To what extent can we go so far as to close the mouth of the radiators to improve the aerodynamic efficiency of an F1 car without affecting the power unit's cooling system? In the last year we have witnessed a clear trend started by Adrian Newey's Red Bull: the world champion RB19, which dominated 21 of the 22 races in 2023, compared to the previous RB18 has been reducing the air intakes of the radiators in the front of the bellies.
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
Red Bull Racing RB19: detail of the tray that folds upwards and reduces the section of the radiator mouth
The team from Milton Keynes, in fact, had introduced in Hungary a sort of carbon tray that extended towards the front and raised, partially closing the opening of the mouth, introducing the third solution of the season. There are two reasons: first, to increase the air flow at the bottom thanks to a deeply excavated undercut; second to reduce the resistance to progress with the aim of seeking high top speeds on straights.
Photo by: Patrick Vinet / Motorsport Images
Aston Martin AMR23 with much reduced radiator vent from the Canadian GP onwards
Both objectives were achieved brilliantly, so other teams followed Red Bull in the same direction: in particular Aston Martin and McLaren did a great job of cleaning up the guts without experiencing any reliability problems with the 6-cylinder turbo Mercedes also in the hottest Grands Prix.
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
McLaren MCL60, detail of the carbon tray preceding the radiator mouth
Is it reasonable to expect that the RB20 could aim for an even more extreme solution, further raising the nail in front of the belly? Someone in the wind tunnel seems to have tried this solution, but it doesn't seem to have given the results that were expected. The first reason is that the flow that is drawn above the chassis is not as energized as one would like and, above all, the mirror support that extends from the passenger compartment to the rear-view mirror which is placed almost on the outside of the side, is too thin to transform into a real flow diverter capable of conveying the necessary air for cooling the mechanics.
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
Ferrari SF70H, the belly that drew air for cooling even from above
It will be remembered that Ferrari had introduced a very extreme concept in the SF-70 for the 2017 season: the then aerodynamicist David Sanchez (now back at McLaren) and the chief designer Simone Resta had opened the… path to fishing the air for the cooling also above the belly, after having dramatically reduced the section of the radiator mouth.
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
Note how the front section of the Ferrari SF-70 on the left had been reduced compared to the 2016 SF16-H
The sockets, in fact, had been moved above the upper anti-intrusion cone which the Cavallino technicians had lowered to the regulation limit. That innovative solution had set a precedent, given that in the following years everyone had copied it, until the FIA, with the change in the rules, imposed the fixing of the safety cone in a position that protected the driver more in the event that the body should be hit violently from the side.
With the ground effect F1 cars introduced in 2022 we tried to go in the same direction as Ferrari, despite the knowledge that the cone would be an invasive element inside the bellies. It will be interesting to find out what the orientation of the teams will be in 2024: there will be those who will try to find the limit point of the cooling system to gain aerodynamic advantages, or the need to use only three power units for 24 races (each unit should extend its life to 8 GPs with at least 1,500 km of extra mileage) have you advised not to take risks in this very delicate area?
We will have the first answers on February 5th when Stake F1 Team and Williams will show the first single-seaters of this season. But we'll have a clearer idea on February 8th when Red Bull unveils the long-awaited RB20…
#who.. #shut #mouths #radiators
