Everything in its place, without sensational solutions. James Vowles, Williams team principal, pays attention to concreteness: the FW46 does not present flights of fancy, but is the result of rational work that took into account the deficiencies of the Grove structure, while awaiting the start of the plan to upgrade the team's factory.
The development of the FW45 was stopped early last year to free the technical office from the tasks for the 2023 championship and to set up the project of the FW46 which will be a car destined to last two years, with few updates for 2025, when the the bulk of Dorilton Capital's resources will be oriented towards the 2026 single-seater which will represent a clear break with the current ground effect cars, which are too large and heavy.
Williams FW46 coming out of the pits at the start of the filming day in Bahrain
The new Williams filmed today in Sakhir covering the 200 km of filming day on the track: Logan Sargeant was the driver who had the privilege of taking his first steps with the new blue livery presented on February 7th at an event in New York .
The biggest flaw of the FW45 was that it lacked downforce, so tire life was compromised by tire wear during race stints, while it was able to defend itself on the qualifying lap, deserving the entry with Alexander Albon frequent in Q3. The reduced resistance to progress allowed Grove's single-seater to defend itself on the longer straights, paying a price, however, on the more driven tracks.
Williams FW46
Photo by: Williams
James Vowles asked his technicians, led by Pat Fry, the fresh CTO who arrived from Alpine in August, to redesign structures and systems to kick off a relaunch of the team which started from the Grove factory to arrive at the FW46.
For the moment the car has not shown any setbacks: indeed at first glance one might say that it is very similar to its progenitor, but this is a wrong feeling because the FW46 is completely new. It was Mercedes that dictated the rules, supplying the rear axle: the power unit, gearbox and rear suspension come from the Star. At Brackley they shortened the gearbox by 30 mm and moved the engine further back to review the weight distribution of the individual parts, while still respecting the mass distribution defined by the regulations.
Williams FW46
Photo by: Williams
This intervention already forced a global revision of the project, so almost nothing of the old single-seater was kept. The rear suspension, in fact, has moved from the pull rod scheme to the push rod one which has made it possible to move the kinematic mechanisms inside the transmission box upwards, freeing up the space below for the passage of the Venturi channels, useful for creating more downforce with the car body. The new suspension (also used by Mercedes and Aston Martin) should promote more effective mechanical behavior of the car, giving it greater stability to changes in set-up.
The front suspension, however, remained faithful to the consolidated push rod scheme with some updates: the rear arm of the upper triangle was inclined downwards to make the anti-dive effect (i.e. the sinking of the nose during braking) more effective , while the front element was anchored to the highest point of the body. Interestingly, the steering arm is no longer above, but below.
The nose is perhaps the least accurate part of the FW46: from the images of the filming day a flat and rather wide nose emerges which rests on the first flap, instead of on the main profile as it was last year. There is a small bump with the small air intake for cooling the cabin. It is curious to note that between the first element of the wing and the main profile there is almost no overhang, as if they were overlapped in the central area, allowing a blowing of air which feeds the lower part of the nose, very hollow and below to the frame.
Williams FW46
Photo by: Williams
The bellies are influenced by Red Bull, so we find a tray that extends forward, under the mouth of the radiators. The cooling intake of the radiators is not narrow and is less extreme than other single-seaters (particularly the Aston Martin). At Grove they widened the undercut creating an increased air passage towards the bottom. The FW46 also has a wing shape in the lower part of the side, seeking the effect of a double bottom with the raising (followed by everyone) of the radiating masses.
The top of the sidepod slides down, but Grove's machine also shows a dig, breaking away from the dictates of the unbeatable RB19. The airbox does not follow the Mercedes philosophy: the airscope is square and divided into two stages: the first powers the power unit, the second the central radiator.
The bonnet is well profiled, because to expel the hot air of the Brixworth V6 Turbo the bazooka takes care of it which has a curvilinear design that descends, to bring the losses towards the upper edge of the extractor, ensuring that the beam wing can work in a cleaner and more efficient flow. The first element has a pronounced spoon, while the upper one has a clear gull wing shape.
The rear wing, supported by a single-pylon support, is medium-load with a main profile with a slightly pronounced spoon surmounted by a movable long-chord flap. Today it was only cinema, from tomorrow in Sakhir we will look for the substance. Can seventh place in the 2023 Constructors' World Championship be improved upon?
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