First look: Mercedes catch the eye with new front wing design
Lewis Hamilton standing outside the Mercedes garage looking at the updated W14. Monaco May 2023
Mercedes’ aggressive upgrade program continues at the British Grand Prix with the team introducing a striking new front wing, in line with the Ferrari-esque curved slot gap separators.
Last season Mercedes brought curved separators to the track but never raced them given at the time they weren’t allowed to have an aerodynamic effect. That rule changed this season with Ferrari pouncing on the idea and Mercedes now also going that route.
While the front wing retains the semi-detached flap and endplate juncture, the mainplane has been lowered in the central part, passing through the upper flap. The intention is to improve the car’s performances through slow speed corners.
Mercedes chasing rear end stability
This is a problem the team has had throughout the season, one that continued with the introduction of the B-spec car with both drivers complaining about the rear end.
So much so that Hamilton admitted to being in awe of Red Bull’s RB19 when he was running behind Max Verstappen at the Canadian Grand Prix, telling the Dutchman “your rear end is insane”.
⚠️ | Comparing the new and old spec. Mercedes front wings – noticably different shapes.
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— formularacers (@formularacers_) July 6, 2023
The Briton declared the new wing to be just “one step” in Mercedes’ ongoing process to close the gap to Red Bull.
“Yeah, so we have a new front wing,” he said. “So it’s just one step, hopefully, further in the right direction.
“It’s not a huge, huge package or anything like that but we’re just [going] step by step, hopefully trying to close down the gap.
“Obviously, Austria was not a nice weekend for us all. But that’s where we learn the most. That’s when we pull together the most as a team.
“So, I was in the factory on Tuesday and Wednesday with the team. And everyone’s back in, flat out, just focused on turning that negative into a positive here this weekend.”
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