The main headache for the teams in this first part of the preseason is being the rebound effect created by the new single-seaters when gaining speed on the straights. Two teams manage better than the others.
As we told during the second day of testing in Barcelona, the dreaded pouring it is making life difficult for all the teams, who see this rebound effect as the main drawback of the ground effect of the new cars.
This phenomenon means that, as the car gains speed and the suction effect is greater, the car begins to bounce on the track as a result of the sudden loss of downforce and its subsequent recovery. An effect that occurred in the 70s and 80s, when ground effect first appeared in Formula 1, and that is minimized with the use of DRS, since it reduces the generation of aerodynamic face.
Haas, Alfa Romeo…and Alpine
Two teams are suffering more than normal from this harmful effect which, in addition to notably bothering the drivers, makes the bottom of the car hit the asphalt. It also generates the danger of an accident if it occurs in fast corners, something that has not happened to anyone at the moment.
These teams are Haas and Alfa Romeo, which have been able to shoot less than the rest as a result of the damage caused. In fact, the American team ordered its drivers not to exceed 250 km/h on the first day and has installed a spring in the front part of the floor to absorb the shocks caused by the pouring.
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Despite these images, Ferrari is one of the teams that has the fewest problems with ‘porpoising’.
“We still have a lot to learn about the setup,” confirms Haas team manager Günther Steiner. “We are looking for the ideal middle ground. Not too low, so the car doesn’t hit, but not too high and it loses too much downforce.”.
These two teams are affected the most for a reason: the Haas and Alfa Romeo ground sides they bend at high speedso the rebound effect is amplified.
Alpine is another of the teams that is suffering with it, something to which are added their problems with the DRS (they are not using it at any time) and the engine, which left Fernando Alonso stranded early this Friday morning .
Alan Permane, Alpine’s director of operations, points out that these cars are “As low as they haven’t been for years. Cars practically have no height anymore. It’s a puzzle of factors that can lead to bouncing. To find out, we played through a lot of different parameters.”
Ferrari and McLaren
On the other hand, the teams that are having the least problems are Ferrari and McLaren, which seem to have aerodynamics that are more conducive to maintaining stability at high speeds.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff states that “the key to fast laps is to drive as low as possible and still have the rebound problem under control. Ferrari and McLaren are doing better at the moment.”.
This is aggravated by the prohibition of the use of hydraulic, inertial and remote shock absorbers. This year, the regulations only allows telescopic shock absorbers and torsion barsso the height of the car cannot be changed depending on the load as in the past.
Already said Mattia Binotto, the team that solves this problem derived from the ground effect first, will have an advantage in the first races. And it seems that the Italian team and its eternal rival, McLaren, are fighting for pole position in this regard.
Source: Auto Motor und Sport
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Photos: Motor.es