Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton are about to experience a completely revamped car for the 2024 season, with James Allison working on a major overhaul of the W14, binning most of its concepts for the upcoming W15. After two seasons of Mike Elliott’s concepts not bringing them much luck, Mercedes’ Technical Director is binning all the extreme concepts and bringing in a much more balanced layout, as reported by Motorsport.com.
Under Elliot, the team bet on a longer rear end to have a diffuser with greater surface area capable of generating more aerodynamic load. However, the team discovered it led to their car becoming increasingly sensitive to porpoising. The new Mercedes will not be as long as the W13 and W14, limiting the porpoising element greatly. The driver’s cockpit will also shift further back to stop Hamilton feeling like he is driving at the front wheels and give him a more balanced experience.
W15 updates:
• The W15 will have NO aerodynamic design link with the W14.
• The cockpit position will be further back, as Lewis Hamilton requested.
• The W15’s gearbox will be smaller and lighter than the W14’s
• The rear bodywork will be more compact.
• Mercedes… pic.twitter.com/sp3iwsR6RA
— Mercedes-AMG F1 News (@MercedesNewsUK) January 5, 2024
Furthermore, the team is also shortening the transmission box for the W15. In the last two seasons, the Mercedes cars featured the longest gearbox on the grid, which failed to help their cause. As such, Allison and Co. decided to move away from the practice and introduce a shorter gearbox, suiting the current ground effects. Additionally, the car will no longer see a lack of side panels either.
With such a massive overhaul of their car, the mood within the Brackley camp is one of hope and excitement. The team is motivated towards reducing the gap between them and Red Bull, which soared to an all-time high during the 2023 season. Hamilton’s one-year extension and Allison’s determination to avoid any risky decisions further boost the team’s hopes of experiencing a much more positive performance this time.
Mercedes’ decision over the W14 came as a shock to Christian Horner
After a stark downfall in performance in the 2022 season, Mercedes chose to stick with the concept that failed them when unveiling the W14. Seeing the same, Horner admitted to being “very surprised” after his team’s fiercest rivals opted in favor of sticking with a concept that “clearly failed” them. Understanding Wolff’s conditions, Horner mentioned in October 2023 that he, too, faced a lot of hurt for six to seven seasons when Mercedes was always winning.
Christian Horner has said Red Bull was “very surprised” Mercedes stuck with a Formula 1 car concept that had “clearly failed” in 2022 when unveiling the W14.
Mercedes will unveil a “completely new car” next year.#F1 #Mercedes #RedBull pic.twitter.com/noMylvjh4w
— Formula 1 Daily (@Formula1_Daily) December 19, 2023
As such, the British engineer believes that the ex-constructors’ champions are plotting something big and will soon make a grand comeback. With an impressive driver lineup and a hard-working team back in Brackley, Horner refuses to claim that Mercedes’ glory days are behind them. Currently dominating their rivals, Horner believes a fierce rivalry is essential for a sport to be a sport. While respect is also necessary, rivalries play a much more significant role. Heading into the 2024 season, chances are the rivalry between Mercedes and Red Bull will once again light up the F1 realm, given the strides the former is making.
