Designed by Gilles Simon under the supervision of Paolo Martinelli, this engine was conceived as a reliable starting point not just for the 2006 season, but also for 2007. It may have lost two cylinders, but the new V8 was no lighter than its V10 predecessor, as Ferrari focussed on strengthening the...
Ferrari knew reliability would be paramount in Brazil if they were to have any chance of beating Renault to the title. To avoid any risk of overheating, they adopted an asymmetrical cooling configuration, with five separate vents on the top of the left sidepod, plus a triangular one under the...
According to Ferrari, the failure that stopped Michael Schumacher running in the third qualifying session in Brazil was related to the fuel pump. The failure prevented fuel being correctly transferred from the tank to the engine's injection system. A Formula One car's fuel system can be summarised...
One of the 248 F1's strong points is its ability to exploit the full potential of its Bridgestone tyres, while maintaining very low wear rates and avoiding disruptive phenomena such as graining and blistering. The car's suspension geometry features a very small camber angle, made possible by what's...
One of the most heavily developed areas of the car, the barge boards have shown numerous changes over the season. The last one in Japan is small but significant and relates to a visible increase in the height (blue arrow) of the 'upper step' of the main shield in front of the boards. Varying the...
As in China, in Japan Ferrari's engine and suspension will be among their car's main strengths, both playing a vital role in the overall balance of the chassis - something arguably even more important at Suzuka than in Shanghai. The engine obviously needs to be powerful, but also flexible and...
Tyres will again play a key role in Japan, but in a different way to in Shanghai. The Suzuka tarmac is far more abrasive, hence tyre wear is a far bigger issue. That means suspension set-up - in combination with aerodynamics - is crucial not only in determining the amount of grip available from the...
New for China, as part of Ferrari's never-ending aero development, but already seen on other cars such as the Renault and the Honda, is this additional device - part of the airflow management in the crucial area in front of the sidepods. These elements' function is to split the airflow in two parts,...
Another Ferrari strength in China will be the 248 F1's suspension package, which along with improved engine driveability, will greatly assist tyre-wear management - in combination with Bridgestone tyres featuring a low degree of hysteresis. This means the rubber is better able to adapt to variations...
Ferrari's recent strong form has been largely attributed to aero and tyre improvements, but development of the 056 engine - the most reliable V8 in the second part of the season - has also been key and will again play a vital role in China. Shanghai is a stop-go circuit, with plenty of acceleration...
At last week's pre-Italy test at Monza last week, Ferrari introduced a number of aero changes specific to this unique low-downforce track, the fastest on the Formula One calendar. To guarantee a sharp front-end turn-in into corners, two clearly visible horizontal winglets have been added to the side...
This has been dramatically revised for Monza, to keep the balance with the similarly modified front wing. It features a high position for the main profile and a very narrow flap, which has a very low angle to reduce drag as much as possible on the long straights.
This evolution was tested before the French Grand Prix, but only used for the first time in Turkey. The barge-board profile has changed dramatically, especially the top of the shields. These now feature a clear saw-tooth profile towards the rear, while the front edge has lost its rounded top corner...
Ferrari first introduced these at Imola, to help extract the heat generated by the rear brakes. The lip of the shield separates the hot airflow from the rim walls, helping to stabilise tyre pressure by limiting the effect of the brake heat. In Turkey the concept is pushed further, with a wider lip...
A comparison between front wings used in the US and Hungary illustrate the differing requirements of the two tracks. Indianapolis features one very fast section - the final banked turn and long main straight - and one very slow section - the winding infield. The US wing thus has a smaller flap with...
A small but effective aero change introduced in Germany - ahead of a new rear diffuser expected at the next round in Hungary - is this extra flip-up under the main one in front of the rear wheel. This adds a significant amount of downforce close to the rear axle, providing valuable extra rear grip,...
In the Jerez test prior to France Ferrari tried out numerous developments for forthcoming races, but only a few were adopted for Magny-Cours. One was a new engine cover, the second major revision of this part since the start of the season. In line with other teams, its top features a vertical fin...
For Indy, the diffuser's side walls have been dramatically revised. Gone is the knife-edge profile at the base of the central section and in its place is a small, upward-curving lip. The diffuser is no longer parallel with the ground over its entire length. Instead it bends upwards, reducing the...
Part of an extensive aero development for Canada is this front wing, featuring a completely different flap, which guarantees an adequate downforce level (very useful in the twisty section of the track characterised by a sequence of almost continuous corners), while also reducing drag - very useful...
A slight revision for Silverstone, based on a medium downforce configuration. The new flap keeps essentially the same profile, but with a reduced cross sectional area at its extremities. This is to reduce drag on the straights, while maintaining adequate downforce to be of use in the track's...
A slight geometry change in Spain, though the pick-up points remain the same, on the carbon fibre shell of the gearbox casing. The previous rotational dampers have been replaced with hydro-pneumatic items, which allow for faster set-up changes, with a wider and more precise range of settings. They...
Introduced for Europe and retained in Barcelona, this change can now be considered definitive. The saw-tooth profile at the bottom of the barge board now features two 'teeth' bending upwards to dramatically reduce turbulence, and therefore improve both cooling and airflow management close to the...
A closer look at the Ferrari in Spain reveals just how deep the car's aero development has been over the opening races of 2006. The engine cover and the whole rear area look visibly lower and narrower than on rival machines. The small black covers, resembling mini shark fins (blue arrow) on top of...
Along with the winglet/chimneys seen in Saturday's European update, these triangular air vents form another definitive part of Ferrari's latest aero package. Well hidden by the winglet/chimney combination, they dramatically improve hot-air extraction from the sidepods, allowing the engineers to...
At the Nurburgring, the winglets and the cooling chimneys on the Ferrari's sidepods have been combined into one single element, emphasising further their aerodynamic function. This 'fused' element works to split the airflow over the sidepod, sending the outer part outwards and the central part...
Since its introduction in Bahrain, the protruding outer lip (in red) on Ferrari's wheel rims has been the subject of much discussion, with rivals questioning whether it constitutes an illegal moveable aerodynamic device - the movement being the wheel's rotation. Ferrari say the lip is a functional...
Part of the revised aero package for Imola. Though the boards themselves look little different, the changes are in the cross sections of the winglets attached to them. The lower winglet has been slightly enlarged to better manage airflow passing under the car. The upper one is also slightly bigger,...
Part of extensive changes to the Ferrari at Imola, designed to improve performance and overall balance. New endplates sport a flat upper profile instead of the previous sculpted one, with a horizontal triangular fin at the rear (1). This improves airflow management close to the wheels. The...
Ferrari's front wing was the subject of much discussion at the last round in Malaysia. Onboard TV shots showed the upper profile bending downwards at speed, opening up a gap between the wing element and the nose cone, prompting many to question whether this constituted a moveable - and hence illegal...
This interesting feature used in Malaysia is an evolution of similar devices seen on cars last year, but Ferrari have taken it to its extreme. The cooling drum not only covers the brake disc and calliper, preventing heat being transferred to the wheel rim, it also creates a seal of sorts with the...
For Bahrain, the 248 F1's front wing features a deep-spoon shape in the centre of the main profile, replacing the additional box wing seen below last year's nose. To make what is effectively a double-decker wing, this is coupled with two additional profiles connected to the endplates either side on...
Part of Ferrari's revised aero package for Bahrain. The endplates previously sported large slits in their upper section. Now they have small ones in their lower section instead, complete with small, upward-curving fins. The function is similar to before - to reduce turbulence generated by the rear...
The 2006 Ferrari sports a particularly complex diffuser design. The central section is divided in two: the upper part (1) deals with the air passing immediately over the diffuser and that coming from inside the sidepods, the combination of the two increasing airflow speed. The lower part (2)...
While not obvious at first glance, the rear of the 248 F1 is very different to its predecessor. The sidepods are narrower at the rear (1), providing a very clean 'coke bottle' shape leading into the diffuser. Bodywork around the exhaust chimneys (2) is lower, emphasising the large, revised flip-ups...
The area around the front of the sidepods on the 248 F1 is one of the most deeply developed on the new car. The sidepods themselves (1) have shrunk yet again, their air intakes both smaller and higher (better for avoiding unwanted debris entering, as well as aerodynamically). The barge boards in...
Unsurprisingly, given the move to V8s for 2006, the 248 F1's engine cover is not as big as its predecessor's, though you need to look hard to notice. The engine air intake (1) is smaller - less air is needed to feed two fewer cylinders - while at launch the air-venting chimneys (2) were purely...
At launch, the 248 F1 sported the same front wing seen at the end of last season, but this will chang ahead of the 2006 campaign. The chassis is clearly higher from the ground (1) than the previous F2005. The position of the suspension's upper wishbone highlights this, connected much lower than...
