As expected, the sidepod, engine cover bodywork and the floor have all been heavily revised as part of this package in an effort to bring them in line with the aerodynamic concepts that the rest of the field have now largely converged on.
However, given it doesn’t have a blank canvas with which to work, some of the decisions it has taken with its update package appear to be less than perfect as they have needed to be introduced around current structures.
However, should the team decide this is a route it should take in the future, its ideas may provide further gains when it is able to better optimise its package as it starts with a clean sheet of paper.
The standout feature in this respect is the blister that is now present due to the much larger undercut in the sidepod bodywork.
The blister covers the lower SIS (Side Impact Spar) which, like Ferrari, is placed in a higher position on its chassis when compared with some of its rivals.
Rather than being placed high up, those teams have slung the SIS down as low as the regulations permit and it is housed within a blister section in the floor instead.
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
Haas VF-23 detail
The size and shape of the inlet has also been altered, in order to accommodate both the larger undercut and the additional width of the upper section of the sidepod.
Haas has achieved this by following the same methodology that Red Bull has employed, whereby the lower lip of the inlet sits much further forward than the upper lip.
Meanwhile, as widely talked about before, there is a switch to the downwash ramp-style bodywork at the rear of the sidepod, with the overhang of its predecessor swapped out for a ramp section that tapers down to meet the floor.
Cooling has also been revised with much more emphasis placed on the shoulder of the engine cover. The cooling gills have been moved to this region, rather than being located in the bathtub-like crevice atop the sidepod bodywork they had previously.
The floor edge now has a similar feel to many of its rivals too, with a much larger vertical scroll section in the forward portion of the edge wing, whilst a number of divisional strakes are employed as it’s rolled up in order to help better manage flow through the section.
The rear section of the edge wing creates a tail alongside the tapering floor edge, which is another feature we have seen used by its rivals.
