Tech Analysis: Ferrari F2008

Perhaps the mood for all of this year's launches was set by Ferrari last weekend, when they revealed the F2008.

The event was low-key, with very little fanfare and degree of openness. To reflect this, after the interviews the car simply sat in the garage and the press allowed to wander around the car and take in the detail.

Not resting on their laurels, the team have announced a new technical structure, to move on from the previous era and plan for the very different technical demands the formula will face over the next few years.

Aldo Costa has stepped up as technical director, with Mario Almondo heading operations and engine man Gilles Simon taking electronics under his wing. Former aero man Nick Tombazis is now chief designer and John Illey is heading the aero department.

The new technical team have tackled the problems faced last year, where the car suffered on bumps, kerbs, low-speed corners and slippery conditions. This shortcoming was punished by McLaren, whose car excelled in these conditions.

The key advantages enjoyed by Ferrari last year were better use of the Bridgestone tyres, and better pace through fast corners. Ferrari correctly identified that a forward weight distribution was required to overcome the weak rear Bridgestone tyres. Thus, they were able to configure their car to move weight where it was needed, and develop more downforce in an equally forward position.

Ferrari have sculpted their new nose with blended tip and undercuts beneath © Scarborough (Click to enlarge)

Starting from such a good position, Ferrari needed to make fewer changes to the layout of their car for 2008. Thus, they have focused more on the detail on the car.

Aldo Costa said at the launch that the aim was to develop the car to relieve the weaknesses cited from 2007, without sacrificing the car's plus points. To do this the team altered the aerodynamics and the suspension.

When asked whether the problems last year were caused by stiff suspension or sensitive aerodynamics, Tombazis said the issue was more complex, and that the tyres was as important as the how the suspension allowed the aerodynamics to work.

Evidence that sensitive aero was not the only factor was provided by Tombazis' insight that he felt the wind tunnel's correlation to the real car was good, and that the team were not seeking less sensitive aerodynamics.

Thus, the car in its launch guise was outwardly similar to the outgoing F2007. As always the wings and a lot of the aero add-ons were 2007 items and will radically change before the first race, and in several steps through the year.

Firstly, and barely detectable, is a small change in wheelbase. Possibly overstated by some press in terms of length and importance, this is a minimal change. Cars alter length each year by small amounts, and this year is no different - the change is not a shift in philosophy.

To accommodate the change the front wheels have been moved by an undisclosed amount, but visually it's only a few millimetres.

The front end retains the zero keel set-up used by the team last year. The upper wishbones are spaced away from the monocoque to improve the geometry; in particular how the wheel camber changes as the wheel moves up and down.

More importantly, and also hard to spot, is the amount of work down around the raised portion of the monocoque. The front and dash bulkheads have not been moved, but the area low down ahead of the sidepods has been squeezed in.

The slimmer engine cover starts with the new cockpit padding, snorkel inlet and fins to meet the dimensional rules © Scarborough (Click to enlarge)

This is visible just behind the bargeboards, where the undercut meets the square front of the sidepods. More space in this area allows the front wing wake to form and feed around the sidepods, thus driving the flow over the top of the diffuser and making the car more efficient.

Feeding this is a revised front wing and nosecone. Ferrari's usual bi-plane wing and pointed nose has evolved into wing blending onto a bulbous tip. This appears similar to Toyota's solution, where the blended wing/nose intersection creates a smoother transition from wing to nose, creating less disturbance to the flow around the nose.

Aiding the front wing's efficiency is the sculpting of the underside of the nose cone, which is undercut on both sides to match the flow off the rear edge of the wing, further driving flow to the rear end.

Costa said that these revisions didn't suggest a new splitter or diffuser philosophy:

"In terms of the nose and chassis design, the philosophy doesn't change, but it's just an attempt to make a more efficient shape," he said.

These front end changes do provide some front end downforce, but the greater benefit is the improved flow the rear end. Ferrari appear to have sufficient front downforce, and are now making the excess aid the rear end, which allows less rear wing to be run, reducing drag to increase straight-line speed.

Around the middle of the car the cockpit area has been visibly changed. Firstly, the side padding around the opening has been altered to meet the new rules. The padding is taller, and ramps up at a steeper angle to further protect the drivers head.

Recent cockpit designs have lowered the head protection while still being within the rules. Additionally, the structure supporting the foam padding was an add-on to the monocoque. Now the rules demand that the perimeter of the cockpit is structural, which will add weight to everyone's tubs.

Behind the cockpit, the roll structure and snorkel feeding the engine is all new. The inlet protrudes more and forms the tow hoop. Previously, the car was lifted from a slot moulded through the fuel cell area.

Also the inlet was previously split to feed the engine and a hydraulics cooler through separate ducts. Now, the inlet features a single inlet. According to Tombazis, "We've revised the cooling systems and so have moved things around."

There remains a cooler fed from the back of the airbox, but the set up is now much neater than on the F2007.

Beneath the raised section, the monocoque is slimmed all the way to the sidepods © Ferrari (Click to enlarge)

Inside the cockpit, the slimmed underside to the monocoque makes its presence felt. The sculpting is visible from within the cockpit, as the area under the drivers thighs is raised and narrowed by the new shape. Kimi Raikkonen mentioned this in his interviews, but didn't feel it was problem.

Following the usual year-on-year development, the rear end of the car is slimmer all round. Most obviously, the engine cover is narrower around the airbox, necessitating bulges to clear the wide base of the airbox, and two strakes added to each side to meet the minimum width of the cover along its spine.

This so-called 'Toblerone' section was mandated to force teams into having bodywork in triangle ahead of the rear wing after teams started to make very low engine covers. While teams often have engine covers taller than needed, they are keen to slim the cover to improve flow the rear wing.

The sidepods themselves are more rounded and slimmer in the narrow coke bottle section, and the deck is lower. This makes the exhausts protrude more through the sidepods, although it seem the exhaust is also slightly longer.

Under the skin, the Ferrari sports a development of the seven-speed seamless gearbox. Redesigned to last four races, the gearbox has also has had attention paid to its internals and its hydraulics to improve reliability in the light of some failures last year.

That said, the team do not feel the single ECU will hamper the unit in terms of the speed of its shift. Tombazis confirmed the gear case was "similar to last years", and it continues to follows a hybrid construction, using a titanium skeleton with carbon fibre skins bonded to its ribs.

Also the single ECU provides Ferrari with a number of challenges. The software is all new and the team have had to learn the MES [McLaren Electronics Systems] application to write the new control code.

Also, the specific ban on traction control and other automated drivers aids means the team have had to find new ways to maximise the car's pace. No longer able to alter the differential for each corner or have the throttle prevent the rear wheels locking, it will be down to the driver and the car's set up to recover the consistency and stability previously provided by the electronics.

Perhaps related to the lack of programmable chassis controls, the cockpit features a new lever. Positioned between the brake bias lever and dash bulkhead, the three position lever seems to be without a purpose.

The lever appears similar to a anti-roll bar adjuster (which were banned in 1994), and I asked Tombazis what its purpose was. Of course he wouldn't say, but the driver interviews alluded to some surprises, and potentially the lever may replace a programmable aid with a driver adjustable system, in a similar way to how the quick shift brake bias adjuster overcomes the ban on automated brake bias systems.

The engine was not an area Ferrari were able to develop to the same extent as usual due to the engine freeze rules. All that can be altered are the airbox/injection system, exhausts and electronics.

Plus, the work to develop the tuning to meet the new fuel demand for a 75 percent bio content meant that the gains possible are limited. Tractability has been the main aim, as more revs or internal changes to engine are not allowed.