zoroastar wrote:SmallSoldier wrote: ↑27 Mar 2019, 18:22
mwillems wrote:
I'm going to bring it back to the shiny new wing once more, just to ask a question from the tech heads. Sorry!
Also, they seem to understand the issue and know they need updated parts, so I think it is more likely to have ruled out those set up changes, possibly. Not definitely, but possibly.
Is it possible that because we have traded outwash over air under and around the car (Lower outboard on wing and larger inner sections versus say the Mercedes or RB solution), we are losing underfloor downforce and gaining drag reduction.... but in such a way that the trade of results is a net slower car? Maybe it is better to take the drag penalty because of a potential stronger benefit of the car being sucked more to the ground, front and back?
It’s way too early to really know the car potential... But for some reason, what Mclaren seem to be trying to do reminds me of Williams in 2014-2015... The Williams in those years bet for a car that was very quick in high speed circuits (very low drag), but wasn’t very quick in the short / low speed circuits... That Williams finished third in the Championship both years.
If what the team wants to do is show progress this season, focusing on the high speed tracks seem to be an smart idea... Not only are there more of those during the season (therefore more opportunities to make points), they are also tracks were passing is easier than in the slow ones (Melbourne, Monaco, Singapore for example) that are beneficial if you have a good grid position, but if you don’t nail qualifying your weekend is most probably ruined... So the fast tracks represent way more opportunities to finish in the points and show progress year on year, which for the shareholders and sponsors is a must this year.
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in 2014-2015 the williams had a huge advantage in that it had the mercedes pu, which at the time, was way more dominant than it is these days. im not sure that any team can depend on straight line speed alone to guarantee results. im sure that one of mclarens objectives was to not be at the bottom of the speed traps every race but hopefully they have something in the pipeline to make them faster in the corners. at least they wont be sitting ducks on the straights anymore though. i just dont see them blasting past the haas's or the alfas on straights. of course, like you said, good qualifying is key.
The fact remains that the Williams was a car that behave really well on “fast tracks” and was very lacking in “slow tracks”.
I’m not talking about just straight line speed... It’s a mix of straights and fast corners... In the past Mclaren had a car that behaved really well in slow tracks, a relatively short wheel base (on the shorter side of the scale in regards to the field) and high rake... This made them have better pace in slow tracks compared to fast ones... This year they seem to be aiming at performing “better” in fast tracks and that’s what I argue is an smart decision since your point scoring opportunities multiply.
Of course, they want to be good at every aspect in every/most type of corners... But you always have to compromise, especially with a new car design / philosophy and what they seem to be doing this season looks smarter than what they did in the past... Time will tell!
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