot and boldly go where W14 wanted to go?

I could be wrong about that. These photos are not the best. I've seen clearer images of the loch ness monster.

[Sevach]

The sidepod inlet looks inverter. Like overbite instead of underbite.

I'm suspecting that too, a bit like the Mercedes crash structure into sidepod.
The hot exit cannon also looks a bit Mercedes inspired imo.

[Cs98]

The sidepod inlet looks inverter. Like overbite instead of underbite.

Think they'd shoot themselves in the foot and boldly go where W14 wanted to go?

I could be wrong about that. These photos are not the best. I've seen clearer images of the loch ness monster.

Seriously though, they wouldn't do that. It goes against everything they were trying to do last year and everything that the other launches have shown us. Likely what you are seeing is just the lower lip being so high that it looks more like a roof than a floor for the intake.