James Allison Explains Why W16 Is More “Well-Mannered” Than Mercedes’ Last Year’s Challenger

Mercedes is finally back after three seasons of struggle. Or at least, they’re on their way back as 2025 so far has proven to be a breath of fresh air for those working at Brackley. The future is optimistic, with the W16 looking to be the best Mercedes car of the ground-effect era.

The current regulations were introduced in 2022, and Mercedes went from being a force to be reckoned with to becoming a midfield meme—a fallen giant. But the Silver Arrows, led by Toto Wolff, look strong finally.

Although they’re not yet close to winning races as McLaren is the outright fastest, Mercedes looks consistent for the first time in years. In the three races this season so far, the team has two podium finishes courtesy of George Russell. Rookie Kimi Antonelli, too, has not been too far behind, scoring points regularly.

Mr consistent George’s best start to an F1 season EVER pic.twitter.com/4fZPJ5ezB3

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) April 7, 2025

But Mercedes didn’t become the second or third-fastest team just like that. It was an unfathomable thought at this point last year, but the team worked hard over the winter break to make the W16 much better than its predecessor.

Technical Director James Allison discussed the same ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain GP. Addressing questions about improvement in reliability and performance, Allison said, “That’s quite a different kettle of fish. Last year’s car was… Its main problem was (that) it suffered from low-speed understeer.” 

“That came as a result of an imbalance between the front and the rear tire temperatures, amongst other things,” he added. “And it made the car very inconsistent from session to session. So as the track temperature changed and the wind direction changed, we could get it just about dialed in and good”.

As a result of this, the engineers kept changing the W15’s set-up quite frequently, which resulted in erratic performances across several circuits. For instance, Mercedes won four times in 2024—in Britain, Belgium, Las Vegas, and Austria. But in some other races, they looked the fourth-fastest team.

Now, they can stick to one particular concept, thanks to the W16’s characteristics, Allison explained. “This car [W16], we’ve been to all manner of tracks. We’ve run in the wet, we’ve run in the dry, we’ve run cool, we’ve run hot. We’ve run with the wind on our nose, on our tail. And it’s pretty well-mannered.” 

Mercedes’ technical director went on to reveal that unlocking a “little bit of pace” could help them challenge for wins once again. And with that part of the season approaching when teams typically bring upgrades, it’s possible Mercedes could find itself back at the top.

McLaren are currently the fastest team, with Red Bull close behind—thanks largely to Max Verstappen’s brilliance, which continues to put pressure on the Woking-based outfit. If Mercedes joins the fight, it could certainly add another exciting twist to the championship.