After a 2022 that gave a good fourth place in the constructors’ standings, Alpine wants to repeat itself also in the new season, but this time in a totally different way. The goal is to consolidate what was built in the last championship, but avoiding all those reliability problems and subdued weekends that pushed the fight for the “queen” of the midfield up to the last match.
The target for 2023 is therefore very clear and the hope is that the A523 will prove to be the right car to do it. For this reason, the team has worked hard on the new single-seater in recent months, identifying key areas in which to intervene to unlock tenths that could make the difference on the track.
The design philosophy of its progenitor has not been betrayed, with the sloping sides which now however present a more marked excavation in the internal area. The nose has been completely redesigned taking into account the development program during the world championship, as has the rear suspension, which has been switched to a push rod layout to facilitate the passage of air towards the upper part of the diffuser.
A choice which, according to the team, has also paid off in terms of weight, helping to reach the target of 796 kg, the figure initially proposed for 2023 as the minimum mass of the car before this was recently brought back to 798 kg. As explained by technical director Matt Harman, having reached the original altitude is still a big plus, because it will allow for greater freedom in the distribution of ballast during the set-up phase on race weekends.
You provided a fairly comprehensive description of the car, how difficult was it to do all of this while respecting the budget cap and the question of developments during the season?
“Yes, it’s quite difficult, but we’re well organized and well prepared. It’s all about making good choices. We haven’t changed absolutely everything, but we’ve modified the areas of the car that we think bring the most benefit and that fit well not only to the launch car, but also the development possibilities during the season. In fact, we have built our car in line with our financial goals. This means that we have the full budget available for development and that we will be aggressive. Just like last year”.
How difficult was it to reduce weight? We know you’re underweight right now, so that’s pretty impressive.
“It was a rather complex strategy. We stopped trying to reduce the weight of last year’s car to concentrate on this year’s car, because at a certain point in the season it is no longer convenient to do so. For this reason we We’re putting a lot of engineering effort into it. And yes, we’ve taken a lot of kilograms off the car, which allows us to play around with the ballasts we use for weight distribution. So that’s very positive.”
Alpine A523, detail of the rear suspension now switched to the push rod layout.
Photo by: Alpine
The minimum weight had to go down to 796 kg, were you among the teams that wanted to try and keep it there?
“Yes, we would have been happy with 796 kg.”
Is there frustration after all the effort to get to that figure?
“Not really, because we’ve just been spending on performance. It’s not just about falling short, it’s also about stepping up in terms of performance. I think we’re quite happy with where we are now.”
Was the decision to switch to the rear pushrod the most important change?
“The pushrod has been the modification that has given the most advantages. As I said, it offers us many interesting aerodynamic characteristics. But it has also freed up some space to have some more systems, to be able to adjust the mechanical balance we need So yes, that was a big part. But that’s not the only change. There are also some aspects of cooling that have proven very useful in the rear of the car, and the way we expel hot air and into the rear wing. So the whole rear of the car is currently still under development. There is still a lot to do.”
What can you tell us about the anti-porpoising rules?
“For us, the problem didn’t arise. We had some at the beginning of the [scorsa] season. But then we were able to fix it pretty quickly. So we didn’t need a regulation change to help. But we were able to quickly fix the problem and got the load back pretty quickly. So we’re pretty confident. The good thing for us is that we have a good correlation, we understand the car, both in CFD and in the tunnel and on the track. So yes, we are quite confident and hope that the effect will be smaller for us than for our rivals.”
![The Alpine A523.](https://cdn-5.motorsport.com/images/mgl/YN195Da2/s8/alpine-a523-1.jpg)
The Alpine A523.
Photo by: Alpine
Have you done any porpoising simulations?
“Yes, we did some simulations about it. And after the filming day [svolto lunedì], we think we are in a good position. But let’s not worry and consider what to do in Bahrain. But right now we’re reasonably comfortable with where we are in terms of porpoising.”
Why is it so important to change the structure of the nose to have more freedom on the front wing?
“It’s very, very important. Obviously, the shorter the nose, the more difficult it is to get homologated. And it’s also important to make sure that the way we connect the front wing to the nose gives us the maximum development opportunity. Depending of the element you choose to connect can limit the development of the front wing. For this reason we have been quite aggressive and have allowed ourselves a wide modularity. You will probably see a lot of differences on our front wings over the course of the year”.
With the changes you made, was the frame redone as well?
“We have a new frame front, not a new frame.”
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