1785 replies to this topic

[Graveltrappen]

(Don’t know the etiquette with starting the new car threads... I know people take it very seriously round here!)

https://www.motorspo...ressive-992873/

First Paddy Lowe Williams car this year.... Massa says it’s a lot more aggressive visually than the 2017 car. Very interesting to see what they can do to take advantage of the Merc engine and if they can get close to the Mercedes team that Paddy led to dominance.

[Timstr11]

(Don’t know the etiquette with starting the new car threads... I know people take it very seriously round here!)

https://www.motorspo...ressive-992873/

First Paddy Lowe Williams car this year.... Massa says it’s a lot more aggressive visually than the 2017 car. Very interesting to see what they can do to take advantage of the Merc engine and if they can get close to the Mercedes team that Paddy led to dominance.

More significant is that it's ex Ferrari's Dirk de Beers first car at Williams. Paddy Lowe is not a designer.

Edited by Timstr11, 05 January 2018 - 22:19.

[Swck81]

More significant is that it's ex Ferrari's Dirk de Beers first car at Williams. Paddy Lowe is not a designer.

Dirk's and Paddy's first car goes well with new exciting driver line up Williams is prepering for 2018... ohh wait...

Edited by Swck81, 05 January 2018 - 23:18.

[PlayboyRacer]

Dirk's and Paddy's first car goes well with new exciting driver line up Williams is prepering for 2018... ohh wait...

Williams haven't had an 'exciting' driver line up for years, nobody available is going to change that for this year. It's reality for Williams unfortunately but that's F1.

[Pete_f1]

I would not get your hopes up for a Polish driver in the car...

[WilliamsF1Fan]

Interesting to see Massa's comment on the new car, along with what Lowe has said previously.  Hopefully it is a change in the right direction and moves the team forward.  I know Paddy Lowe isn't a designer (neither, technically, is Dirk de Beer) but I am curious to see what his direction will do with the car and what aero tricks the team can use with de Beer's input.  

[sopa]

 Very interesting to see what they can do to take advantage of the Merc engine and if they can get close to the Mercedes team that Paddy led to dominance.

 

Considering Stroll qualified nowhere near Massa most of the time, he won't get near Hamilton and Bottas on the starting grid even if the car is within the same ballpark.

 

Yeah I know it's a car thread and it's a tough topic about drivers, but I'm afraid these kind of calculations are all going to be a significant factor this year. How good is the car really? How much performance has been extracted from it?

[kumo7]

Should it look a like Merc 2017? I think yes, and it will therefore be a DIVA...

Edited by kumo7, 27 January 2018 - 13:49.

[WilliamsF1Fan]

I'd take a diva over the FW40!

[TheRacingElf]

Shame it will be driven by two pay-drivers though...

[Steve99]

Shame it will be driven by two pay-drivers though...

 

It was only ever going to be.

[PayasYouRace]

Shame it will be driven by two pay-drivers though...

 

None of the small pool of paid drivers were either available or affordable.

[WilliamsF1Fan]

It's the usual stick to bash Williams with.  Never mind the fact that many teams on the grid have pay drivers to one extent or another.  I guess just having one like Wehrlein, Ocon or Leclerc is just more acceptable because they come with 'manufacturer' backing.  

 

But this thread is surely about the FW41, there have been enough threads attacking the team and it's driver choice, and there will be another during the season with the 'Pay Driver 1 v Pay Driver 2' thread.  

Edited by WilliamsF1Fan, 06 January 2018 - 10:28.

[PayasYouRace]

I get why the thread was opened. There was a small bit of news about the new car. But a comment from a former driver isn't much to go on.

[DutchQuicksilver]

Didn’t they say the same about the 2015, 2016 and 2017 cars? And all those ended up looking pretty much the same.

The car could be great, but with such a rubbish driver line up, a great car is useless.

[WilliamsF1Fan]

Didn’t they say the same about the 2015, 2016 and 2017 cars? And all those ended up looking pretty much the same.

The car could be great, but with such a rubbish driver line up, a great car is useless.

 

2015, 2016 and 2017 cars all made with Pat Symonds as Technical Chief and Jason Somerville as head of Aerodynamics.  Sure, Ed Wood is still designing the new car, but with the new guys now having a say on the design of the car, it ought to be different.  

[SophieB]

As PayasYouRace has also alluded, this is starting to serve as a reason why car threads before there's anything substantial to discuss about the car are a bad idea. In any case, please stop using it as an excuse to discuss the possible drivers, guys.

Questions (if any) by PM only, please.

[WilliamsF1Fan]

At last some proper news.  The FW41 will be unveiled at a launch event in London on February 15th.  Apparently rumours that the car has been delayed are untrue and the car will test at Barcelona!

 

From motorsport.com

 

https://www.motorspo...ch-date-999339/

[TomNokoe]

Feb 15 is early!

[Burai]

That it's happening at an event is a nice change. They normally soft-launch a CG render in F1 Racing magazine.

[RainyAfterlifeDaylight]

I wouldn't be surprised if Williams produced a competitive (top 5) chassis but I have my doubts regarding their driver lineup's potential.

[Whiz]

I wouldn't be surprised if Williams produced a competitive (top 5) chassis but I have my doubts regarding their driver lineup's potential.

 

Let's assume they are 5th in the WCC after Abu Dhabi: Everyone would say --> Fernando Alonso would have been WDC in that car.

 

My point is: We will never know the true potential of the FW41 due to rather greenish Drivers, who are driving for Williams because of their money not talent...

[kumo7]

I could also imagine Williams producing a car that is closer to the top, should the budget allows to apply materials that the top teams uses... 

But 15 Feb is unusually early. There must be a plan for them to do something. Have thy done something under the body shell that needs to be tested on track, for example by a filming days?

Aero obviously is stripped of?

[Anja]

I'm hearing the London event will be just a "season launch" with a livery reveal, no actual new car. 

[Owen]

I'm hearing the London event will be just a "season launch" with a livery reveal, no actual new car.

There’s certainly a precedent for this kind of thing.

[Graveltrappen]

I’d imagine they’ll mock up an older car with the Halo attatched as that’s going to be a dominant talking point this year. I expect the Williams one to have the ‘martini stripes’ round it like the helmets.

[WilliamsF1Fan]

Williams have announced a new partner this morning in the shape of Acronis:

 

http://www.williamsf...ogy-partnership

[noikeee]

So, 2 days until the launch. Williams gets the honour of being the most hated car as it's the first one to show up with an halo, and then we'll progressively get more used to the others. 

[WilliamsF1Fan]

I think it is going to be hated whatever, the sight of Sirotkin alongside Kubica is going to drive some mad, like catnip. 

 

It'll be a fun day on Thursday.  My personal hope is they do the Halo in the Martini stripes to at least make it 'something' in relation to the livery.  I was tempted to enter the competition to go to the launch but I can't just not turn up that day at work.  

Edited by WilliamsF1Fan, 13 February 2018 - 11:58.

[Tenmantaylor]

I hear it's going to be Ralf's year again

[Little Leaf]

Every time I see that the new car (hopefully not last years' with a halo) will be launched tomorrow I get excited, until I then think about the Halo and it just puts me right off.

 

As a Williams fan I am resigning myself to Mclaren (best chassis on the grid apparently TM) and Renault overtaking us this year. We will be scrapping with TR for minor points I fear.

 

Could also be the last year of Martini backing, the car could look a lot different in 2019...

[hogstar]

Every time I see that the new car (hopefully not last years' with a halo) will be launched tomorrow I get excited, until I then think about the Halo and it just puts me right off.

 

As a Williams fan I am resigning myself to Mclaren (best chassis on the grid apparently TM) and Renault overtaking us this year. We will be scrapping with TR for minor points I fear.

 

Could also be the last year of Martini backing, the car could look a lot different in 2019...

 

If it is a bad year for Williams, the 2019 car could look like this...

 

https://i.pinimg.com...eea929e3cee.jpg

[Timstr11]

Curious to see what Dirk DeBeer has come up with.
Expecting Ferrari design cues.

[aray]

when is the launch?

[Little Leaf]

Not sure. Is it actually the FW41, or just FW40 with a hideous Halo stuck on it?

[Timstr11]

when is the launch?

Today.

[w1Y]

Don't expect too much from Williams.

Recent success was purely down to the change in regs and Merc engines having such a jump on everyone else.

Order has been restored and Williams can't compete with their budget and drivers.

I fully expect them to go for drastic changes in the hope they land on gold.

Edited by w1Y, 15 February 2018 - 07:52.

[Boing 2]

Here's hoping the 41 isn't going to be the opposite if the 14 but bloody hell do we need a stronger driver lineup, really wish Williams had landed Carlos Sainz last year. The only positive is that they may be using the money to build resources with a view to hiring a No1 in the coming years.

[OvDrone]

Damn it Wlliams, give us an hour.

[thegamer23]

Wonder if they'll make an effort in tweaking their Martini livery a little bit.

It's been exactly the same since 2014, and it's getting a little bit boring.

Edited by thegamer23, 15 February 2018 - 09:48.

[RainyAfterlifeDaylight]

It is happening 

 

 

[learningtobelost]

when is the launch?

 

Apparently 19:00 GMT.

[Anja]

 

 

 

Looks fast. 

Edited by Anja, 15 February 2018 - 10:33.

[KWSN - DSM]

Looks fast. 

 

No papaya.

 

[OvDrone]

Apparently 19:00 GMT.

Boooo.

[midgrid]

Is it actually the new car launch or a more generic "season launch"?  There was conflicting information on other threads.

[string158]

Why so late?!

[Mart280]

Wonder if they'll make an effort in tweaking their Martini livery a little bit.

It's been exactly the same since 2014, and it's getting a little bit boring.

I think they should take inspiration from when Martini sponsored Brabham in the mid 70's and go from a white car to a red car as Brabham did, I know red is not really associated with Team Willy apart from the 98 and 99 cars but am I right in thinking that Ferrari will be the only red car on the grid this year ?  

[Anja]

Is it actually the new car launch or a more generic "season launch"?  There was conflicting information on other threads.

 

I've seen both versions making rounds on the internet. I guess we'll see in a couple of hours. 

[OvDrone]

I bet it's some dull 3D model nonsense that I am bizarrely excited about.