Analysis: Red Bull's new nose job in Bahrain testing

To some degree, we called it; when Red Bull's RB21 was unveiled and cut a largely familiar figure on the circuit to its predecessor, we suggested that the team might be at liberty to make a few changes between the reveal and the Australian Grand Prix.

Team principal Christian Horner had divulged that most of the aero surfaces were different on the RB21, but this appeared to be a culmination of tiny tweaks rather than any visible changes in specification. A few millimetres of difference here and there will have wide-ranging changes to a car's aero map, but it's very difficult to draw too many concluding remarks upon them.

Thankfully, Red Bull has managed to earn itself the sketchpad treatment in debuting a new nose on the final day of pre-season testing in Bahrain. Now wider and shorter, the nose tip now finds itself truncated at the second wing element, rather than extruding to the mainplane as the launch version had. This also influences a few changes to the front wing itself, refreshed in geometry to fit the demands of the new nose concoction.

Red Bull's new nose can allow airflow underneath to reduce blockage effects and minimise pockets of flow separation

Photo by: Autosport

First, we have a comparison of the old nose versus the new; the contours of the Red Bull's erstwhile snout have been sketched over the top of the new design to demonstrate the difference in width and tip position. This writer's dodgy artistic streak aside (which would barely contend for the Turnip Prize, let alone the more-coveted Turner), it's hopefully possible to see that difference, and the manner in which the older nose was chiselled into more of a point versus the rounder newbuild.

This does reduce the total span of front wing elements either side of the nose, but freeing up the central section of the mainplane should compensate for this to some degree. The step in the mainplane has shrunk a little bit in the meantime; less of that mainplane is lower to the ground to fit the curvature of the other wing elements.

The now-open slot gap can allow airflow to be fired underneath the nose to reduce any blockage effects and minimise any potential pockets of flow separation. Red Bull has retained the tiny inlet used to bring air into the cockpit to provide the drivers with token levels of cooling, which also doubles up to limit any static air bouncing against its meeting point on the nose. Also visible is the slightly enhanced angling of the front wing endplates, which will help to develop a little extra outwash around the front tyres.

Controlling the airflow is key for Red Bull's new nose

Photo by: Uncredited

We can also attempt to predict the flow around this new nose, following its curvature. Flow around the sides will tend to wrap around the tip and ideally follow the sides of the nose down to the car's flanks, helped by the inboard part of the front wing. Because the nose is still relatively flat, a chunk of air will follow the centreline up towards the cockpit, but getting that airflow wrap around to the sides of the car is a little more useful as it can be controlled by the bodywork around the suspension mountings.

Also noted on the image above is the slightly enhanced angling of the front wing endplates, which will help to develop a little extra outwash around the front tyres.

Mercedes gets a few sniffs with two noses

Red Bull is not the only team to experiment with different nose shapes, with Mercedes' beak having been subject to extensive experiments over the course of testing.

The team launched with a shorter nose solution that ended on the leading edge of the second element, and this was used through the first morning of testing in Bahrain - but in that afternoon session, a longer nose appeared that extended to the mainplane to delete the slot gap available.

Mercedes tested two noses, but it could be to suit different downforce level requirements

Photo by: Uncredited

Given the similar geometries between the two other than length and the frequent switching between the pair, it could be suggested that the team is simply going into the season with two specs and will decide on a race-by-race basis whether it requires the slot gap under the nose or not. In higher-downforce conditions, perhaps the air-dam effect of the longer nose might be more preferable, while using the slot gap to trim drag out of the nose geometry might be more useful for circuits where efficiency is prioritised.

The rounded nature of the tip area, which extends just past the Mercedes badge, will have a similar flow pattern to that drawn upon the Red Bull nose, albeit with less straight-up-the-nose flow given its more slender nature.

Most follow front wing conventions... unless you're Sauber

Most teams have continued with loading the inboard section of the front wing, where the inner part has the greatest camber (overall curvature) and this falls away at the endplates as it is more beneficial to use the outboard zone to start turning airflow outwards. This effect has been strengthened with the variety of winglets and other devices around the endplate-wing junction point.

Sauber, Ferrari and Aston Martin are three examples of front wing variation growing in F1

Photo by: Uncredited

Interestingly, Sauber has moved away from the inboard loading and focused on building the majority of its downforce with the central section of each side. Thus, the wing camber is reduced either side of the nose, and larger in front of the tyre's inside edge. In light of this, the outer part of the wing has to fall away more dramatically to minimise the wing camber and chord length at the endplate junction point.

Developing a front wing does require the development of downforce, but it must also serve the rest of the car; the front-most aerodynamic device sets everything up and needs to issue the components aft of that with the right flow patterns. Think of it like a relay; if the first person with the baton is too slow, then the other runners must compensate to win, so a poorly designed front wing will put more emphasis on the other components to correct the flow. Although Sauber has opted for a different school of thought, its designers must feel that this is the geometry that works best for its aero components further back.

Ferrari displays the inboard-loaded characteristics, although with a clear anhedral angle to it to provide the downwards sweep moving outboard and channel that airflow outwards. By comparison, Aston Martin follows the same ethos, but with a greater level of wing element twist to issue the airflow with a course correction. All three show the mainplane with a spoon-shaped central mounting to the nose, as teams have generally followed the path that a lower, drooping nose is preferable to a slightly raised one. Hence, there's a lot less variation in design here versus the wider range of noses seen during this ruleset's opening season in 2022.

Which nose design will give the best sniff to success?

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images