FIA to 'investigate flexible wings' on F1 teams

F1 Speculation

FIA to 'investigate flexible wings' on F1 teams

F1 teams to face new measures against flexible wings

Luis Raya

Thursday 31 August 2023 06:57

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The Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) will reportedly conduct an investigation into flexible wings and will tighten measures in response to teams' irregularities.

The FIA does not allow the use of flexible wings, and earlier in the season advised some teams, including Aston Martin, to make modifications to their front wings during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix to comply with the regulations.

Now, in an effort to curb non-compliance, the organisation has reportedly issued a technical directive to clarify the rules and make them stricter, so teams can no longer use flexible wings without facing penalties. In a technical directive accessed by Motorsport.com, referred to as TD018, the FIA outlines the unacceptable designs in relation to flexible bodywork.

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The FIA suspects that some teams have been exploiting "specifically designed and localised areas of compliance" to gain a significant boost in aerodynamic performance, thereby violating Article 3.2.2 of the Formula 1 Technical Regulations.

This article states that all components directly or indirectly influencing a car's aerodynamic performance must be "rigidly secured and immobile with respect to their frame of reference in Article 3.3."

FIA's suspicions

Some teams have been in the FIA's sights since the first races of the season

The FIA is to change the procedure around the wings, as it believes that some teams are exploiting sophisticated systems that rotate and flex the front and rear wing elements in ways that cannot be detected by the usual load tests.

Therefore, these components must form a uniform, solid, firm, continuous and impermeable surface in all circumstances, and designs that make use of local grades or conformities are not permitted.

Starting from the Singapore Grand Prix, teams will be required to submit assembly drawings and cross-sectional views to the FIA as evidence of compliance with the regulations.