2026 Aerodynamic & Chassis Regulations

[vorticism]

Perhaps. Could also raise the diff while displacing it rearward, if diffuser volume is a concern.

The AMR26 notably does not have a tail/transmission housing that bulges upward to meet the rear upper suspension arms. They use the RW pylons instead. I suspect they might show up with something in this area as they have more open space there than other teams do, including Ferrari.

[Stu]

A few Super Tail concepts for the tail & tailpipe area. Ferrari hinted at what can be done here with the SF26 at testing, but there is so, so much more that can be done (on paper). If the differential is placed 60mm rearward then the tail volume can completely eclipse the lowest tailpipe position. The lesser that figure is than 60mm, the less coverage the tailpipe will have. Teams with their differentials at zero (with respect to the rear wheel centers) or further inward toward the engine will still have options since the minimum possible in all cases is a 30mm overlap. The forms which can be place in the area can also be paired with a high tailpipe position.

from a capped-off radial outflow cover, to ramps and capes beneath tall tailpipes, to exhaust flow reversing ducts formed by the union of the tailpipe and tail body, and perhaps most enticing of all, the potential for a blown rear wing. If any of these shapes look funny, remember that I have to conform to cross section limits. Before asking: please consider the relevant coordinates and details like legality slits.

Downsides to ducting would be the weight of insulation, metals, and leakage through legality and assembly gaps.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HCgtY-uWgAA ... =4096x4096
alt: https://i.postimg.cc/wB7Zv5D8/Super-Tai ... ticism.jpg

Nice work!
I particularly like the blown pylons (Dyson AirBlade!!), but the blown rear wing is genius!!

[Farnborough]

Wouldn't the trade off of moving the differential rearward be the loss of diffuser volume? The only thing stopping the diffuser being larger is the gearbox itself. They will have to make sure the net effect is still positive.

The differential is quite narrow though, but does dictate the overall width of total installation, at that point. The ouput and drive shafts lay above the top surface of the diffuser though. All this era has moved the wishbones etc up to wheel centre and above to make sure they don't run through the allowed diffuser space.

The gearbox (1st and second shaft) are the components located lower down and near the lowest point of diffuser.

[AR3-GP]

Wouldn't the trade off of moving the differential rearward be the loss of diffuser volume? The only thing stopping the diffuser being larger is the gearbox itself. They will have to make sure the net effect is still positive.

The differential is quite narrow though, but does dictate the overall width of total installation, at that point. The ouput and drive shafts lay above the top surface of the diffuser though. All this era has moved the wishbones etc up to wheel centre and above to make sure they don't run through the allowed diffuser space.

The gearbox (1st and second shaft) are the components located lower down and near the lowest point of diffuser.

To me it looks like there has to be some compromise. The differential axis (toothed bit) is shown here for a 2026 car.

[Farnborough]

There's always compromise, of course.

Depends what the size of benefit that it'll be traded for in net performance though.

The "blown" effect may turn out to be insignificant in reality, we've yet to see. But if Ferrari hold an overall performance advantage, we can bet that others will be taking more extensive path in evaluation.

[venkyhere]

I have a theory on why teams are still running large amounts of anti-dive even though it's no longer venturi tunnels. The active aero is causing the cars to slam into the ground when it closes at the end of the straight. This is also when the braking occurs. So you have brake dive AND active aero sending the plank into the ground and compromising stability right when the driver hits the brakes and the active aero closes. Teams are therefore mitigating the level of bottoming by tuning out some of the brake dive with anti-dive geometry.

How about an alternate perspective - when the front end aero-bite is going to be lower w.r.t previous regs, more anti-dive geometry is going to reduce steering feel even further, which can affect driver confidence. Hence some teams (Mercedes/Redbull) have gone the opposite way, and have 'vanilla' suspension geometries, like the pre-2022 era, most probably with 'softer' heave spring rate

[mzso]

A few Super Tail concepts for the tail & tailpipe area. Ferrari hinted at what can be done here with the SF26 at testing, but there is so, so much more that can be done (on paper). If the differential is placed 60mm rearward then the tail volume can completely eclipse the lowest tailpipe position. The lesser that figure is than 60mm, the less coverage the tailpipe will have. Teams with their differentials at zero (with respect to the rear wheel centers) or further inward toward the engine will still have options since the minimum possible in all cases is a 30mm overlap. The forms which can be place in the area can also be paired with a high tailpipe position.

Since the Ferrari has differential that much further back than everyone else, could it be it's because of this it has a so much more pronounced gear noise than all other cars? (As far as I heard)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HCgtY-uWgAA ... =4096x4096

Would the exhaust have much energy after turning around like that? Wouldn't it compromise engine power?

[michl420]

Another downside of the rearward differential is more weight or less stiffness.

[Farnborough]

A few Super Tail concepts for the tail & tailpipe area. Ferrari hinted at what can be done here with the SF26 at testing, but there is so, so much more that can be done (on paper). If the differential is placed 60mm rearward then the tail volume can completely eclipse the lowest tailpipe position. The lesser that figure is than 60mm, the less coverage the tailpipe will have. Teams with their differentials at zero (with respect to the rear wheel centers) or further inward toward the engine will still have options since the minimum possible in all cases is a 30mm overlap. The forms which can be place in the area can also be paired with a high tailpipe position.

Since the Ferrari has differential that much further back than everyone else, could it be it's because of this it has a so much more pronounced gear noise than all other cars? (As far as I heard)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HCgtY-uWgAA ... =4096x4096

Would the exhaust have much energy after turning around like that? Wouldn't it compromise engine power?

These transmission are really crude in terms of noise mitigation and smoothness, that's in comparison to a road car type arrangement.

Power transfer with minimal losses is the target, and so dispensing with helical cut gears, heavy casing, "sticky" gear oil etc, etc, makes them pretty poor for noise transmission to external.

Ordinarily you'll hear more exhaust noise under full load that masks a race transmission set. These though are now putting near to 500bhp load back through them (with throttle off) on regeneration cycle at max demand, that's firstly into crankshaft, then on out the other end through another gear set to drive MGU-K unit.

[vorticism]

A few Super Tail concepts for the tail & tailpipe area. Ferrari hinted at what can be done here with the SF26 at testing, but there is so, so much more that can be done (on paper). If the differential is placed 60mm rearward then the tail volume can completely eclipse the lowest tailpipe position. The lesser that figure is than 60mm, the less coverage the tailpipe will have. Teams with their differentials at zero (with respect to the rear wheel centers) or further inward toward the engine will still have options since the minimum possible in all cases is a 30mm overlap. The forms which can be place in the area can also be paired with a high tailpipe position.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HCgtY-uWgAA ... =4096x4096

Would the exhaust have much energy after turning around like that? Wouldn't it compromise engine power?

You either lose some of the exhaust energy there (to the compromised ducting, routing, gaps, and slits), or you lose all of it to the vehicle wake. As for the engine, you'd wan to try to not increase backpressure via increasing the net exhaust path cross-sectional area.

[mzso]

These transmission are really crude in terms of noise mitigation and smoothness, that's in comparison to a road car type arrangement.

Power transfer with minimal losses is the target, and so dispensing with helical cut gears, heavy casing, "sticky" gear oil etc, etc, makes them pretty poor for noise transmission to external.

Ordinarily you'll hear more exhaust noise under full load that masks a race transmission set. These though are now putting near to 500bhp load back through them (with throttle off) on regeneration cycle at max demand, that's firstly into crankshaft, then on out the other end through another gear set to drive MGU-K unit.

Well, yes but it seemed that Ferrari had more pronounced gear noise compared to the other cars in external footage, especially in early videos with no ambient noise.

[mzso]

You either lose some of the exhaust energy there (to the compromised ducting, routing, gaps, and slits), or you lose all of it to the vehicle wake. As for the engine, you'd wan to try to not increase backpressure via increasing the net exhaust path cross-sectional area.

I meant would it be useful amounts to still worth it to blow the wing after those turns. Though I guess that's pretty much unknowable unless you design and simulate it.

You mentioned cross section rules, is it possible to to have at least the diameter of the exhaust proper?

[vorticism]

Various. One pylon's max area is greater than half the tailpipe area, so a blown rear wing is feasible from that narrow perspective. The "vertical outflow" concept would be more free as the topside openings could be any size. The legality box area around the tailpipe is greater than the tailpipe proper area, so the question is more about the less-than-ideal ducting shapes and the 180* direction change. Could also redirect <100% of the exhaust. As for efficacy, again, is it better than nothing? 100% lost to the wake, or <100% routed to the rear wing (or pylons, or a vertical ejector) before being lost to the wake?

[AR3-GP]

@BremboBrakes
Major shift in the 2026 rules: the 20-year-old 6-piston limit is gone! Teams can now run 8-piston calipers. We’re seeing a split in the paddock: some teams are already running 8 pistons with 4 pads, while others stick to 4 or 6-piston setups.

[mzso]

These transmission are really crude in terms of noise mitigation and smoothness, that's in comparison to a road car type arrangement.

Power transfer with minimal losses is the target, and so dispensing with helical cut gears, heavy casing, "sticky" gear oil etc, etc, makes them pretty poor for noise transmission to external.

Ordinarily you'll hear more exhaust noise under full load that masks a race transmission set. These though are now putting near to 500bhp load back through them (with throttle off) on regeneration cycle at max demand, that's firstly into crankshaft, then on out the other end through another gear set to drive MGU-K unit.

Well, yes but it seemed that Ferrari had more pronounced gear noise compared to the other cars in external footage, especially in early videos with no ambient noise.

The local commentators said the Ferrari engine is the most silent, and that "it just hushes past like a fighter jet", a you "can hear maybe the differential or the electric motor working". So maybe it's just unusually lour
Also that the Audi is by far the loudest. And one of them measured it 5-8dB louder with his smart watch.