In its striking silver and black, the new nose of the single-seater does remind us of Brawn’s BGP01, but if we look closely it’s very different.  The middle part of the nose is much higher, reaching above the front wing, together with the typical V shape of the Red Bull RB5 V.  The car has its nose edge higher at both sides right up to the cockpit opening. (look at the detailed picture below.)

The underside of the nose is rounded off, also as the RB5, but with less height in the front suspension mounts which are joined to the chassis by a small keel.

Around the driver, the sidepod entries have changed less, maintaining the air inlets that are now bulky in comparison to what McLaren and Ferrari have presented in 2010. The wing mirrors have been kept very simple.

Front detail of the Mercedes W01

This racing car may be one of the most innovative, not having anything to do with the adjustments made for his official presentation in Germany.  The airbox, apart from being an air inlet, its main objective is to be a roll hoop for the pilot in case of a crash.  Due to this, the teams usually reinforce the airbox walls with carbon fiber so that it matches the required strength.  Up to here there’s nothing we don’t know, but Mercedes has gone a little farther applying a completely different concept.

W01 Airbox

Here, the team has chosen to build the roll hoop as a vertical column providing a thick support on the centerline of the car.  So an air inlet must also be provided.  If you watch closely, the airbox is divided in two, with an air opening much larger than we are used to.

A little more to the back, there is a small opening on each side of the airbox, providing cooling air for some components that sit more rearward in the car.  It is understood that Mercedes and several other teams have chosen to move some components to sit in the low rear to make place for the larger fuel tank.

Despite the fairly bulky shape of the sidepods with a remarkable lack of undercut, the rear end of the car is extremely mince, leaving most of the suspension components open to free airflow. The team have made the bodywork so narrow that many of the components protrude.

Specifications

• Chassis: Construction Molded carbon fiber and honeycomb composite structure
• Suspension: Wishbone
• Dampers: Sachs
• Wheels: BBS forged magnesium
• Tyres: Bridgestone Potenza
• Brakes: Brembo calipers, discs/pads Carbon/Carbon
• Steering: Power assisted rack and pinion
• Electronics: FIA standard ECU and FIA homologated electronic and electrical system
• Gearbox: Seven speed unit with carbon composite maincase
• Gear selection: Sequential, semi-automatic, hydraulic activation
• Clutch: carbon plate

Dimensions

• Overall length: 4800mm
• Overall height: 950mm
• Overall width: 1800 mm

Motor

• Type: Mercedes-Benz FO108X
• Capacity: 2,4 liters
• Cylinders: 8
• Maximum rpm: 18.000 (maximum FIA regulation)
• Bank angle: 90 °
• Piston bore: 98 mm (maximum FIA regulation)
• No. of valves: 32
• Weight: 95kg (minimum FIA regulation weight)