Written by Sharifah Zaqreeztrina, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
The Formula One paddock is revving up once again after a month of break, returning at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas.
With a four-week break in between the preceding weekend in Singapore and the US Grand Prix weekend in Austin, as many as eight teams have brought along upgrades, hoping to boost final momentum in the first of the final six races of the season.
For this round, however, Williams and Ferrari decided not to have upgrades.
To increase their chances of returning to the podium, Mercedes has brought a six-part upgrade package to the track. For the front wing, the flap twist distribution has been tweaked to improve flow to the rear of their W15s.
The amended front suspension has refined the attachment of the rear leg, by increasing the operating range and also improving the flow of the rear.
A vane element is included in the floor edge, to gain more mass flow under the forward floor, subsequently increasing the floor load.
For a circuit-specific upgrade, a revised sidepod inlet and coke/engine cover have been introduced, to increase engine cooling and improve sidepod mass flow, while reducing the impact on downstream components such as the rear wing.
The floor fences have been redesigned to improve distribution of local pressure alongside position of vorticity, helping to boost local and downstream load.
McLaren heads to the circuit with seven modifications to its components, the largest upgrade package among other teams besides Haas. They brought along a new front suspension, front wing geometry and an updated front brake duct furniture, mainly to improve flow conditioning.
For tracks such as COTA which require a low front brake cooling demand, a low cooling front brake duct was introduced. This is also to boost overall aerodynamic load. Another component helped to enhance the load is a revised rear suspension fairing.
A new RBD cooling exit and a single element beam wing are also bought specifically for this track, aimed to increase overall cooling performance and reduce drag.
Similar to Singapore, Red Bull brought along another cooling-oriented update.To minimise the louvre openings, the coke/engine cover has been modified to allow for greater cooling. The edge wing camber has been adjusted to create more local load, while sustaining flow stability.
Aston Martin continues to make adjustments to their front wing. A new front wing with a reprofiled twist distribution and a revised endplate is included to improve their performance in terms of local load. An altered bodywork, floor and diffuser are introduced to enhance the flow field under the floor, generating more local load on the lower surface as a result.
VCARB has brought along only one modified component this time, specifically the floor body. A redesigned profile of the main underfloor and chassis interface is done to boost generation of local downforce, and therefore loss reduction of underfloor structures.
Alpine brought along a four-part upgrade package to Texas, an upward trend compared to only one upgrade back in Singapore. Various parts of the main floor of their cars are revamped to increase the floor’s load generation. A reprofiled floor edge is brought along to improve the flow quality of the underfloor.
Moreover, the bodywork has been reshaped to enhance flow conditioning, and allow better interactions with the rear and floor. The updated rear wing is used to gain more efficiency with the rear wing loading which according to the French outfit, makes it “a suitable option for this track”.
KICK Sauber’s latest version of their front wing has been introduced, to improve the flow structures of the front tyres, which will bring positive changes to the flow field downstream.
Alongside the front wing is the revised front suspension, which requires realignment based on the onset flow field, in order to obtain clean flow features downstream.
At the rear of the car, it will be included with a revamped rear suspension as well as updated upper rear brake duct deflectors. This helps the two components to interact positively, overall providing a minor increase in efficiency.
As this is a home race, Haas brings forward a major upgrade package, consisting of seven updated components. The undercut of the sidepod inlet is increased to allow clean air flow heading towards the rear of the VF-24s.
The initial floor expansion and the diffuser geometry have been modified, alongside a redesigned edge wing in order to improve overall floor performance. The floor fences have undergone realignment to ensure they “must manage different flow features”.
The rear drum has included an additional upwashing element to extract more performance from the rear corner.
A larger engine cover central exit has also been added to the coke/engine cover for cooling purposes. Combining the engine cover is the new cooling louvre design, which helps to extract more heat and therefore reduces the drag penalty.
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