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Tech analysis: The Singapore updates that didn't make the race

Several aerodynamic updates were introduced by F1 teams in Singapore, but very few made it into the race, as Giorgio Piola and Matt Somerfield explain.

Ferrari SF16-H serrated front wing

Ferrari SF16-H serrated front wing

Giorgio Piola

Giorgio Piola's F1 technical analysis

Giorgio Piola is the preeminent Formula 1 technical journalist. View our full selection of Giorgio's technical illustrative content

McLaren

McLaren MP4-31, rear wing

McLaren MP4-31, rear wing

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

McLaren arrived in Singapore with another new rear wing solution, emulating the design cues already seen at Toro Rosso at the start of the season and since copied by Mercedes and Sauber.

The focus of its attention is the louvres placed in the front upper section of the endplate in order to displace the vortex being generated at the wing's tip - thus improving efficiency.

Like those that went before it, McLaren had opted to try out a design which sees the louvres extended right to the endplate's leading edge, increasing their impact on the airflow.

Not satisfied with a copy and paste approach though, the Woking-based squad increased the slots so that they terminated just ahead of the juncture with the flapped section too.

This should have enabled it to run the flaps at a steeper angle of attack to improve downforce, without the fear of a substantial increase in drag. However, the trial on Fernando Alonso's car was short-lived and the team reverted to the previous specification.

There is no word yet as to whether this was simply a test for an upcoming race or another failed attempt to improve performance, with an all new rear wing introduced in Austria that has yet to see the light of day again since.

Ferrari

Ferrari SF16-H serrated front wing
Ferrari SF16-H serrated front wing

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

Ferrari is still focusing some of its effort on improving the SF16-H as it chases Red Bull for second position in the constructors' championship. In Singapore it tested a new front wing, which featured a serrated strip on the trailing edge of the penultimate flap (highlighted in yellow, also see inset).

It's not a new feature, with Mercedes having run such a solution on its front wing since Japan last year, whilst Red Bull trialled similar in China this season.

The intent of the serrations is to help keep flow attached to the underside of the flaps so that they can be run at a steeper angle of attack without fear of flow separation, improving downforce.

Williams

Williams FW38 serrated front wing
Williams FW38 serrated front wing

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

Ferrari wasn't  the only ones to arrive in Singapore with a serrated front wing though, with Williams also giving the aerodynamic tweak a chance.

Where Williams' solution differs from the others though, is that their serrations are only placed behind the slot in the upper flap, improving the efficiency of a much smaller section of the wing.

Haas

Haas F1 Team VF-16, front wing detail
Haas F1 Team VF-16, front wing detail

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

 Haas as another team to introduce an update only for it to be left in the spares pile come qualifying and the race.

The American team's new front wing featured several new elements as it looks to improve performance going into the last few races. They're all concepts we've seen on other cars before but ones that should yield extra performance nonetheless.

The mainplane has now been fully divided into two parts, with the slot extended out toward the central neutral section (highlighted in yellow).

To maintain performance from the slot, several slot gap separators have been added (highlighted in light blue). These maintain the height of the slot in order to limit the aerodynamic damage debris collecting in the slot could have.

The upper flap also profited from some attention, with a smaller slot introduced to improve circulation (highlighted in green)

The 'r' shaped cascade that usually lines up alongside the main cascade was exchanged for a 'c' shaped vane hung from the main cascade (highlighted in red).

It serves the same purpose of moving airflow across and around the front face of the tyre but limits the impact of having a structure joined to the mainplane can have.

Lastly, canards were placed on either side of the endplate (inner, highlighted in purple and outer see inset) in order to change how airflow is washed up and around the front tyre.

Manor

Manor Racing MRT05, detail front wing
Manor Racing MRT05, detail front wing

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

 With so many teams trialling but not running their updates it was left to Manor to show the rest the way. The team had a new front wing and bargeboards for Singapore, as it looked to increase downforce for the street circuit.

The front wing's endplate was completely revised, with the trailing edge curved out from top-to-bottom to help shape how the air is extracted. The new endplate also featured a pinch as it met with the inboard cascade, following a very similar design ethos to Red Bull.

This pinched section runs longitudinally down the endplate's length to meet with a new 'L' shaped canard that creates a pressure gradient in order to help pull airflow out around the endplate. The outer footplate was also revised, featuring a squared profile rather than the previously favoured curved profile.

Meanwhile, the cascade also saw some geometrical adjustments with the bottom profile curved to meet the pinch in the endplate, whilst the flaps above were also revised.

In the centre of the cascade were two new vertical fins which again are very similar to the ones used by Red Bull and help to distribute the pressure across the surface of the cascades flaps.

Manor Racing MRT05 sidepods detail
Manor Racing MRT05 sidepods detail

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

The team also revised its bargeboards, with the slots added a few races ago extended much further down their length in order to improve how the pressure is distributed between the surfaces.

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