The Ferrari automobile that might be unveiled on February 13 has the duty of solidifying the progress proven within the remaining levels of the final Formulation 1 season.
Whereas awaiting Lewis Hamilton’s arrival in 2025, there’s a season to face with the same old hope that it might revitalize Maranello’s ambitions, bringing it to compete with Crimson Bull on (virtually) equal phrases. This job falls to the SF-24, which might be offered subsequent Tuesday. So, let’s check out what the brand new single-seater might be like. After the disappointing 2023 season, will we witness a real technical revolution to shut the hole with the elusive Crimson Bull, or will Maranello proceed its coverage of small steps, initiated in the midst of final 12 months?
Whereas we await the dwell debut of the automobile, we should accept the phrases of Fred Vasseur, who spoke about “a technical venture that won’t be overhauled, however many particulars want higher consideration, the place we’ve got to enhance. To succeed in Crimson Bull, we won’t remake the 2023 automobile from scratch as a result of we made progress within the latter a part of the season.” Nevertheless, the 676 venture will not be a carbon copy of the SF-23, and, in accordance with Enrico Cardile, the technical director of the chassis space, “in 2024, Ferrari can even comply with new growth paths.”
Ferrari 2024, the profile
Combining official statements and numerous rumors, we tried to hypothesize the exterior look of the 2024 single-seater (coloration rendering), whereas the cutaway of the Ferrari SF-23 identifies all of the areas the place Maranello’s technicians might want to intervene to enhance the purple automobile. Beginning with the aerodynamic configuration. Let’s start with the nostril, which might return to a extra pointed form, just like the 2022 automobile. Nevertheless, probably the most substantial work will concern the design of the sidepods. As recognized in 2023, after the disappointing early-season performances, Ferrari offered a considerably revised model of the sidepods on the Spanish Grand Prix, clearly impressed by Crimson Bull. Nevertheless, this was a partial modification, conditioned by the place of the halo: transferring it decrease would require the reconstruction of the chassis, a too prolonged and costly operation mid-season. Subsequently, a compromise resolution was chosen, which labored intermittently.
On the 2024 single-seater, putting the halo decrease on the sidepods would enable for extra compact sidepod shapes, with completely different, smaller air intakes positioned even greater, and a deep “minimize” on the underside to extend the airflow alongside the decrease a part of the sidepods, impacting the rear. The top a part of the sidepods on the automobile that ran till Abu Dhabi might be markedly completely different. As it’s possible you’ll recall, the SF-23’s debut used a “tub” form to push down the flows alongside the highest of the sidepods.
From the primary outings, it turns into clear that this resolution doesn’t work, and even the SF-23 model B doesn’t resolve all of the load issues of the purple automobile. To cut back the hole to Crimson Bull in 2024, Ferrari could have a totally revised rear finish, with sidepods that considerably slope in the direction of the rear axle, and it’s not out of the query to open a spot for decent air disposal, which stagnates contained in the engine compartment. This sizzling air, adhering to the bodywork, can be guided downward and “shot” in the direction of the diffuser to extend downforce.
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Ferrari SF-24, be careful for tyre put on
In parallel with the design of the brand new sidepods, the aerodynamicists at Cavallino should introduce a brand new flooring, able to fixing one of many SF-23’s most critical issues: extreme tire put on, particularly on exhausting compounds. In keeping with the Ferrari drivers themselves, the disappointing performances of 2023 weren’t as a result of a scarcity of aerodynamic load however moderately to its utilization. To beat this drawback final 12 months, interventions have been made repeatedly on the dynamic conduct of the suspension and floor clearances. The end result: Leclerc and Sainz achieved quite a few pole positions however then fell again, after a couple of laps, to decrease positions on the grid. The automobile was quick in qualifying however tire-consuming throughout the race.
Ferrari SF-24, ultra-slim transmission
To optimize tire utilization, important improvements are additionally anticipated on the suspension entrance. Not like what was hypothesized within the final races of 2023, the 676 project on the entrance axle shouldn’t copy the pull-rod scheme (4) adopted by the Crimson Bull RB19, the undisputed dominator of the just-concluded season, and the McLaren MCL60, the good revelation of the second a part of the championship. Quite the opposite, the Maranello technicians are reportedly contemplating sustaining the push-rod on the entrance however with a way more exaggerated design and a closely inclined higher triangle. The identical goes for the rear axle, the place the SF-23’s kinematics might be maintained however paired with a newly designed gearbox, 40mm narrower than the earlier one, to have a wider diffuser. No specific improvements are anticipated on the facility unit entrance, the place Ferrari has confirmed to be on par with Mercedes and Honda, if not superior.
Ferrari SF-24 vs. Ferrari SF-23, the comparability
With out many equivocations throughout the 2023 Formulation 1 season, Frédéric Vasseur defined Ferrari’s underwhelming championship. The SF-23 was not a aggressive automobile, and the drivers understood it from simulator exams, confirmed by the preliminary monitor exams. In keeping with Fred Vasseur, in 2022, sure selections have been made: nonetheless, simulations had underestimated some adverse results on the automobile’s conduct, which had deteriorated when it comes to efficiency and drivability.
Subsequently, Ferrari’s 2023 Formulation 1 season began with the burden of a mistaken venture that, in accordance with the Maranello prime govt, “pressured the crew to start out the championship in evident problem, compelling the technicians to fully revolutionize the automobile’s growth program, which wanted a big overhaul in the long term.” All of this negatively affected the efficiency of the Crimson automobile within the first a part of the season, as much as the Austrian Grand Prix when the reworking of the sidepods and steady updates to the wings and flooring allowed Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz to compete in much less nameless races within the prime positions of the standings.
This turnaround and the event work carried out by Maranello’s technicians are the optimistic facets of 2023, extra so than the remoted victory by the Spaniard in Singapore. Within the current previous, after a gradual begin to the season, the choice was made to halt the event of the automobile after the summer time break, concentrating efforts on the following 12 months’s mannequin. In 2023, a special strategy was chosen, and the SF-23’s performances within the final races of the calendar 12 months show it: Crimson Bull remained an unbeatable automobile, however the distances between the Milton Keynes crew and Ferrari have shortened in comparison with the start of the 12 months. Furthermore, the final races on the calendar have, in some ways, anticipated most of the technical options we’ll see this 12 months on the SF-24, which we’ve got summarized within the purple diagrams: renewed suspensions and a totally revamped aerodynamics, with new air intakes on the sidepods, greater and positioned even greater, and a deep minimize within the decrease half, with a sudden descent in the direction of the rear, to extend the airflow that hits it.
Will these be sufficient to bridge the hole with Crimson Bull? There aren’t any doubts concerning the need for redemption and the dedication of the lads of Maranello, offered Adrian Newey doesn’t pull one other miraculous rabbit out of his hat. In different phrases, one other unbeatable automobile.
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