“We need to focus on building a fast and reliable [2023] car.” – former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto had made it known at the end of final round of the 2022 Formula 1 season, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
In Maranello there is a lot of pressure on the power unit engineers because a large part of the performance of the 2023 car will depend on their corrections. Next year’s power drive unit, which Mattia Binotto defined as a “bomb” in a conversation with Haas boss Gunther Steiner, will in fact have many changes for reliability reasons even if officially the engine development is frozen from the beginning of 2022 until 2025.
It is therefore interesting to understand what the engineers can change in this era of frozen engines, something that does not only concern Ferrari, although it was the most the power unit manufacturers most affected by technical failures during the previous championship.
Mercedes is also working to solve some limitations encountered last season, after the last power unit had made concessions to solve some problems in terms of crankshaft reliability. Basically, defined minor changes can be made in approval time windows. This means you can’t constantly introduce updates. The modifications that can be made concern the materials as long as the layout, the wiring, the exhaust system are not modified, provided that the key parameters that define the system, i.e. diameters, lengths, etc. remain substantially unchanged, the position of the turbocharger (within 20 mm of the original position with respect to the endothermic part), the clocking and the supports of the turbo, as well as the position of the wastegate with housings and pipes, alongside the position of the pop-off valve with its housing, tubing and air inlet system, as explained by F1 experts Giuliano Duchessa and Piergiuseppe Donadoni for formu1a.uno.
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection! Click here to enter the F1 online Store and shop securely! And also get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!
It should be remembered that each homologation is subject to the formal approval of the FIA, after having examined the modification projects and any further requested documentation, informing the other power unit manufacturers of the request.
Leave a Reply