Among the various fake solutions that we saw in the presentations of the new single-seaters, we had believed that James Allison had also played with a double anti-dive arm in the front suspension of the Mercedes W15. And instead, Brackley's technical director had hinted at a solution that we were able to discover better during the three days of testing in Bahrain.
Mercedes W15: at the presentation the front suspension option seemed like a fake
Photo by: Mercedes AMG
If the Red Bull RB20 can be defined as a modular single-seater due to the way the cooling system was designed, the same can be said of the black-silver arrow in terms of the front suspension.
The layout has remained the push rod one, but the great innovation that was made visible at Sakhir is that the rear element of the upper triangle has two different anchorages to the frame, opening up the possibility of having adjustments in free practice useful for defining the anti-dive effect, i.e. the ability to control the sinking of the nose when braking and stabilize the height from the ground in search of maximum downforce.
Mercedes W15: here is the anti-dive arm in the highest position
Photo by: Uncredited
In truth, the W15 is one of the few 2024 F1 cars that has still shown a certain tendency towards aerodynamic pumping on the straight, so the experiment carried out on Friday, on the third and final day of pre-GP testing, certainly served to find a better aerodynamic balance .
Mercedes, in reality, is no stranger to similar experiments. In the recent past there was a plate in the rear suspension that offered adjustment possibilities.
Last year, however, on the W14 it was decided to raise the front arm of the upper triangle to the limit of the body, having to use new attachments without obtaining the approval of a new chassis. The 2023 experience must have taught the Brackley engineers that it is possible to open up various set-up solutions when designing the car.
Mercedes W15: here is the anti-dive arm anchored to the body at the lowest point
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
The W15, therefore, was born with an anchoring plate for the anti-dive arm which allows various adjustments: the Stella is in the position of being able to set up the car according to the characteristics of the circuit it will face. The idea is certainly appreciable and it was seen in Bahrain that it can be useful in solving any problems.
George Russell, Mercedes W15
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
The Allison technicians must have done their calculations: the advantages in the mechanical behavior of the car must be taken into account the increase in weight of the chassis (because where the suspension elements cling, it is necessary to have a body wall capable of withstand the greater forces to which that larger area of the chassis is subjected).
Last, but certainly not the most negligible element, given that it is usually the first sought after, is the aerodynamic aspect. The connection of the rear arm to the body is the result of careful analysis in the wind tunnel, because the front suspension is the first element useful for laminating the flows where the aerodynamicists want. With the appropriate arrangement of the kinematics it is possible, for example, to divide the air destined for the mouth of the radiators from that to be channeled towards the Venturi channels.
It is clear that if the inclination of the arm is modified to have a more stable “box” in transients, the aerodynamic concept is destined to go a bit to waste. Mercedes' idea, therefore, is very courageous. Only James Allison and his collaborators know what the delta is in favor of one solution over the other. The concept, however, remains very interesting to follow…
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