The technical revolution of 2022 has touched numerous aspects of Formula 1 cars, not only on an aerodynamic and mechanical level. In order to simplify and reduce the costs of some elements, it was decided to require the teams to adopt some standard components, including the rims, the supply of which was entrusted to the BBS company.
A key area of focus for BBS since the start of the current regulatory cycle, which has included the move to 18-inch tyres, has been managing the forces acting on the rims compared to the older 13-inch models, the which were not standard, but designed independently by each team with the support of external partners.
The fact that there is also less rubber to absorb the impact has meant that the rims are more exposed to the forces acting on it during an impact. Both during 2022 and 2023 damage was seen on several occasions led to the tire itself detaching from the rim. In fact, although there are retention cables severely tested by the Federation that help keep the rim and other components attached to the car in the event of an accident, in recent years there have been episodes in which only the tire has detached.
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
the rims of the Mercedes W13
Retracing the episodes, last season during the first lap of the Brazilian Grand Prix, a flying tire, which had detached from Alex Albon's Williams following a collision with the two Haas cars at the start, had hit the rear wing of the Daniel Ricciardo's AlphaTauri, creating a clear danger from a safety point of view. A similar episode was the one involving Lando Norris in Las Vegas who, following the impact against a wall, saw the left rear tire come out of the rim, although fortunately in that case it did not involve other cars.
Following a request from the FIA, which has paid particular attention to various incidents over the last two years, BBS has developed an improved version of its wheels, known as the MK2. This version was gradually tested towards the end of last season, when the new rims were used by several unspecified teams after the summer break. While it doesn't completely solve the problem, it's still a step forward: both BBS and the teams were pleased with the progress of the updated design, so it will set the standard for the entire grid in 2024.
Speaking to Motorsport.com, BBS explained: “The background to the MK2 development is that, compared to the 13-inch wheel era, the 18-inch wheels are subject to greater lateral impacts from the outer edge of the tyre, resulting in loosening of the tyres. The development was initiated in response to a request from the FIA.”
Photo by: Jake Grant / Motorsport Images
Lando Norris, McLaren MCL60, gets out of his car after crashing out of the race
The new MK2 rims have no differences in terms of layout, because the design has remained substantially unchanged: the only change concerns resistance, having been reinforced to better resist impacts. “The MK2 features no design changes compared to the MK1,” BBS added.
“Forces acting on the rim were not an issue with the original design, but the outer shape of the rim has been strengthened to better handle side impacts. The weight has increased slightly, but the resistance to side impacts has more than doubled.”
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