McLaren now becomes fearsome, very fearsome. The Woking team not only has the most competitive single-seater at the moment in pursuit of the Red Bull RB19. The team led by Andrea Stella officially inaugurated on Monday 2 October the new wind tunnel which was completed in the McLaren Technology Center after three years of renovation works.
Lando Norris and Andrea Stella analyze the new McLaren wind tunnel
Photo by: McLaren
The MCL60, in fact, like the previous single-seaters, was born in one of Toyota’s two wind tunnels in Cologne, while the 2024 single-seater will be developed in the new and very modern internal structure. The new wind tunnel was created in the space of the old one, so much so that the external steel structure was maintained together with the fan that generates the air flow in a closed circuit.
It was a particularly complicated exercise since the old wind tunnel was now obsolete for a top Formula 1 team, as it only allowed 50% model development, while the current structure uses a 60% scale. %, allowing much more detailed micro-aerodynamic investigations, fundamental in the development phase of a new project. But it is clear how complicated it is to enlarge a plant in an already defined physical space…
“Once the project was defined – declared Hannah Allan, Engineering Project Manager McLaren –, we continued the design process of the new tunnel at the same time as the demolition of the existing structure: the old steel structure was reduced into much smaller parts, in so that they could be taken out of the building through the existing doors.
Christian Schramm, McLaren R&D Director added: “Since the McLaren Technology Center was built, the wind tunnel has been the most important investment that has been made in racing. It took many sacrifices, extra hours and shifts, both during the week and on weekends, to meet the deadlines we had set ourselves. Due to limited space the tunnel is as high and wide as possible. The moving walkway, for example, is as wide as the access door through which it entered.”
By being able to work with an indoor system and no longer having to turn to Toyota, McLaren will have savings, but the advantage will not only be economic by not having to outsource, given that there will be a gain on development times and the quality of research. The Woking tunnel becomes the new mainstream in aerodynamics with the most advanced simulation programs.
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