Hi guys! New to this subforum, i'm wondering what questions will pop up next but for now I wanted to start a thread for this Q I have had since a couple of years. There are some approaches, mechanical mysteries out there I would like to solve. Let's start with this one!
- Let's talk 2013, at the end of the V8 era. The Mercedes team had built each year since their return to F1 an evolution of the old car. They introduced the blown diffuser in 2011 and like everyone the team tried to emulate it after it was banned from the scene. At the start of the season the downshifting pattern of the drivers was pretty normal in Melbourne, but after that it changed extremely (it sounded very cool anyway). A small sample proves this. I'm not sure if it changed at some point during the rest of the season but it stands out like an engineering decision which didn't creep in by accident.
Australia R:
Bahrain Q:
Bahrain R:
Monaco FP:
Does somebody know, or make an educated guess, what is the science behind this feature? Personally I'm thinking it's to save the gearbox or maximize engine braking, but that's just guesswork. Right up until this point I 'm pretty clueless. Let's go! 
Edited by Jejking, 29 January 2016 - 14:41.
