Yesterday they had the normal set up. No pictures of today yet.
Yeah for now, it seems to be. But Mercedes is didn't run the ultrasofts. Vettel did a lap on 1:17,8 on ultrasofts, with 6 laps on them. That's a bit impressive.
Their low-rake -- long-wheel base makes the car nimble. Especially at the front. That's why we saw Hamilton slide a lot, because they had to run maximum front downforce, but since the car is lazy (understeery) at the front, they have to run slightly less downforce at the rear to make car rotate easier. But the problem with this setup is that the car is unbalanced, especially on corner exits.
Won't it be less nimble with a long wheelbase?F1Krof wrote: ↑27 Jul 2018, 13:39Their low-rake -- long-wheel base makes the car nimble. Especially at the front. That's why we saw Hamilton slide a lot, because they had to run maximum front downforce, but since the car is lazy (understeery) at the front, they have to run slightly less downforce at the rear to make car rotate easier. But the problem with this setup is that the car is unbalanced, especially on corner exits.
Yeah sorry, I meant the opposite o nimble. I think the word is inept.Sierra117 wrote: ↑27 Jul 2018, 13:53Won't it be less nimble with a long wheelbase?F1Krof wrote: ↑27 Jul 2018, 13:39Their low-rake -- long-wheel base makes the car nimble. Especially at the front. That's why we saw Hamilton slide a lot, because they had to run maximum front downforce, but since the car is lazy (understeery) at the front, they have to run slightly less downforce at the rear to make car rotate easier. But the problem with this setup is that the car is unbalanced, especially on corner exits.
A contributing factor to them locking the inside wheel when weight (should) transfer forward?Phil wrote: ↑27 Jul 2018, 14:10As far as I understand, the inherent "problem" (<-- it isn't, just as any concept, there are certain pro's and con's) with the Mercedes concept is that the car is low-rake. Low rake means that the car is very low at the back. Because of this, Mercedes generally have to run a harder suspension because you have less suspension travel. Because of this, the Mercedes struggles more so with traction, perhaps being quicker rear limited under acceleration. A car with a softer suspension is less "jumpy" and can retain better contact on the rears and therefore better traction. It's probably one of the reasons why Mercedes probably struggles more so out of slow corners, perhaps standing starts and on bumpy circuits (street circuits). This could also negatively affect tire performance too.