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Renault Formula 1 team asked to change its rear wing design by FIA

Renault will make changes to its rear wing design before the Australian Grand Prix after the FIA advised that its support pillar concept could breach Formula 1 rules.

Rivals queried the design of the RS27's support pillar almost immediately after its launch in London last week.

The issue revolved around the pillar support which, rather than being attached to the main plane, joined the wing at the DRS actuator pod.

Article 3.9.6 of F1's technical regulations states that the support must be extended until it meets the area of the regulations that is related to the area of the rear wing main plane as defined in article 3.9.1.

Teams have, for aerodynamic purposes, been moving the attachment point of the rear wing pillar further and further forward.

The most popular method under the previous regulations was a simple connection to the underside of the main plane used to add rigidity, as used by Mercedes.

Others, including Red Bull and Ferrari, looked to improve the aerodynamic performance of the rear wing by imitating the swan-neck supports used by some LMP1 designs.

The 2017 Renault idea went a step further and attached directly to the DRS pod.

The argument was that this was allowed because there is a subsequent regulation that allows the support to be attached to "minimal parts solely associated with the adjustment of the [DRS]."

Rival teams' view, now backed by the FIA, was that the bulbous nature of the DRS and support pillar attachment was much larger than the "minimal" parts mentioned in the regulations.

It is understood that Renault was advised to make tweaks to the design to make sure it intersects with the main plane and work will take place to ensure the change is done before the season-opener in Melbourne.

The potential advantage of the Renault design was likely related to reducing interference to the rear wing, which could have boosted the effectiveness of DRS.

Some rival teams were not too fussed about Renault's interpretation as they doubted it would deliver much benefit.

Zdroj: autosport.com