Deconstructing Formula 1: The front wing
Between now and the end of the season AUTOSPORT's technical expert Gary Anderson is going to take you through a Formula 1 car from the front to the back and explain how all the various components work independently. This week - the front wing
As defined by its name the front wing is the first component to embrace the air flow. It's function is to produce the front downforce required to balance the car and whilst doing that minimise the effect it has on the air flow coming off its trailing edge to allow the rest of the car to work as efficiently as possible.
As a rough guide the front wing will produce something in the region of 80 per cent of the front downforce, which in turn would be about 40 per cent of the car's total downforce. The front wing endplates are critical to the efficiency of the wing assembly and also the consistency of the aerodynamic centre of pressure, especially when the steering is turned.
So let's look at the solutions the leading teams have come up with this season, starting with the constructors' championship leaders:
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