McLaren-Mercedes using retarded ignition (audio)

Principle and benefits explained here.

In case you’d wonder the whole retarded ignition trick is just an urban legend amongst the fans. No! Pedro de la Rosa (Sauber driver and former McLaren-Mercedes test driver) wrote on his Inside Track column after the British Grand Prix:

>>Red Bull’s chief technical officer, Adrian Newey, has pushed regulations to the limit from an aerodynamic point of view and that is what has made the difference in performance between its cars and the rest of the grid. Last year Ross Brawn hit the bull’s-eye when he finally got the double diffuser approved, and this year Newey has managed to tip the balance with what we call the “blown diffuser.”

The diffusers are the part at the lower rear with some very sophisticated curves that you can see on television. They made the difference last year and they’re doing it again this year. The exhaust gases, which are usually situated very low down, are routed toward the interior of the diffuser, giving the car more downforce. This downforce is mainly felt on medium and high speed stretches, and that’s why you sometimes find that Red Bull is not the fastest car on the straight and yet it is the best on a full lap. This isn’t a new technique, but no one had managed to make it work properly until now. The engine manufacturer (Renault in the case of Red Bull) has managed to solve the problem that arises with this system: when you take your foot off the throttle or when you brake there is less air flow over the diffuser and that destabilises the car. But playing with the engine mapping has led to achieving a constant flow of exhaust gases on the diffuser.

This special mapping cannot be maintained for a long time because it generates temperatures of 1,200º-plus in the exhaust gases. That’s why Red Bull cars are so effective and show that difference especially when qualifying, but then in the race itself they are not that superior.<< – Pedro de la Rosa

Tech rumor and audio proof suggest McLaren-Mercedes has developed a method to use diffuser feeding ignition trick on the race too!

Although it seems Mercedes GP hasn’t used it yet, supposedly because of their overheating issues with the exhaust-blown diffuser. Also it’s not clear who’s the main developer of it, McLaren or Mercedes. It’s supposed to be an engine mapping, so even the customer team could develop it, and let’s not forget McLaren has an Automotive wing with many engine experts and there’s a strong connection with Brixworth (United Kingdom), the headquarters of Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines.

HU: A McLaren-Mercedes gyújtási trükköt használt a fújt diffúzor egyenletesebb táplálására Spában.