F1 car launches 2024: When teams are revealing its new chassis

Excitement is building for the upcoming F1 season as every team has now unveiled its new livery ahead of the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix on 2 March.

Red Bull was the final team to reveal its 2024 challenger on Thursday 15 February meaning last season is now a distant memory.

That is much needed for some because 2023 proved disappointing for many teams, as Red Bull dominated the campaign winning 21 of 22 grands prix.

However, some team only revealed the colour scheme of its 2024 livery while trying to keep car design a secret until pre-season testing.

Red Bull Racing RB20

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

F1 Car Launch Dates 2024

Red Bull

Date: 15 February 2024

Red Bull revealed its RB20 on Thursday 15 February, but the livery remained exactly the same as previous years. However, it was clear that the RB20 has various differences to its predecessor and actually features some similarities to Mercedes' W13 and W14.  

The RB20 was launched from Red Bull's Milton Keynes factory, which was quite different to 2023 where it held a glamorous unveiling in New York.

It will also be difficult for the RB20 to emulate the success of the RB19, which is statistically the most dominant car in F1 history and gave Max Verstappen his third consecutive drivers’ world championship.

Mercedes F1 W15

Photo by: Mercedes AMG

Mercedes

Date: 14 February 2024

Mercedes was underwhelming in 2023, as the Silver Arrows had its first winless season since 2011 despite finishing second in the championship.

Team boss Toto Wolff therefore confirmed that Mercedes is “changing the car completely” for 2024, as it attempts to fight Red Bull closer having not won since George Russell’s victory at the 2022 Brazilian GP - which was also a 1-2 for the Silver Arrows.

The W14's successor was revealed on Wednesday 14 February ahead of pre-season testing in Bahrain on the 21-23 February. It will also be Lewis Hamilton's final Mercedes F1 car as he is joining Ferrari for 2025 in a shock driver transfer. 

Ferrari SF-24

Photo by: Ferrari

Ferrari

Date: 13 February 2024

Ferrari unveiled the SF-24 from its Maranello base on Tuesday 13 February 2024. It came just eight days before the start of pre-season testing, while team boss Frederic Vasseur confirmed Ferrari’s car is “95%” new.

This comes after Ferrari finished third in the 2023 F1 standings, while Carlos Sainz’s win in Singapore was the only grand prix won by a non-Red Bull car last season.

Sainz is going into his final year with Ferrari as he is being replaced by Hamilton, while over the off-season Charles Leclerc signed a multi-year contract extension. 

Photo by: McLaren

Lando Norris, McLaren livery

McLaren

Date: 14 February 2024

McLaren had a remarkable turnaround in 2023 as it started the year with zero points in the opening two races, before mid-season upgrades helped lift the team up to fourth in the championship.

If McLaren continues that rate of development, challenging Red Bull in 2024 might not be totally off the cards – especially with its young, talented driver pairing of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

On the 16 January, McLaren became the first team to reveal its livery for the 2024 season, however the MCL38's launch specification design was not unveiled until Wednesday 14 February.

Aston Martin AMR24

Photo by: Aston Martin

Aston Martin

Date: 12 February 2024

Aston Martin arguably started 2023 with the second quickest car, as Fernando Alonso scored six podiums in the opening eight grands prix after very aggressive upgrades over the winter.

However, Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes quickly caught up in the development race. So, Aston Martin fell to fifth in the standings.

Performance director Tom McCullough confirmed Aston Martin has focused on improving its car efficiency for 2024, as it hopes to get back to the form shown early in 2023.

Aston Martin became the sixth team to unveil its livery for this year, with the AMR24 being shown on Monday 12 February at Silverstone. 

Alpine A524

Photo by: Alpine

Alpine

Date: 7 February 2024

Alpine’s 2024 F1 car is “completely new front-to-back” after a disappointing 2023 season where the Enstone-based outfit dropped from fourth to sixth in the championship.

Reliability was often a concern as Alpine retired from a grand prix on 10 occasions - the highest behind Williams on 11 - while development hit a “plateau”, so the team started working on its 2024 car early.

Alpine’s 2024 car launch was on Wednesday 7 February, where the team unveiled its new liveries for both F1 and the World Endurance Championship. The French outfit also caused controversy with its launch because the F1 cars are predominantly carbon black to try and save weight.

Alpine will run two liveries for the 2024 F1 season: one with hints of blue and another one in pink because of its main sponsor BWT where the latter will feature at eight grands prix.

Williams Racing FW46

Photo by: Williams

Williams

Date: 5 February 2024

Williams enjoyed a much-improved season, rising from last to seventh in the championship in James Vowles’ first year as team boss.

Straightline speed was a big strength of the FW45 evident in Alex Albon’s third-row start at Monza.

The British outfit revealed its FW46 on Monday 5 February and it has stuck to the navy blue colour scheme from 2023. However, the FW46 also features a red and white pinstripe as a nod to Williams' British history and its lineage of historic cars. 

Last season, Williams also ran a special Gulf livery in Singapore, Japan and Qatar but it is unclear if the same will happen in 2024.

Daniel Ricciardo, VCARB 01

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

RB

Date: 8 February 2024

There is much change at the team from Faenza in 2024 as it has ditched the AlphaTauri name for RB.

RB launched its 2024 car on Thursday 8 February from an event in Las Vegas, where it returned to the light blue colour scheme from its days of Toro Rosso as opposed to the AlphaTauri white and navy. 

This has come alongside a new team boss, as Ferrari’s ex-race director Laurent Mekies has replaced the long-serving Franz Tost.

Mekies takes over the team who finished eighth in the 2023 standings, but as 22 of its 25 points came in the final eight rounds with RB now taking a development direction similar to sister team Red Bull, there is optimism that it will improve in 2024.

Sauber C44

Photo by: Sauber F1 Team

Sauber

Date: 5 February 2024

Sauber and Williams announced their car launch dates within minutes of each other, and both teams unveiled its 2024 challenger on the same day.

The C44 was revealed in the United Kingdom on Monday 5 February, which marked a first for Sauber, as past unveilings have happened in Switzerland, Austria and Germany.

It is part of a new era for the team as its title partnership with Alfa Romeo has ended ahead of Audi’s arrival in 2026.

Sauber needs to bounce back in 2024 after slumping from sixth to ninth in the championship, while the team has taken an all-new approach for the C44.

Haas VF-24 livery

Photo by: Haas F1 Team

Haas

Date: 2 February 2024

Haas dropped back down to last in the championship - its 2021 finish - after coming eighth in the 2022 F1 standings.

The American squad struggled in race trim as its tyres often overheated, so Haas began working on its 2024 car fairly early knowing there was not much left to gain last season. Haas also opted for a new team principal in 2024 as Guenther Steiner left the team with Ayao Komatsu as his replacement.

On Friday 2 February, Haas became the second F1 team to unveil its 2024 livery, however it was only done through digital renders as the American outfit will run its new VF-24 for the first time at a Silverstone shakedown on 11 February.