Audi arrived on the opening test day in Bahrain with a striking new concept. The R26, which still showed a few teething problems during the closed shakedown in Barcelona, has been fitted with a new sidepod layout. Where Audi previously ran a conventional design, the air intakes are now positioned vertically. Gabriel Bortoleto took Wednesday’s run in the revised concept.
The upgrades were immediately noticeable, not least because the other teams largely stuck with the designs we saw in Barcelona. The new sidepods feature a relatively narrow air inlet that then fans out toward the engine and the rear of the chassis.
Audi is still intensely testing the aerodynamic applications of the revised R26. Bortoleto completed several laps on Wednesday with an aero rake mounted at the rear of the car — a measurement rig that maps airflow over the chassis.
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