For the last round in Brazil the Red Bull sported a heavily revised rear wing, with a completely flat main profile and an interesting flap design, its exit edge actually slightly lower than the top edge of the endplates (red arrows). The flap and endplate are connected by a rounded profile that...
At the last round in China Ferrari tweaked their diffuser, inclining its outermost fence outwards so as to create a trapezoidal shape to the channel. In Brazil the team have reverted to the previous version, with the usual vertical outer fence attached to the diffuser via a rounded connecting...
These two designs look visually quite different, but actually follow very similar concepts. The flaps sport a completely different profile on their rear edge (red arrows) but both have a vertical fin underneath (visible protruding from the rear of the flap) to divert airflow towards the sides. The...
This solution, as with the Ferrari front wing shown previously, is designed to compensate for the low air density at the high-altititude Interlagos circuit. Air pressure is increased in the rear wing area by a greater angle to the extremities of the main profile, its boundaries limited at one end by...
For Brazil, BMW have adopted a rear wing profile with a double curve, bending upward at the extremities. This solution raises dowforce at the rear without a significant increase in drag, hence leaving the car's top speed unaffected on the long uphill straights of Interlagos.
At Interlagos the challenge is to balance straightline performance with driveability on the twistier sections. The circuit's high altitude means lower air density, hence higher wing angles are needed to obtain adequate downforce levels. Alternatively, air pressure can be raised by better airflow...
