Force India VJM06 – glimpse of the rear end

Force India VJM06 – rear end and diffuser

     There is nothing radical on Force India VJM06 diffuser .The most striking points on the design are the perforated ( slotted) tab and the three in a row vertical fences separating the inner section from the our tunnels.

    Like several other teams in 2013, Force India does also share a carapace of carbon to enclose both the lower rear wishbone and the driveshaft.

Caterham CT3 – new diffuser at 1st Barcelona test

B spec, tested at Barcelona test on February

   Caterham tried a modified diffuser at first Barcelona test, featuring a new perforated tab fence demarcated between the rear wing’s endplates . The new design improves diffuser’s suction ability, thus improving downforce production . The perforated diffuser concept is not new in Formula 1 but present since few years ago.

Caterham CT01 – cooling ( up to Bahrain)

       Car cooling is crucial not only for reliability but for overall efficient aerodynamic performance . Teams have to compromise between the previous two having in mind both weather conditions and the nature of track where the race takes place .

        Usually larger hot air outlets are present at high temperatures and relative slow tracks featuring many slow turns and hairpins . On the other hand tracks having long straights favor less extreme cooling configurations because the car manages to catch large volumes of fresh cooling air while crossing the stretches .

       Pre season testing is a good opportunity to test various cooling options, both conventional and  extreme which are more suitable for Malaysia and Bahrain for instance. However the pre season tests takes place during chilly European Winter time and are not representative 100% to real weather conditions the teams are about to cope with ,thus improvements are likely to be made .

      Caterham tested/raced  from car launch up to Bahrain, overall four cooling configurations as shown and analyzed below

 

Launch

middle sized triangular outlet at the back of the engine cover (also called funnel) , gills at exhaust zone and openings at sidepods tail .

 

Barcelona test on March

Huge oval outlet at the back of the engine cover, appropriate for extreme hot conditions. However it was never brought to race till now

 

Australia

Large circular outlet at the back of the engine cover , raced at Melbourne and Sepang

 

China -new concept

 Tiny triangular outlet at the back of the engine cover, double openings at sidepods tail. accompanied with diffuser revisions .Raced at Sinopec and Sakhir .This configuration leaves a cleaner airflow over the rear beam wing but as counter side it widens the coca cola bottle silhouette of the car

F10 – Double rear floor ducts at Hockenheim

Hockenheim , Germany

Ferrari raced  double vents  on the rear floor (spotted in front of the rear wheel ) , instead of the previous single one , to increase the amount of air towards the diffuser side channels  .

MP4/25 – Double rear floor ducts at Spa

At Spa the MP4/25 featured a double vented rear floor in front of the rear wheels to increase the quantity of airflow towards the diffuser side channels to boost further downforce production . Nevertheless Ferrari was first to present a double vented rear floor since Hockenheim . Red Bull also features a single vent and it is likely also to revert to a double combo as well .