Williams brings striking FW48 updates as team rings the changes

Matthew Somerfield 06 Mar 2026 2:30 PM

Williams might have missed the group shakedown in Barcelona at the end of January but they’ve been making up for lost time ever since, with a decent showing during the tests in Bahrain, as they racked up a substantial number of laps with the FW48.

The team have also arrived in Australia with a number of new components, not only to handle the conditions that they’re exposed to but also in order to optimise their package further.

Williams makes subtle but important changes in Melbourne

The differences between the new and old front wing arrangements are easy to spot in Australia, as they’ve been using both options, with Alex Albon getting the first taste of the new specification, whilst Carlos Sainz continued to utilize the older configuration.

The new specification (right) features two distinct differences when compared with the older specification, both of which are linked to one another.

The main consideration here is the diveplane, which on the newer specification is downwardly angled, rather than upwardly angled.

The rear portion of the diveplane that’s angled is also wider on the new element, which has not only resulted in it being positioned higher on the endplate, it’s also required the tyre temperature sensor and pod to be moved below it (green arrow).

At the rear of the car the tyre spat region, which has a significant amount of freedom within the regulations compared with the recent past, has been fettled to help increase performance from that region, both from a local load standpoint and in terms of the altered behaviour it’ll create downstream.

The overall design scheme hasn’t been altered significantly though, it’s more about extracting performance from the known design parameters, with an endplate added to the two rearmost slotted sections (green arrow).

The endplate itself is interesting, as not only does it commence slightly inboard of the section’s edge, it too is slotted to match the rear deck, providing flow circulation across that section.

As we know from previous designs in this region, the aim to assist in manipulating the flow field around the rear tyre and prevent the hysteria that can be generated as the tyre deforms, which is more commonly known as tyre squirt and can be harmful to the performance of the diffuser.

Williams have also introduced new engine cover bodywork for the FW48 in Australia, as they look to better balance their cooling needs against aerodynamic efficiency, with the new, smaller outlet seen on the right.

The engine cover used during testing (left) has a larger radius opening on its periphery (green arrow), which would help with extraction but also result in a little more drag than its counterpart.

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