A legit hoax spotted the front wing on the new Mercedes F1 car

One of the most fascinating of these elements was, as expected, hidden in the launch renders but can be seen in photos taken of the real car during the team's filming day at Silverstone.

The area in question is the top of the front wing (shown in the image below), which comes in two parts (red and blue arrows), both of which require each other to pass FIA legal checks.

It's a fascinating look at the wording of the regulations, but whether the design is robust enough to withstand further scrutiny from the FIA, or even complaints from other teams, remains to be seen. We also cannot completely rule out that it is a hoax aimed at distracting the opposition from other areas with its car.

Whatever the result, it gives us a clear indication that Mercedes is back to its best in coming up with interesting solutions to try to achieve more performance.

Details of the Mercedes W15 front wing

Photo by: Mercedes AMG

The front wing concept in question sees a very thin element used at the top of the wing in the inner, non-moving section (red arrow).

This thin strip of material exists simply for legal purposes, because the rules allow a maximum of four enclosed sections across the span of the wing.

Furthermore, the outside of the top cover has what we would consider a traditional chord. But instead of raising the tongue up to the side of the inner metal adjuster as would happen with a normal design, the tongue tapers to a high point above it (blue arrow), similar to how front wing elements were used in previous regulations Change the Y250 vortex eliminated from the plane's turn Home below.

In this case, the same can be applied, albeit on a smaller scale, with the triangular metal adjuster and cap creating a falling surface.

It is worth noting that Mercedes also changed the design of its main plane and its nose for the year 2024, as the nose became shorter than its predecessors, as the tip is now mounted on the second element of the front wing, instead of being directly in front of the main plane.

This has made it easier to change the shape of the main plane, with the team looking at a drooping model this season, rather than one raised to meet the nose.

This will obviously have an effect on the airflow path and can be used as a means of creating the flow structure which will be useful for creating his new flap as well.

It will be interesting to see how both the federation and rival teams react to the arrival of this design from Mercedes, as it may not deliver the level of performance expected from something that looks so radically different.

Furthermore, it can be said that they move away from the original intent of the technical regulations when they were first drafted.

Now the onus will be on the other teams to figure out if this is an idea they need to pursue themselves, complain about, or if they're happy to sit and wait to see its impact.