Honda Power Unit Hardware & Software

[godlameroso]

Goes to show what they mean when they talk about tailoring the fuel for the power unit. I suppose the goal is to have the energy of n-gasoline with the anti-knock properties they're looking for. The 5% bio-component and soon to be 10% opens the door for some development in octane boosters. Obviously you can't make an alcohol have more energy than gasoline, but you can get it close and you can enhance the properties of the gasoline.

[Jaisonas]

2 Merc powered cars had mgu-k failures, so i'll circle back to the theory that merc are pushing their Ks at their limit this year to get the extra performance

[Craigy]

2 Merc powered cars had mgu-k failures, so i'll circle back to the theory that merc are pushing their Ks at their limit this year to get the extra performance

It's Friday - were they race engines, or previously used high-mileage Friday ones?

I agree that Merc drive their K to the limit.

[etusch]

2 Merc powered cars had mgu-k failures, so i'll circle back to the theory that merc are pushing their Ks at their limit this year to get the extra performance

both are costumers and for merc itself everything decided. they can even exceed limits. but factory team is still very reliable

[Marti_EF3]

2 Merc powered cars had mgu-k failures, so i'll circle back to the theory that merc are pushing their Ks at their limit this year to get the extra performance

both are costumers and for merc itself everything decided. they can even exceed limits. but factory team is still very reliable

Thanks also to have a great car, and most of the races they don't need to push hard the PU. If they were in a close battle things may be different

[etusch]

Thanks also to have a great car, and most of the races they don't need to push hard the PU. If they were in a close battle things may be different

I think it is very important point. It is probably why bottas have so much issues but Ham is not. All strategy of merc rely on being in front in clean air and push only if needed. Their engine is good but not flawless and when they are in pack, it is harder to keep it alive and still perform well. If they were not sure from pole every race, I don't think the factory team could push to limit so hard.

[holeindalip]

Thanks also to have a great car, and most of the races they don't need to push hard the PU. If they were in a close battle things may be different

I think it is very important point. It is probably why bottas have so much issues but Ham is not. All strategy of merc rely on being in front in clean air and push only if needed. Their engine is good but not flawless and when they are in pack, it is harder to keep it alive and still perform well. If they were not sure from pole every race, I don't think the factory team could push to limit so hard.

Hmmm, so when Hamilton ran the ferraris to the edge with the engine trickery the pu on the mercs must’ve been turned down then...got it...

[etusch]

Hmmm, so when Hamilton ran the ferraris to the edge with the engine trickery the pu on the mercs must’ve been turned down then...got it...

could he push that much with this year's engine ?
Why they couldn't push hard at 19 A1 ? If they would have knowledge of they have to save the engine but they have to push also to win race, on the contrary of what they had this season and generally whole hybrid era, it would be different. I don't mean by this, they would have issues so much. I mean they would have issues and can not be so reliable.

[holeindalip]

Hmmm, so when Hamilton ran the ferraris to the edge with the engine trickery the pu on the mercs must’ve been turned down then...got it...

could he push that much with this year's engine ?
Why they couldn't push hard at 19 A1 ? If they would have knowledge of they have to save the engine but they have to push also to win race, on the contrary of what they had this season and generally whole hybrid era, it would be different. I don't mean by this, they would have issues so much. I mean they would have issues and can not be so reliable.

In 2019 they miscalculated cooling requirements that’s why in the thin air of Austria,Mexico they couldn’t run them as hard, all fixed for 2020

[Marti_EF3]

For who downvoted instead of posting here. Tell me why is factually incorrect. The Merc PU of Williams and RP (which were pushed to fight for points/podiums every race) have had issues, broken parts (MGU-K) and had penalties for it. If Mercedes works team were in same battles and not always on clean air with 2020 PU, what proves you have they won't have the same issues?

[godlameroso]

This is the Honda engine thread, so bringing it back to the Honda engine, the excellent reliability of the combustion engine made this win possible. Honda made a conservative engine considering where they are now, and were able to push it. Next year the mass of the ICE increases by 5kg, which means that it can be made even more reliable. I'm anxious to see the step they make over the winter, Honda deserves to go out with a good engine. Also amazing to see the advances that are being made to these power units 5 years on.

Today made something pretty clear, Mercedes cannot beat Max if they don't have a big engine advantage. With only a small advantage, it's not enough. If the Honda engine catches Mercedes Verstappen will be champion. The RB chassis is every bit the match of Mercedes, and next year RBR is bringing 40% new car, meaning an entirely new aero package. One that takes advantage of the reduced cooling requirements and smaller footprint of the RA21H.

[holeindalip]

For who downvoted instead of posting here. Tell me why is factually incorrect. The Merc PU of Williams and RP (which were pushed to fight for points/podiums every race) have had issues, broken parts (MGU-K) and had penalties for it. If Mercedes works team were in same battles and not always on clean air with 2020 PU, what proves you have they won't have the same issues?

Did you ever think of cooling requirements, as in those other teams won’t/can’t keep it in its optimal range?

[GhostF1]

For who downvoted instead of posting here. Tell me why is factually incorrect. The Merc PU of Williams and RP (which were pushed to fight for points/podiums every race) have had issues, broken parts (MGU-K) and had penalties for it. If Mercedes works team were in same battles and not always on clean air with 2020 PU, what proves you have they won't have the same issues?

Did you ever think of cooling requirements, as in those other teams won’t/can’t keep it in its optimal range?

I think at this point it's obvious Mercedes were concerned about the reliability of their PU specifically the K, it was mentioned multiple times over the weekend by the commentators that Mercedes have taken measures to ensure they finish the race. Ted Kravitz was told by Mercedes they've had to reduce the duty cycle on the MGU-K to preserve it during the race but they would not divulge exactly how much power they had lost.

How this initially bodes well for Honda is how resilient their PU as a package looks. So unless Mercedes totally iron out all their gremlins and if indeed RBR take the challenge to them so Mercedes have to push more each race, it's bodes well for Honda.

[Marti_EF3]

That's what I was talking about. Looks good if Honda can keep that reliability with a significant power gain for next year. They don't have to be better, but they have to be there to push the Mercs to a point they can't turn down the PU middle race. Then we will see the real strenght of Honda Vs Merc. Because the Honda PU's have been pushed to the edge, and no terminal failures like the other manufacturers, and no penalties. I think, and it's only my opinion, but the Merc PU package on the works team id always designed to be in clean air, and when it's not the case, it starts overheating... And Honda PU seems to not be bothered with heating issues (Albon usually was on the midfield pack)

[Bill]

ever since Rbr brought a new frontwing in Turkey the have been a match for Mercedes pu deficiencies was never the reason they lack pace. Rbr introduced a new design concept it took them the whole season to full understand and optimise it thats why they were at start slower than last year car and Racing point,and merc doing little development .they bridged 1.5 sec without any pu updates.next year they needs to start fast from get go and take more responsibilities rather than blame someone