Porpoising problems vex teams at first test
Formula 1 drivers and teams had a surprising side-effect to deal with during the first tests of the 2022 cars at Barcelona last week when a porpoising problem arose.
The return of ground-effect to F1 under the new regulations requires cars to run close to the ground to maximise the downforce generated by the underfloor tunnels. But the consequence of this is that when the cars hit a certain speed, the airflow going under the car suddenly stalls, causing the rear of the car to rise due to the loss of load.
The issue was severe enough that it caused a number of teams to damage floors through the Barcelona test, as well as on their filming days, and could become a major story for the early part of the season. “Most of us underestimated the problem, in terms of on track and bouncing more than expected,” said Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto. “When you’re setting these cars up with the ground-effect floor, the situation it’s different. It’s a learning process.”
A slow-motion video of Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari bouncing along the main straight of the Circuit de Catalunya showed how severe it was for the drivers. “It feels like turbulence on an aeroplane,” he said. “I can’t say it feels nice. It makes you a little bit ill.”
Teams set to work through the test to try to resolve the issue. Mclaren managed to get through the test without encountering too much porpoising, while Mercedes made a temporary floor fix to stop it happening ahead of a bigger upgrade for the second test in Bahrain next week.
Alfa Romeo was one of the worst-hit teams as the phenomenon also caused a number of other reliability issues to emerge. “None of our tools, wind-tunnels and simulation tools were giving a hint of it,” said technical director Jan Monchaux. “We were a bit taken aback.”
Mercedes driver and GPDA director George Russell felt that porpoising could become a safety issue if it was not quickly resolved. He suggested that a return to active suspension could remove the problem completely. “It could be solved with a click of your fingers, and the cars would naturally be a hell of a lot faster if we had that,” he said. “That could be one for the future. But let’s see in Bahrain. I’m sure the teams will come up with some smart ideas around this issue.”
Active suspension was banned ahead of the 1994 season to clamp down on driver aids, and Mclaren technical director James Key doubted it was a project that could be pursued in the budget-cap era. “I’d love to see the return of active suspension personally,” he said. “But, with the cost cap, it’s not the best project to be doing.”