by VALERIO BARRETTA
Ferrari, head-on wind in 2023
From the words of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, and above all from the behavior of the SF-23 on the track, it was clear that one of the critical factors with which the Ferrari of 2023 had to relate was the wind. The latter made it impossible to understand the car when cornering, with cascading consequences also on the driver's confidence in the car. A problem that Ferrari has yet to resolve completely, but which finds its source in the aerodynamics of the car, as explained by technical director Enrico Cardile.
Cardile's words
“The influence of wind on the performance of the SF-23 is due to the aerodynamic characteristics of the machine. Every car loses downforce when cornering. This has to do with the turbulence generated by the front wheels, depending on how hard they are turned. This loss varies from car to car, wind is just a multiplier of this problem“, this is his comment ad Auto Motor und Sport.
“The simple rule is: the more the car loses downforce with the front wheels, the more it is subjected to the wind. And this also affects the driver's confidence. It's something we need to work on next year. In ideal conditions, we were not that far from Red Bull. But then if there is a certain type of corner and it's windy, the driver loses confidence in the car and we are doubly penalized. The pilot does not know when and how the wind will hit him and in which corners this phenomenon is most pronounced“.
A new beginning
According to Cardile, therefore, to resolve the wind problem upstream, the aerodynamic concepts of the car must be modified. In 2024 the car will undergo – according to the Arezzo driver – strong changes, to the point of considering the next one a breaking season, in which the path started in 2022 at the start of the ground effect era will no longer be followed.
#Ferrari #Cardile #aspect #work
