ok we talking about the same thing just using different terms - sorry

yes we are no prob

By far the nicest 2009 spec car. The Williams is also up there with it.

I meant under the wing.

Unless my eye's are deceiving me there are black...er.. things under the wing to which the original question was referring to.

McLaren has lost Schüco as a sponsor.

No wonder. The building industry is going belly up, Schuco needs to save where it can in order to get over the hill.

They weren't sponsors, they were official suppliers. No need of windows in MTC I guess

McLaren don't have sponsors, they have partners ;)

There was an article in Racing Line about how they provided the windows for the MTC. Very impressive stuff, but I guess once it was built they were about nothing but having a name on the car (whereas most other partners still actively provide product for the car / team)

http://www.formula1.com/news/technical/2009/0/615.html

I thought these were measuring devices ?

They are, and they`ve been using them for 1-2 years now.

Seems that the author was on holiday for the last 2 years.
:\

Well to be fair they now seem to have been on the car all the time.

From the website: "The leading edge (left arrow) sends some of it into small ducts (right arrow) to help cool the brakes".

ummm...ooookay there... :\

the black things under the wing basicaly fulfil the same function as on teh back of the defuser, they always been there (mabye less in number) but you very rarely see them

Neither "bodywork" nor "brake ducts" are allowed in this area (outer wheel).
So it can be an measuring device only. They wouldnt be allowed to be raced.

Even if it would, it would affect the overall width = McLaren would need to run a smaller wheel track by these 2-3 centimeters each side, and I doubt that this device would be worth to do that (while compromise the performance overall).

Which rule are you refering to here?

there was ONE on each side, on the mp4-23, and that had more to do, with directing the airflow, i think

So is the wheel rim fairing legal or not?

The following rules about bodywork and brake ducts:



(Yes, I noticed that its referring to front wheel center line, but the device is partially behind that).
plus:



I'm pretty sure the device is more than 275mm above the ref. plane.

plus finally the new rule that forbids any body work like the bargeboards (except that little area in front of the sidepods) and stuff, around teh front wheels:



So these parts cannot be declared "bodywork".
That leaves the only possibility to declare these devices as "brake ducts" (and thus be excluded from the rules above) - BUT:



Brake ducts are only allowed between wheel and car = inner side of the wheel, ....*EDIT: Hmm .. they could be at the outer side as well .... right.
But then we have the overall width of the car limited to 1800mm.
So, if they want to race that, they need to make the wheel track narrower to make the required room for this device on each side).


Furthermore brake ducts "must not protrude forwards beyond a radius of 330mm from the centre of the wheel", means not protrude beyond the wheel outer diameter. And at least in this pic



it looks that they do. But okay, it could be just very close to the nearest mm.


HaPe

So it is legal right? I'm sure that the engineers have read the rule book.

What rulebook do they use for testing?

People, the fin isn't transparent, and the funny wheel trims are sensor mounts - for testing only.

During testing, the cars are not scrutineered for full compliance with all the regulations.
Some people may have noticed some 2008 wings being used. Even a whole 2008 Toro Rosso car. And a Renault that hadn't passed crash testing.
Those aren't "legal".

Those wheel trims are not race parts. They don't have to be "legal".

Now, whether the under-front-wing 'comb' structure is for testing or racing, or whether it would be permitted for racing, I don't know.

You're right. It's more translucent than transparent..

Beauty of the Ball.

that is a pretty damn nice car.

I think they are there to scrub the front tires clean after Lewis goes off roading.

Agreed, HOT!

Seems like the F1.com doen't question the legality of the fairings

http://www.formula1.com/news/technical/2009/0/615.html

Yes, its really quite amusing just how daft some people can be, isn't it?
Peroa (upthread) thought that the author of that piece must have been away on holiday for the last couple of years.
More likely studying graphic design. Pretty picture. But the 'explanation' is utter nonsensical fantasy.


Last year's version was visibly quite obviously a bit cruder, but no way on earth was it "designed to take best advantage of the {2009 aero rules} change."
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_LD5N9CSADao/R9As17C2...DKPg4/92121.jpg

Are you sure we can't see right through the fin?

It's obvious they are only used for testing purposes. Quite a clever device regardless.

I wonder if the front wing end plates are now too far away from the centre of the car to create the vortex which traditionally "sealed" the underneath of the car, much like a sliding skirt did. If this is the case then they'd need a new device to create this vortex.

Of course, I'm probably wrong but it's my best guess at the moment.

Tombazis said at the Ferrari launch that one of the key things about the new aero flow structures this year is that the vortices off the FWEP go round the outside of the front wheels rather than inside. I don't know if that's related to what you're thinking of, Rob.

Yeah, that seems to fit in with my line of thinking. If the vortices go around the outside of the wheels then you'd need a new vortex generator the other side of the wheel to replace these vortices.

so they are probably there to try and replace the function off the former more centraly placed endplates,

aha thanks, its always fun to discuss these bits and parts

Do they also house the lasers and oil slick generators?

These are crazy bits of kit. Now, you have to hand it to McLaren for taking the concept to the very limit, and you have to hand it to them for testing it through much of last year and allowing everyone to assume they contained tyre and temperature measurement equipment, but if nothing else will, this will get them banned.

The noise is seriously high and RW looks kinda funky.

Surprisingly they even pay attention to other cars for their technical analysis other than the Ferrari.
9 Out of 10 those technical insights are about the red car, just check the 2009 tech reviews.

Daimler board meeting:

Mercedes remaining in Formula 1 - Yes or No
Result - 3 vs. 2

http://www.focus.de/sport/formel1/formel-1...aid_366672.html

Wow, was that in the balance then? One vote keeps Merc in F1! That would have been an earthquake .

Would have being interesting McLaren with Toyota, Renault or Ferrari engines.

You must be kidding right? You really think that McLaren + Ferrari engines is possible ? Never gonna happen, thats for sure

Nothing is impossible nowadays. Merc will drop out within the next one or two years, but F1 as we know it - or even in it's entirety - is toast anyway. There are thing that are much bigger than F1 and the financial crisis doesn't stop for anyone.

The only positive aspect I see right now is that Ronzo has shifted his focus already, so there might be hope for McLaren as a company at least.

IF Merc decides to quit, Ronzo will get MHPE for free and "a bit" of cash.
Remember, 40 % of Mac is Merc`s.

What the hell is MHPE?

Mercedes High Performance Engines

Especially with the new engine rules that would be an interesting option, I wonder if they would go back to being called Illmor?

Probs stay with MHPE but the M would stand for McLaren instead of Mercedes, I could see quite a bright future for that they would be supplying half the grid with engines and maybe diversify into different sports?

Maybe a cutprice version could power the new McLaren road car and other sports cars, eg Zonda and the numerious British Small sports car manufacturers

Thanks

My thinking exactly.

Ilmor? I really don`t think so.

Ilmor is still a separate business in it's own right

Ilmor Engineering

Ummm. Its a different business, I believe.
http://www.ilmor.co.uk/profile.php

Think of the current Ilmor & MHPE as two halves of the original Ilmor

Many of the employees of both of the current companies used to work for the original company.