Diffuser update on the Ferrari F1-75

(Motorsport-Total.com) — Ferrari has won two out of three races in the 2022 F1 season, with a car practically unchanged since winter testing began in February. It will stay that way, at least for now: Ferrari does not want to introduce any major innovations for the upcoming race at Imola.

“Updates with consequences,” Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto explains when asked, “We only see later in the season.” This is also due to the fact that Imola will take place under the sprint system, with a free one-hour training session on Friday before qualifying on the same evening. This leaves little room to properly test any new parts.

However, at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Ferrari used a small update in Friday’s training: a modified diffuser was tried on Charles Leclerc’s car.

What’s new in the Ferrari diffuser in Leclerc

A new feature was the presence of a curvature in the central area of ​​the diffuser, leading from the lower part of the hull to the rear impact structure. Ferrari seems to be expecting a more stable rear from this car. The diffuser’s impact has been reduced a bit, but with some chassis height and cornering inclination, the Ferrari F1-75 could have a bit more downforce with the update.

It is also possible that Ferrari will try to reduce the so-called porpoise on the fjords. Front rebound is one of the few obvious problems with Ferrari’s current car, although neither Leclerc nor Carlos Sainz seem to slow it down much.

However, for team boss Binotto, this bounce is high on the agenda: “We want the dribbling and jumping we do on the weekend. [in Australien] affected, limit. So we will continue to work on this very point.”

More Ferrari measurements

In line with that, Ferrari conducted several test drives in Melbourne with a Sainz: ground clearance sensors were installed on the left, right and in the middle of the front wing during Friday’s practice. In addition, Ferrari directed special cameras in the front wing to monitor the deformation of the terminal plates under full load.

Leclerc’s rear spoiler is painted in glossy Flow-Vis. This allows visualization of the airflow over the aerodynamic surface and whether the rear spoiler is operating as intended.