that tip of the Renault's nose looks a bit like the bulbous Merc thing. So far, at least, the Williams is putting in consistent times (too early to judge speed, but Russel putting in a faster time than his quali lap last year actually looks good for them(
Not only that, trap times look decent, Russel said the car feels good to drive not scary like last seasons, its consistent on each lap and they have got a good number of laps in. Much better signs this season already. I know no one is showing anything like real pace today but yes its encouraging. Hes a second quicker in testing with aero rakes and the engine turned down over his quali lap last season.
https://www.planetf1.com/news/racing-point-mercedes/ So after six seasons of absolute domination, somebody finally tried 'let's start with a Mercedes' approach to car design. The other teams are apparently upset with this because it never oocured to them. Genius move for Racing Point. On a different note, Kubica in a Sauber looks much better than Kubica in a Williams held together with duct tape.
Time to start installing 3D laser scanners into the cars to get 3D model data as they pass the opposition!
Not going to lie, F1 cars with lasers and the inevitable counter laser ECM sounds amazing. One step closer to Wipeout.
The one stand out (if anything) for me on testing day 1 was that the Renault "driver swap" took well over 90 minutes. Not sure if it's anything (it probably isn't), but Max's second spin was a bit weird. George Russel, in the commentary box at the time, remarked that it looked like Max was unloading the car on the inside curb, which (in Russel's words) is a non-issue for Williams... I doubt it's anything (and even if, it's more likely to be a setup issue than anything else), but it's one of the very few things that happened.
Renault swap is nothing to worry over. you have a seat change, pedals and pads usually then aero changes according to what ever program they are running that afternoon and, fitting/removing rakes sensors etc and checking all the car fluids. Max was pushing probably trying to find what the car can or cannot do compared to last seasons. Also the Alfa Tauri, it shares some of last seasons RedBull, but the chassis/floor and aero parts have to be there own design as part of the rules else it veers into a spec series. They may share common parts so suspension arms for example, but then they have gone in different directions on that.
The reliability in general seems pretty solid this season (as it should, being a few years into the spec now). Renault still a bit low on laps, though.
Funky merc steering wheel under scrutiny, https://www.planetf1.com/news/lewis-hamilton-steering-wheel/
Mercs system changes the toe-in. When he pulls the steering wheel, the wheels go parallel to each other, creating even ware on the tyres on the straights. In the corners, upon pushing back on the steering wheel, the wheels point outwards, helping with lean-in and grip. This is the default setup up until now.
Appears to run against this Article 10.2.3 of the FIA Formula 1 technical regulations which govern suspension and stipulates that “no adjustment may be made to any suspension system while the car is in motion.”
