FIA confirms 'test with Ferrari in April' to analyze solutions for car spraying in rain

FIA confirms ‘test with Ferrari in April’ to analyze solutions for car spraying in rain. The FIA will perform a test with Ferrari amid solutions for water spray.

Testing with wheel arches
It was last July when the FIA, in collaboration with Pirelli, initiated tests at the Silverstone circuit to study the new project related to wheel arches. With this solution, the Federation had considered the possibility of using this prototype to reduce the amount of water sprays in wet track conditions, especially after reports from drivers about reduced visibility.

Other tests scheduled
A problem that emerged especially after the technical-aerodynamic changes made in 2022, with the reintroduction of ground effect, in addition to the sprays generated by wet tires. A test that did not, however, yield the desired effects, although the FIA’s Director of Single-Seaters, Nikolas Tombazis, intends to continue with further tests. The confirmation came from the Greek engineer himself, with the announcement of additional tests scheduled for next year to try to understand the root cause of the main problem.

The study of ’causes’ with Ferrari
The former Ferrari employee emphasized the purpose of the tests, to understand if water sprays are mostly generated by tire design or for other reasons that could lead to changes in the cars, all to ensure greater safety: ‘We clearly want to reduce the sprays. It’s not an easy task; we will do the next water spray reduction test in spring in collaboration with Ferrari,’ explained the 55-year-old in a media meeting. ‘On that occasion, we will try to definitively answer the question of whether the problem is due to the car’s configuration or the tires. In simulations, it’s extremely difficult to find the right balance and answer this question only with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). We will provide the answer when we conduct the tests.’ – Nikolas Tombazis pointed out.

Wheel arches not yet ruled out
However, during the test, the use of wheel arches could be considered once again, especially if the tires prove to be particularly problematic for water sprays: ‘Based on this, if the tires were to be a significant part of the problem, at that point, we will have a wheel cover solution for ultra-wet races by 2026,’ he added. ‘If the issue is not so much the rubber but rather the chassis diffuser, then we will have to work a bit more on the cars and can run simulations. But we need this data from the April experiment.” – Nikolas Tombazis concluded.