Toto Wolg, the head of the Mercedes F1 team, said it was “shocking” to discover that rival F1 teams may have used the flexi floor to control porpoising. rice field.
As part of the discussion between the FIA (International Automobile Federation) and the F1 team on safety restrictions planned for excessive porpoising that F1 drivers are dissatisfied with, car floor and plank stiffness is one of the focal points. became.
At a technical advisory board (TAC) meeting the week following the Canadian Grand Prix, it was suspected that it was pushing the boundaries of the rules that limit the bending of floors and planks.
Current regulations specify that the maximum deflection is 2 mm for the floor in the two central plank holes and 2 mm or less for the last hole.
However, some F1 teams claimed that they were able to bend the floor a total of 6mm. This allows you to get much closer to the ground with a higher rake and improve performance without the risk of being adversely affected by the ground. strike.
Sources suggest that many F1 teams were surprised at what their rivals were doing. And Toto Wolff confesses how surprised he was regarding the situation.
“No one was thinking until the FIA raised it at the final technical advisory board, which was a big surprise for all F1 teams,” explained Toto Wolff.
“The content and intent of the regulation is very clear, which means it’s undisputed why it can be more biased than the content of the regulation. It’s a bit surprising, to say the least. It’s shocking.”
In response to the exposure to flexi-floor antiques, the FIA responded by notifying the F1 team of plans for rule changes as part of measures to reduce the impact of porpoising.
At the F1 British Grand Prix, the FIA announced increased regulations on floor stiffness in a draft technical directive issued by FIA’s single-seater technical director Nikolas Tombazis in France.
It revealed that it was a move to ensure that there was a “fair and equitable connection between all cars,” which was probably not the case before.
Nikolas Tombazis has revealed that the FIA believes that the F1 team is doing “excessive deformation” of the floor.
A 2mm margin of error is strictly applied and the stiffness around the holes in the floor should be uniform so that it does not exceed 10% in both cases when the radial distance from the perimeter is 15mm.
“Competitioners need to demonstrate compliance with these provisions through detailed inspection of both CAD and physical installations, and finite element analysis,” the FIA said.
Many F1 teams have welcomed the FIA’s move, and some have felt that they are overdoing what they are doing, suggesting that the governing body must have acted.
Andreas Seidl, McLaren’s F1 team representative, commented, “There must be a reason to clarify what Nicholas wants to see and what he expects.”
“From our point of view, I’m happy with this clarification in TD, because in the end it should help us all be in an equal competition.”
It’s unclear which F1 team is using the flexible floor, but Mercedes’ trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin believes this change will help bring the team closer to the front line.
“When it came to light, we probably realized that we had an opportunity that we weren’t taking or using,” said Andrew Shovlin.
“Therefore, it doesn’t affect how our car runs. It may affect our rivals. Thanks to that, we may be able to get a little closer.”
Category: Category: F1 / Mercedes / F1 machine
