Mercedes W02 – New front wing for second Barcelona test on March

 

To increase further frond stability Mercedes used at second Barcelona test a new front wing based on the previous design as regards the flaps . Apart from the flaps themselves, the rest components of the wing  including camera winglets and nose pillars are all changed to a significant or lesser extend .

Starting from the camera winglets (No2) , they are now located  higher onto the nose box sides (a traditional approach) leaving their former position behind the neutral central flap ( an idea springs from Red Bull RB6) . The nose pillars (No1) are wider close to their bottoms to increase the quantity of air passing through them towards the rear . The cascade winglets (No3) are now doubled to provide extra downforce , with the larger winglet to be significantly different from the old one, having now a steeper attack angle and an inner endplate . The wing’s endplate floor (No4) has a greater venturi channel to speed air under it , while the trailing edge of the endplate has a deep cut in its middle (No5) to create a strong vortex around the outer wheel profile aiming drag reduction. Finally the wing retains the slot on the main flap ( No6) , a slot that can easily be sealed by a solid piece in some occasions altering the wing’s characteristics according to each track needs .

Mercedes W02 – Updated front wing for Barcelona February testing

 

W02 since now struggles for speed especially when cornering revealing lack of grip . To ease the problem , in the wait of major updates for the 2011 season debut , Mercedes tested a revised front wing at last day in Barcelona February testing . The revised wing had a slotted main plane to prevent wing stalling keeping downforce production high enough . Wing stalling  can cause sudden oversteer resulting time loss or even excessive  tyre ware . Pirelli tyres are proved to be  more susceptible to graining  than Bridgestone and teams have to pay special attention on keeping them in good shape .