But another factor that looked set to trip up Mercedes at the opening event, was the vibrations from the kerbs that upset their gearbox and the sensors attached to it. More important for the point at hand, however, the team proved that the W11 chassis isnt just the fastest Formula 1 car in history, but the greatest racing car of all time. The trick is to always keep the front and rear downforce as high as possible, depending on the type of corner. The new position of the link reduced this effect and stabilized the rear end, and the drivers confirmed in tests that they felt that the behavior of the rear end was significantly better. Visit motorsport.com as usual with advertising and tracking. Hed beaten teammate Valtteri Bottas to the 2019 drivers title by 87 points and outscored the best non-Mercedes driver by a whopping 135. Im sure you dont need me to tell you what happened next. The 2017 Mercedes was impressive in fast corners, but a bit embarrassing in slow ones. The early 2000s was another incredible era for Formula 1. After winning its sixth consecutive double title in 2019, Mercedes opted for a risky approach with a new car for 2020 to try to maintain a technological advantage over ever-closer rivals, and the car was significantly different from its predecessor in three important areas. Drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg had locked out every Drivers title since the introduction of the turbo-hybrid formula in 2014, and the team had just equaled Scuderia Ferraris record for consecutive Constructors championships at six. The aerodynamics of the mid 2000s Formula 1 cars may have been fairly simplistic, but they were effective. With a new black livery intended to highlight Mercedes push to increase diversity among its staff, the W11 won in its very first start, with Bottas taking victory as Hamilton collided late with Red Bull driver Alex Albon. And its entirely possible that there never will be again. Mercedes rejoined Formula 1 by hiring Michael Schumacher out of retirement. Verstappen also added two more wins to that tally in the second half of the year courtesy of his superb pole position lap in Belgium and the last-lap pass in Abu Dhabi. While this does mean that the car is fast, it might not be the fastest Formula 1 car of all time. It was the single most dominant car in the history of Formula 1, and its likely to remain that way for a long time. On the Mercedes-Benz 10/50 PS the 10 defined the cars tax horsepower, used by the authorities to determine the level of annual car tax to be imposed on car owners. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mercedes-Benz_W11&oldid=1142867501, This page was last edited on 4 March 2023, at 19:57. Building the fastest cars on the planet isnt easy, but the engineers that work in Formula 1 are brilliant and they always find a way to make the cars incredibly fast. A design that it was especially proud of heading into 2020 was its decision to alter the lower rear suspension wishbone geometry, with the rear leg fixed at a point much further back on the crash structure than usual. It really was just in traffic the W11 didnt struggle at Autodromo Monza in clean air. Each year, the rules of Formula 1 are adapted and altered. We stopped earlier than usual, because of the lockdown we lost seven weeks of work in the air tunnel. With the exception of a rain-soaked quali in Turkey, the Merc has been on pole for every race this season. The Honda achieved a top speed of 246 miles per hour, and aside from the lack of a rear wing, the Honda team claimed that it was a fully legal car with all the FIA spec regulations in place. The first period of dominance that springs to most peoples minds is the Schumacher era. Exiting the final turn, then-six-time World Champion Hamilton pulled on the steering wheel of the W11 it actually moved towards him and the toe angle of the cars front wheels changed. So, the W11 was Formula 1 perfection right? Only time will tell how much this will blunt its progress in both the short and long term, with the aim of the rule change to try and narrow the performance deficit for the entire field. You can revoke your consent at any time via the data protection page.1. We dont fly on them like we used to, but were still good enough.. The 2020 Mercedes-Benz W11 could easily contend for the title of fastest car in Formula 1 history too. This is something that has only been around for a decade or so, but it gives the current generation of cars a distinct speed advantage over the older generations. Adding in the tire scrub the energy lost when running toe-out in a straight line the W11 was too good at keeping its tires cool, to the point that the Mercedes drivers would struggle to get the tires warm enough to stick to the track. It was merely down to the set up and the removal of the rear wing that this speed was set, and its clearly much faster than was possible on a race track! On top of that, larger rear tires were bolted on that gave the cars much more grip. Dec 25 2021 By Edd Straw See comments Mercedes was pushed harder than at any other time during Formula 1's V6 turbo hybrid era in 2021, hanging onto the constructors' championship for a record-extending eighth-consecutive season but with Lewis Hamilton missing out on the drivers' title. Having been able to enact a fix ahead of the eventual season-opener at the Red Bull Ring for the Austrian Grand Prix, Mercedes was assured of better reliability but there were still issues to iron out. This shows how incredibly fast the cars were in the mid-2000s and how fast they have become in the last two years. But could the reduction in downforce bought on by the new regulations have spurred Mercedes onto further greatness? Though during testing, van der Merwe measured at 413.205km/h (256.753mph) on one run. For example, a previous iteration of DAS that the team presented to the governing body was activated by a button on the steering wheel. At the 2020 Italian Grand Prix qualifying, Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap in Formula 1 history. [17] But finally, on July 5th, behind closed doors at the Red Bull Ring, the 2020 F1 season got underway. This is what we have been focusing on for the last three years. : George Russell Reveals Why He Considers Mercedes 2020 F1 Car as the Best, Why Michael Schumachers $29 Million Private Jet Bore Its Registration Name, 2-Time F1 Champion Max Verstappen Shares The Same Phobia for Creepy Crawlies as Rival Charles Leclerc. In Germany tax horsepower, which had been defined by statute since 1906, was based on the dimensions of the cylinders in the engine. In some cases, there can be a massive overhaul of the rules which can shake up the grid, like the engine regulation change in 2014 that passed the dominance from Red Bull over to Mercedes. Chadwick retained by Williams F1 in expanded simulator role, F1 set for 'Super Tuesday' launch double with Mercedes and Alpine, Mercedes joins in with Formula 1's latest rear wing trick, Mercedes joins in with Formula 1's latest rear wing trick The fastest era for Formula 1 was between 2017 and 2021. Pre-season testing is always a great opportunity to see the new batch of cars put through their paces for the first time, and to study the different development directions that the teams have gone in. This had come about as a response to the lack of aerodynamic furniture allowed on the front wing, owing to the new rules introduced in 2019. Our last aero development ended in mid-July, a month and a half earlier than usual. Opening rounds In the season opener at the Bahrain Grand Prix, Hamilton qualified in second place behind Verstappen. More information about advertising and tracking in our Data protection notice, the List of our partners and in Data protection information center. The fastest era of F1 was the 2020-2021 pair of seasons. It is a front suspension, with a controversial DAS system, side safety structures like the ones first seen on Ferrari in 2017 with highly placed radiator openings and a rear suspension with radically positioned components for aerodynamic advantage and more stability. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-AMG F1, 3rd position, and Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes-AMG F1, 2nd position, congratulate each other on the grid after performing donuts, Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images. But it was close enough that either team could have won the constructors championship and you could say the same about Verstappen and Hamilton in the drivers championship. Ferrari took advantage of this and repositioned them, improving flow around and through the car, which also enabled it to reduce the size of its radiators. Enlarge 01 / 02 The previous barge board had five fins in the lattice-like stack seen on the right of the image The floor (below) has been tweaked ahead of the rear tyre, with an array of three vanes to deflect air around the tyre. All this airflow structure works together but you can influence its priorities.. Is the Mercedes W11 the fastest F1 car ever? Mercedes' M11 1.6-liter turbocharged hybrid powertrain is allegedly the only in the sport to have actually gained horsepower over the 2019-spec mill, pumping out as much as 1022 horsepower in. In order to do this, it expanded upon the design of its brake bell, altering the shape of the drill holes to enable more airflow to escape out through the wheel face. The eradication of this weakness did not only happen last winter, Allison told Auto Motor und Sport. This increase in width gave the cars more surface area, providing them with a significant increase in downforce and therefore cornering speed. The drivers were told by the pitwall to avoid the kerbs at all costs during the first race of the season. In order to determine which car was the best at different circuits, well have to look back at which were the most dominant over a single season. . The 2017 season was the first time since the side impact structures had been introduced in 2014 that the teams really had any latitude in terms of where they could be placed. He then puts it in contrast with Williams. Although this came with a lap time penalty, Mercedes took a 1-2, finishing 20 seconds up the road from the closest Red Bull. Our bigger issue was that development curve flattened out rather quickly.. It also featured an innovative solution that courted a wealth of attention from F1's fans and the rest of the paddock too. But Mercedes has highlighted, via a series of images from the W11, the areas that will be affected this season. The fastest F1 car of all time is either the Mercedes W11 or the Ferrari F2004. Intended to accommodate longer six-seater Pullman-bodied cars. It certainly is a mighty contender for the top spot of fastest Formula 1 car in history. WRC Sunday format tweak, new points structure under discussion for 2024, Hungarian Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023 The 2020 season has been a wild ride, but the one consistent thing about this year has been the W11 at the front. Allison explained why the Mercedes F1 W11 is so good The W219, sold as . More power, more traction, more grip, and more trick shit like DAS. The result was a car that was aerodynamically more efficient than its predecessor, better in qualifying and even better in slow corners, although they kept the longest wheelbase, identical since 2017. Also, it was hard to make the front end sharp enough . A new and improved chassis that was built to be extremely lightweight also helped the team a great deal. The replacement W21 model was introduced in 1933, by which year the auto-industry faced a much less bleak immediate-term outlook. Welcome to Objects in Mirror, a bi-weekly column from Jack Swansey that brings you the history of the greatest racecars, fables of crushing dominance and lovable underdogs, tales of what happens when brilliant minds find genius loopholes in regulations, when old dogs stick to their guns long after everyone else has given up, or visionary dares dream of dreaming but flying too close to the sun. Perhaps it's a fitting time to delve under the covers of the W11 and explore the inner workings of one of F1's most dominant machines. The five challenges between Ricciardo and Perez's Red Bull F1 seat, Why F1's biggest danger is not being ambitious with its 2026 rules, Why F1's biggest danger is not being ambitious with its 2026 rules So DAS was developed only to warm the tires to their ideal operating temperature on warm-up and Safety Car laps. This iconic car is considered by many to be the outright fastest F1 car ever built in the history of the sport. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker. Aston Martin called its Hungarian GP performance a "reality check". During this time, we saw several speed records being broken. This reduces the risk of confusion with other cars from the same manufacturer incorporating the name "Stuttgart" and / or the number "260" in their names. The biggest difference to consider is the contrast between slick and grooved tires. How Mercedes created the fastest-ever F1 car - Motorsport He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Standard bodies from the manufacturer started with a Torpedo-bodied Tourenwagen and included 2 or 4-door Limousine (sedan/saloon) bodies. And then, after proving it had brought the fastest car, on day two of testing, Mercedes-AMG blew everybodys minds. [It was a question of] getting on top of the tyres, working out the optimum set-up for the car and how can we squeeze out more. This weekend in Bahrain, the Mercedes-AMG F1 team proved a couple of things. There's sensible logic to that as the car, in addition to the Mercedes Power Unit, will also run the same gearbox and rear suspension as the W11. So, he knows the feel of it too. Now imagine that instead of your feet, those are the front tires of a Formula 1 race car, and youre heading down the pit straight at Barcelona at over 170 mph. He backed it by saying that the car felt stiffer, slower, and heavier. However, this doesnt mean that the RB6 wasnt fast. That F1 car running with Hamilton, arguably the greatest F1 driver, was an unstoppable force. Originally intended to be the last of its generation, the Mercedes team . The Pit Straight: What's Even the Point of AlphaTauri Anymore? Inside Red Bulls F1 title-winning 2021 gains, The FIA court problem exposed by Mercedes abandoned appeal, Gary Anderson: Mercedes British GP upgrades explained, Mark Hughes: The truth of Mercedes gains amid Red Bull claims, Verstappen/Hamilton hate is destined to breed eternal respect, Gary Anderson explains latest Mercedes F1 engine suspicions, Edd Straws 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix F1 driver rankings, Why Aston Martins reality check admission is so significant, Video: How Red Bull made F1 rivals look like an F2 gang, Inside an abrupt Hungarian GP collapse with big ramifications, F1 podcast: Hopes of Red Bull challenge remain a pipe dream, How Ricciardo saved himself from much bleaker Hungarian GP, Mark Hughes: Why Red Bull-Mercedes pace reversal was so drastic, A Formula E comeback looks inevitable months after abrupt exit, Crutchlow gets wildcard Yamaha hopes is bikes turning point, Drastic cut to energy limit for London Formula E finale, IndyCar podcast: How Newgarden double impacts Palou title fight. Unlike the systems used elsewhere in Europe, the German tax horsepower calculation took account both of the cylinder bore and of the cylinder stroke, and there was therefore a direct linear relationship between engine size and tax horsepower. Mercedes had been the last to adopt the concept that Ferrari first showcased in 2017 and required the crash structures on the side to be shifted down low in order to improve the car's aerodynamics. The teams race result of eighth and ninth belies how great the car actually performed. Outside of NHRA, very few racing cars in history have broken the magic four-digit horsepower number. If not, the entire setup, even the chassis, is a big attraction and can get people to bid on them truckloads of cash in auctions. Planet Sport Limited 2023 All Rights Reserved, Mercedes W11 Was Three Years In The Making, Lewis Hamilton reveals meaning of Hungary GP pole which should worry rivals, Former driver refutes Toto Wolffs claims Mercedes had the second quickest car, Toto Wolff: Red Bull are making the rest of the field look like F2 cars, Lewis Hamilton sick of sounding like broken record with Mercedes car requests, Hungarian Grand Prix conclusions: Ricciardo returns, Perezs defiant drive and more. In addition, Vettel took 16 podiums and 13 wins in 19 races that same year. Formula One race cars have been recorded to reach 0-60 as fast as 1.6 seconds, however the typical range for modern day F1 cars is between 2.1 to 2.7 seconds. The car only had one weakness, and despite what the development focus on extending tire life might suggest, it wasnt a single-lap pace. May 6, 2022; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain talks with the media during a press conference before their practice session for the Miami Grand Prix at Miami International Autodrome. The downforce comes from the aerodynamics, the mass of the car, the weight transfer, how springs, bars and dampers are tuned. Serrated mirror mounts could be Mercedes' latest F1 marginal gain, Save and / or retrieve information on a device, Ensure security, prevent fraud and correct errors, Provide advertisements or content technically, Use market research to gain insights about target groups, Receive and use automatically sent device properties for identification, Actively query device properties for identification. Not that the Mercedes wasnt a strong car from the start. Mercedes can improve the almost perfect W11 for the W12 by - GPblog . They removed the rear wing to reduce drag and set up the car for maximum top speed. This has strengthened us in the slow turns where most of the time per lap is hidden. The philosophy behind the Mercedes W11 EQ Power+ is an evolution of last year's W10.This is mainly because the F1 2020 regulations only feature a few technical tweaks compared to 2019 and the W10 package was extremely successful. With a simpler diffuser and floor, the aerodynamic pressure will decrease in 2021, but Mercedes will do everything it can to regain that grip. Were not sure what kind of lap times they would have achieved with slick tires, but they would have been much faster, and so while tires are part of the car, they werent designed by the teams. Different tracks have different characteristics, so while one car might be incredibly fast on one circuit, it could struggle at another. In 1933 the manufacturer also produced a Mercedes-Benz W11L with its wheelbase lengthened by 270mm (11in) to 3,080mm (121in). . The Red Bull RB6, although not the most dominant Red Bull car ever built (that title belongs to the 2013 RB9) was an incredibly fast car. Whats more impressive is that there was no DRS back in those days! How Mercedes created the fastest-ever F1 car - Motorsport.com It shows how the front and rear downforce changes as the car goes through a corner. Ad "Already the 2019 car was very balanced in all types of corners in the race. You see, as Road & Track motorsport editor Fred Smith explained, Mercedes designed the W11 for maximum durability of the temperamental Pirelli tires, but theyd overshot the mark.