The Art of Setup Building, Part 5: A Matter of Balance

Wing Angles and Aero Balance

Friday is over, we are on our debrief. In preparation for Saturday practice, we need to talk about the most important aspect of our cars ... Aerodynamics. Due to the fact that there are many moving parts involved into making the aero work correctly, I will divide this into 3 parts before putting it all together during Free Practice 3.

F1 cars can generate downforce from 4 different parts. Downforce is always good, any extra downforce is extra grip we can enjoy. All of these parts will also generate drag, slowing us down during acceleration. The importance of each one depends on the track. Our job is to maximize the efficiency of the 4 of them, that is: Make them generate as much downforce as possible while minimizing the drag penalty. If we can find downforce without increasing drag, the result is more grip AND more speed.

So, what are these parts?

Please ignore the fact that this is the 2004 R5. The data is from our current R2.

From Left to Right, we have: Front Wing, Body, Diffuser and Rear Wing. Also on the image is the downforce generated by the car using the game's default setup for the track. All of these parts generate downforce, in fact that's the actual load the cars are generating right now, at 290KMH, though rounded to make the numbers nicer. I had refused to put numbers to these posts, other than brake temps, because they aren't usually relevant. Here they are starting to become relevant, as you need to know roughly how much DF each part generates, so you know where to focus. The sum of all downforce values equals to 15350N. That's quite a lot. It can be better of course.

However ...

Same image, but those are the drag figures for the parts. As you can see, all that downforce creates drag. All 6050N of them, the bulk coming from the rear wing. This can be minimized, for extra top speed.

Do notice that one of the parts is missing, I'll deal with that in the next post. 

Now, what would happen if we go to Monza and we do the same thing? Default setup, 290KMH down the front straight.

 

Same speed, different wing configurations, drastically different values. We lost over 2000N from every wing going from Hungary spec to Monza spec. We also lost 200N from the diffuser, but that isn't a concern. Why? That's what next chapter is for.

You know the saying, what you lose in the corners, you gain on the straights. We trimmed about 400N at the front wing and over 2500N at the rear. The body is the same, but we now have considerably less drag to put up with, which means we can accelerate faster and reach higher top speeds.

What's the lesson to learn?

• Altering the wings is the fastest method to adjust downforce and drag levels. The changes can be as drastic or subtle as needed, thanks to the fact that, in most mods, we have up to 50 different settings on each wing.
• The lower the downforce level required, the more important other parts of the car become in terms of downforce.
• Same with drag, the lower the wings, the more important it becomes to balance body generated drag to maximize performance.

Wing Angles

Now that we have a rough idea of the importance of the wings, we start learning about them. Some of the most iconic appendages in an F1 car, the wings are simply devices that generate grip. They do so by using the air to push down on their surfaces, creating an extra force pushing onto the chassis, then onto the tires. And, unlike weight distribution, this extra load works as intended. Increasing downforce at one end will increase the grip at that end.

The problem with wings, and most aerodynamic devices, is that by manipulating the air over them instead of letting it go freely, they cause drag. Drag is a force that will resists forward movement. Usually a negative thing until you have to brake.

The idea with tweaking the wings is to balance the amount of downforce you have, which will help you take corners as fast as possible, with the drag they generate, which will cut down on your top speed. On some circuits, the choice is obvious. Monaco and Hungary demand a max downforce setting. With a massive amount of corners and only one real straight, there's not much for a car that flies down a straight. Monza and the old Hockemheim need a low downforce setup. The straights are so long that any bit of top speed lost will be felt, both in qualifying and the race. It has to be said, however, that it is entirely possible to run too low downforce, even at those race tracks.

Then there are the in between tracks, like Spa Francorchamps where both high and low downforce levels work.

The forces known as downforce and drag grow quadratically. In other words, if you duplicate your speed, you will experience four times as much downforce and drag. This is why F1 cars must be driven fast. More speed means more downforce. More downforce leads to more cornering speed. And, up to a point of course, more cornering speed is more downforce. There's a certain speed at which this cycle breaks and car balance/driver technique determines the outcome, but at times you literally need to go faster, the extra DF can help.

Finally, most people say that downforce only affects high speed corners. This is ... technically correct, downforce affects high speed corners. However, downforce does have a tangible effect at low speeds. It is subtle, but it exists and can't be ignored.

Rear wing: The Top Speed Limiter

The rear wing, for reasons that will become obvious later, is the easier of the two wings to set up. The objective of the rear wing is to generate enough downforce to keep the car stable at high speeds. Along with the diffuser and body, they must stabilize the rear relative to the front. The problem with the rear wing is that it is considerably less efficient than the front wing. An inefficient wing can generate lots of downforce, yes, but it will output tons of drag for the benefit. An efficient wing will generate downforce, but that won't result in gigantic levels of drag. Unfortunately, the rear wing is of the inefficient type, specially at low settings.

The general method to set up the rear wing is to start with a relatively low setting for the track, equal for both wings. Then, add more and more downforce until lap times stop improving. After that, slight tweaking can be made if rear stability or top speed is needed. That said, the rear wing should NEVER be higher than necessary, the drag penalty can be severe.

However, if you followed the method described on "The Baseline", you will be close to an optimal setting for the track. You might need to adjust the rear 1 or 2 clicks on either side, but after that you should be able to leave the rear wing as is.

In terms of balance, you shouldn't need to raise the rear wing more than 1 or 2 clicks. You can drop it if you need extra rotation, but there's a better way to add stability than adding rear wing.

Summary

• The rear wing has two duties to accomplish. First, it establishes the car's top speed level. Second, it balances the rear relative to the front, though generally it shouldn't be used in this particular way.
• Higher rear wing levels will generate high levels of drag and rear downforce. This will result in increased rear grip in all directions, but the there will be a penalty in the form of drag. A reminder that higher rear grip means more stability, or understeer.
• Lower rear wing levels reduce the drag it generates along with the downforce. Top Speed will increase, but rear grip will suffer, which will cause rotation, AKA oversteer.
• While the rear wing is one of the quickest way to adjust aerodynamic balance of the car, it isn't the most efficient, nor the most effective.
• If in doubt, leave it at baseline/default setup levels. That should work all right. Only do this if the track actually has a setup. If it doesn't, create a baseline.
  

Front Wing: Adjusting the Balance

While the rear wing's main job is to adjust the top speed of the car, the front wing's job is to quickly adjust the front grip of the tires relative to the rear. A very efficient wing, it can generate high levels of downforce without any drastic drag penalties. It is, therefore, a very easy and quick way to adjust the balance of the car. You can set higher settings without incurring into a serious drag penalty. Don't get me wrong, you'll still lose top speed, but not nearly as much as with the rear wing.

Generally speaking, to adjust the front wing you first set the static rear wing angle, then adjust the front wing up or down until you are comfortable with the balance. If the car needs more stability then wing can be removed, if the car needs more rotation we can add wing.

Once again, if you followed "The Baseline" Method, you should have a decent setting, close to optimal. Experiment a bit in regards to a good setting.

Notably, this is the only other setting you can adjust during a race. During a pit stop, you can ask your pit crew to add or subtract front wing depending on what you need. Maybe you are down on top speed and need more or you desperately need some stability because a high speed corner nearly kills you everytime you pass through it? Remove some wing during the stop. Need extra rotation or going out on a heavy fuel load prone to causing understeer? Add some wing. This can be a powerful balancing tool when used right.

One more thing, which I'll go more in depth during the next chapter. The downforce a front wing can provide is not only dependent on it's setting. It also depends on its height over the ground. You might be giving away free downforce point without even knowing.

Summary

• The front wing also pulls double duty. First, it establishes the front to rear aerodynamic balance. Second, it provides a quick way to change this balance, even during races.
  
• Higher front wing levels will generate front downforce, and a slight (but noticeable) increase in drag. This will result in increased front grip in all directions. A reminder that higher front grip means more rotation, or oversteer.
• Lower front wing levels reduce the downforce the wing generates. Along with an increase in Top Speed, front end grip will drop. More stability is the result, also known as understeer.
• Front wing adjustments are the quickest, most effective way to adjust the car's balance. A few points can make a noticeable difference, and you can make these adjustments while serving a pitstop, which helps to adapt to the conditions when out on the track.
  
• If in doubt, leave it at baseline/default setup levels. That should work all right. Only do this if the track actually has a setup. If it doesn't, create a baseline. 

Aero Balance: Weight Distribution Strikes Back

Remember way back when we set the car's weight distribution? Well, that will partially define the way we set the wings, and most of the setup as well. Since a rearward based weight distribution will generate oversteer, we need to balance that with the wings to create a neutral handling car. So we would use a higher rear wing and a smaller front wing in this case. With a forward based weight distribution we would have an understeering car by default, so we would rely on a high front wing and a slightly smaller rear wing to stabilize the car.

That isn't strictly obligatory. You might prefer a full on understeering car, with a forward weight distribution and a big rear wing. You might prefer a full on oversteering car, with a rearward weight distribution and a smaller rear wing. However, it is very possible to have to screw up the aero balance. You might have too much front wing coupled with no enough rear wing, creating a car that will oversteer at all speeds and corner types. It can work the other way around as well, too little front wing and excessive rear wing, resulting in totally undrivable understeer. To prevent that, try to make sure the difference between the front and rear wing is not bigger than 5. While it can be higher, you must be very careful when using more extreme settings. This, of course, assumes that this is applied to the base game. Mods will behave differently.