The game in Formula One keeps on changing. One also has to change their car in order to catch the perfect run. Last year all the teams came up with their own ideas. But the one team that remained in discussions for bringing an upgrade and yet failing to win was Mercedes. Except for the livery of the cars, the one most significant visible differences between the championship winner car RB18, the runner-up F1-75, and the constructor’s P3 attainer W13 was the side pod design.
Mercedes, for the first time, implemented the zero-pod concept in the front wings of the 2022 F1 season car. Now that the 2022 season is already done and dusted and we have got the new cars too! Let’s dive deep, delving into the difference between the Mercedes W14 launched yesterday and its predecessor W13.
The very first difference you must have noticed is the changed livery, of course. But this is not the only major change that Mercedes has brought in their new Formula One car. As the teams’ technical director, Mike Eliott, claimed, “there will be the same DNA of W13 in the new car. But it will come with a lot of evolution with improved details,” we can see it. Not the shape of W14 is different from the W13, but also the suspension geometry is changed.
The Front Wing Design Of Mercedes Is The Biggest Notable Change
One of the notable dissimilarities in the overall development of the 2023 Mercedes car is the front wing pattern. This time, the nose has made much shorter than in the previous car. The endplates are situated closer to the wings, which is supposed to enhance the car’s performance while heading into the corners. However, fans can see the sidepod concept that made the W13 unique among others also in its successor car. In the unveiled W14, the zero pods design has been continued. But the position of the inlets has been raised higher by 15mm.
The other changes include the underneath bodywork, as there has been a change in the ground floor rules followed by the porpoising issues faced by Mercedes and several other teams. The rear suspension is modified in W14, and although it looks similar to the previous car, the layout is different. Plus, the top wishbone of the car has undergone a small amount of anti-lift on it.
Now, being hopeful, Mercedes will not face the overheating problems anymore because this time, Mercedes has used a loophole in the rules and used a modified version of the outwash concept. However, many of the design looks almost the same as W13, for example, the rear end shot and the rear beam wing flap and trailing edge.