Neatly Williams used a blue dye so its usage was not so obvious. The dye then follows the flow patterns on the cars surfaces. The technique is well known in motor racing and has been in use for many years, it involves putting a liquid dye on the area of interest, and running the car – usually with a pitot tube to record air speed. Williams spent some time working towards that upgrade at the Valencia pre season test using dye for flow visualisation on the front wing.

The launch spec aerodynamic package was completed in November, since when the aero team has focused on the first-race upgrade. The major layout decisions were finalised in June, following the World Motorsport Council’s confirmation of the 2011 rule changes, and the new gearbox was on the dyno by September. Sam Michael and his technical team expect aerodynamic performance to reach the same levels as 2010, despite there being less aero freedom in the rules.Īerodynamic work started in December 2009, with the mechanical aspects of the FW33 beginning in March 2010.

This ‘launch spec’ will be replaced by an aero upgrade at the first race in Bahrain and there will be many others during the course of the year. The car seen at the Valencia test is the first iteration of the FW33. It allowed us to increase the optimisation time spent on each part of the car.” “We’ve improved our way of working by increasing the communication between the mechanical and aerodynamic departments, and that improved our decision making processes. “The design of this year’s car has been pretty smooth,” reveals Micheal. The ban on double diffusers and the F-duct forced the aerodynamicists to seek new downforce solutions KERS had to be incorporated into the layout and the team had to prepare for the arrival of a new tyre supplier, Pirelli, for the first time in five years.

New rules, which were only confirmed by the FIA’s World Motorsport Council in June 2010, compelled Williams F1’s technical team to take an innovative approach to its new car. It’s a sentiment shared by technical director Sam Michael. In a recent interview, Rubens Barrichello described this year’s Williams- Cosworth FW33 as “aggressive”.

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