Formula 1: Ferrari F10 in the technical analysis

D he introduction was short. Ferrari racing director Stefano Domenicali summed up what was the key point of the statements in all the speeches later. 'This season is very important for us after last year's disappointment. It has to be a turning point for us.' The F10 should fix it. The ten stands for the year 2010.

Cross of F60 and Red Bull RB5

As Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso the red rag of the new one Car pulled, because you missed a technical sensation. The Ferrari F10 looks like a cross between last year's F60 and the Red Bull. The engineers are always guided by the fastest car in the field. And that was the Red Bull RB5 in 2009.

The Ferrari F10 rises up its nose. The underside is almost straight up to the front axle. On top of the duckbill-like nose, two humps grow out of the chassis. That is what the regulations require. If you hollow out the chassis tube below, you have to pack it up. As of this year, a 275 x 275 millimeter square has to fit into the cross-section of the fuselage. Curves may only appear outside of these limits.

F10 wheels in new positions

As in the previous year, the side pods have a large belly at the front and below a deep indentation. Towards the rear they run out flat, which is a little less abrupt due to the longer chassis. The vehicle that has grown in length is best recognized by the airbox. Since it also grows with the chassis, the side view of the car looks even more like a station wagon than last year.

Technical Director Aldo Costa weighs the necessary wheelbase extension: 'We are in an area that is hardly dynamic in terms of driving dynamics Differences make. Much more important are the new position of the front and rear wheels. That determines the weight distribution and the aero balance. ' Because the front tires have become 25 millimeters narrower, weight moves to the rear. If you move the wheels accordingly, you don't even have to take on ballast.

Front and rear wings are still coming

The presentation version in Maranello was just a basic model. The front and rear wings were from the previous year. 'We won't show them until Monday in Valencia,' smiles Costa. Its chief designerNicolas Tombazis set two priorities when designing the F10: 'The optimal integration of the double diffuser and the adaptation to the rule changes.'

Last year Ferrari slept through the double diffuser. 'We had to make improvements, but we didn't want to follow the consistent path of building a half-new car for the diffuser like BMW. We therefore decided to stop the project early in 2009 in order to concentrate fully on the 2010 Ferrari,' emphasizes Costa.

Double diffuser needs space in the rear

This time the double diffuser was part of the concept from the beginning. For this, parts of the rear suspension had to be relocated and the transmission slimmed down. Every centimeter of space to enlarge the expansion ducts creates downforce. Ferrari also had to react at the front. 'There is now more space between the front wheels and the chassis. We had to respond to this with the front wing,' explains Tombazis. How exactly will be seen next week.

The list of modifications also included the braking system and the chassis kinematics. Both in order to respond to a starting weight of the cars of at least 780 kilograms. 'At the start, the cars will be around 100 kilograms heavier than last year,' explains Tombazis.

The 15 days of testing before the season opener in Bahrain will show whether it has turned out to be a good Ferrari. 'In terms of data, we have made significant progress compared to 2009,' says Costa. With one caveat that everyone in Maranello has in their stomach: 'Unfortunately, we don't know how much the competition has improved.'