Mercedes announces updates in Miami to alleviate ‘porpoising’

Mercedes may have new parts to alleviate the intense ‘porpoising’ they are experiencing in time for next week’s Miami Grand Prix, the track engineering director revealed on Wednesday. Andrew Shovlin.

Mercedes has struggled with so many problems since the start of the season, with seven -time world champion Lewis Hamilton ahead 58 points ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc after four races.

Hamilton finished 13th at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, held Sunday in Imola.

His teammate George Russell, who finished surprisingly fourth in Imola, said the porpoising problems caused “my back and chest pain due to the intensity of the rebound”.

Shovlin said in a report on the team’s YouTube channel that the problem has caused new engineering challenges that Mercedes needs to understand.

“Hopefully soon, maybe as soon as Miami, we can start getting some parts in the car that will give us an indication if we’re moving in the right direction,” he said.

“We don’t expect to resolve this overnight, but if we can get a hint that we’re heading in the right direction, that we’ve really gotten to the bottom of what’s going on, then we’ll be happy that we’re on the right path.” That’s right. “

The rebound problem pushed the team, which is now third in the standings behind Ferrari and Red Bull, to bring their vehicle higher than planned, affecting aerodynamic performance.

Shovlin said most of the work done in the factory is to understand the phenomenon and see if there is an aerodynamic solution to get rid of it.

“Realistically, we think it’s something we approach in steps rather than a big moment where everything is lost,” he added.

“But we’re seeing encouraging signs … we hope to bring parts to the car soon, maybe even in Miami, where we hope to see it progress.”