F1 Engineers and their Cunning Stunts – Yet Again
Take note of the small snorkel near the area of Lewis hand.
Just as I write a piece titled F1 Engineers and their Cunning Stunts, here we are at it again. A brilliant McLaren innovation. Simply mischievous and clever.
It’s called the McLaren snorkel. It is believed that air will enter the snorkel on top of nose section of the car and will exit somewhere before the rear wing. This device is just like an on and off switch. Activated by a driver, by closing the air ducts in the car manually via the driver’s knee. Yes, you read it right!! By the driver’s knee. Since the driver is not bounded by the rules of movable aerodynamics part, the design is legal but not without controversy.
A normal rear wing will generate downforce and drag at the same time. With this device, the rear wing can be stalled on the straights, hence reducing downforce and generating less drag. With less drag, better top speed is achieved.
FIA passed the design and top teams are announcing a copy of similar design in the future. However, Renault is unhappy and suggested the design is against the spirit of the rules.
If top speed parameter is anything to go by, both McLaren cars recorded the fastest straight line speed at Bahrain this weekend. It is expected that with the design, higher downforce setup can be used since the rear wing can be stalled when the cars need top speed.
Editorial : Mu’az Zakaria
Image Source : McLaren
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