Aston Martin is evolving its sidepods at Suzuka
The English team made some modifications at Suzuka in order to improve the degradation of its tires.
Since the beginning of the 2024 season, Aston Martin has had a promising single-seater, even if there is clearly not as much performance in qualifying as in the race. The issue? Tire management.
This is an area in which the team is working continuously to develop the car as best as possible. Aston Martin hopes, however, to compete with teams like Red Bull, Ferrari, or McLaren.
For the Japanese Grand Prix, Aston Martin is making modifications to its sidepods, inspired by Red Bull’s solutions. Two important developments for the AMR24. First, there is a modification to the sidepods, greatly inspired by what can be found at Red Bull, as well as changes to the floor.
When asked whether the changes were aimed at pure performance or if they were aimed at improving tire degradation issues, Alonso replied, “They are both related. More downforce will also solve the tire degradation issues we have.”
« So far, we have been very aggressive on the car development. There was a new part in Jeddah on the front suspension, a modification on the front wing in Australia, and now another package.
Last year, we learned a lesson, starting very well and then not changing the car enough was painful in the second part of the season. This year, I hope we will be a little stronger in the second half compared to the first. But we will see, he continues.
Changes inspired by Red Bull
Images from the Suzuka pit lane show that the new pontoon has a groove carved in the upper corner at the front of the bodywork. This is similar to a feature seen on the Red Bull RB18 and RB19.
The contour helps to change the passage of airflow in this region, providing better engagement between the side of the pontoon and the upper surface, with the length, transition, and shape of the ravine also being modified as part of this update.
Several modifications have also been made to the floor edge wing, while the rear floor has also been modified. The team followed a similar path to its rivals, with the rear floor cutout removed and a smooth edge transition used to form the rear deck section.
These modifications in Japan follow the addition of a new front wing element, during the Australian Grand Prix. The twist of the two upper flaps has been modified lengthwise. The team also removed one of the metal supports located in the center of the lower of these two flaps.
