McLaren is going against the trend of Ferrari and Red Bull: the Woking team in Spielberg has modified the front of the MCL38 to improve the flow of air that then hits the papaya single-seater, while their opponents have essentially re-proposed the single-seaters they had raced with in Spain.
The front wing is new and has been designed to work in coordination with the suspension arms that have been redesigned in the shapes of the carbon covers and not in the kinematics of the pull rod scheme in the front end. The flaps have been revised with a different attachment both to the nose and to the side bulkhead and show a slightly shorter chord than in Barcelona, while the main profile now has a greater surface area.
The front wing of the McLaren MCL38
Photo by: Uncredited
The endplate is new and is no longer square in shape, but rounded (green hatching). Also not to be overlooked is the exaggeration of the out wash effect: in fact, each flap is anchored to the side bulkhead only at one point, while the rest of the leading edge is twisted inwards, creating an unprecedented air passage that adds to the channel that allows the flow to be directed to the outside of the front wheel with the clear intent of cleaning the wake and improving aerodynamic efficiency.
At McLaren they are working to improve the behavior of the MCL38 in fast corners and these interventions indicate the right path. Oscar Piastri was called to test the new package in FP1: flow vis paint was spread on the Australian’s car, while Lando Norris tested himself with a standard version car in the only free practice session.
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