Mercedes in trouble in Bahrain with 'no-sidepod' design?

Mercedes's 'no-sidepod' design might not be the best and most versatile solution for the latest technical regulations in F1. That is the view of the racingnews365 technical analyst Paolo Filisetti.

According to Paolo, the Mercedes design might have a few benefits now, but in the long run, the design is going to cause more headaches for the German team than they might have envisioned. This is due to the design's susceptibility to changing weather conditions.

Talking about the design, Paolo feels that although the car might show positive feedback in straight-line performances and slow corners, it might be susceptible to changes in wind direction which could make it harder to set up.

According to Paolo, Mercedes might just have gotten too excited looking at the date from the simulator and jumped the gun with its design.

"They will have seen good data in their simulations, so for this reason they have followed the 'sidepod-less' route, but in simulations, you have many limitations compared to reality. First of all, you are unable to mimic, or simulate, crosswinds – this is a huge limitation to the whole understanding of the concept. Secondly, in the wind tunnel, there is a limit of airflow speed, set to 180 km/h under F1's rules. "

He added:

" As a result, you can't see the effects at higher speeds, and, for example, it makes simulating porpoising impossible."

According to Paolo, the design philosophy used by the team is not suitable in all conditions and can cause setup issues in Bahrain itself.

"This concept is not, in my opinion, an all-round solution – it is not perfect in every condition, It is much more prone to upsetting the overall balance, in terms of aerodynamic shift between front and rear, when there are crosswinds. You can - in some conditions - lose the downforce generated by a certain part of the car; it could be the front, or it could be the rear, and this could lead to stability problems for Mercedes."

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Mercedes on the backfoot before the start of the season?

Mercedes appear to be on the backfoot after the pre-season test in Bahrain. The latest challenger from the German team has not looked like the grid-beater that you would expect from the team every season.

However, counting out a team that was able to stage a comeback last season after a poor pre-season test might not be the wisest thing to do. A clearer picture will reveal itself after the first race at Bahrain GP, but until then, the jury is still out on the efficacy of the latest challenger from the German giant.