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Post by wilmywood8455 on Mar 12, 2024 13:35:31 GMT -8
Mercedes badly under-performed through the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend with a car which was particularly difficult through the fast corners of the first sector. This was the case regardless of which rear wing was used.In qualifying, the W15 was the slowest car of all between Turns 6-10, the series of sweeps which are very fast but not flat-out. Lewis Hamilton described the car through there as follows: “We have pretty bad bouncing which we’ve not been able to fix… We tried every set-up change but we just can’t get rid of the bouncing. “I think I now have a bit of a better feeling for where the problem might be but when you’re carrying so much lateral load at such high speeds, the car’s balance shifts. At 160-170mph.” It’s early days after just two races to conclude too much. But it does seem as if Mercedes’ difficulties with the venturi floor regulations in place since 2022 might be continuing. The original ‘zero pod’ W13 of 2022 gave fantastic numbers in the wind tunnel, but that potential was forever inaccessible because of the porpoising and bouncing phenomenon which had not been evident in simulation.
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