For the 2019 season, Mercedes has created an all-new power unit to help it boost its competitiveness in Formula 1.
The German outfit launched its new car on Wednesday at Silverstone and confirmed the new engine is a complete overhaul of the old concept.
Andy Cowell, head of Mercedes F1 engine operations, said: “We’ve made changes to the cooling architecture of the power unit, which hopefully provides aerodynamic benefit on the car and also provides efficiency benefit on the power unit – so, hopefully, a win on both the chassis and on the power unit.
“Right at the heart of the power unit is the conversion of fuel into heat release in the combustion chamber and useful work out of the crankshaft.
“We have made steps on the combustion efficiency and on the ERS system. The marriage between the turbocharger assembly with the MGU-H, the inverter, the cells, and the MGU-K: that whole system is now capable of operating more efficiently and helping with energy deployment through a race.”
Although F1 has relaxed the fuel limit rules from 2019, Mercedes continues to focus on fuel efficiency. Thanks to the efficient design, the Silver Arrows many not need to fill the fuel up to its 110kg limit to get an advantage from a lower overall weight.
“If you have got an efficient engine with efficient aerodynamics and you are prepared to do a little bit of lift and coasting, then you have the opportunity to start the race at less than 110kg,” he said.
“For every 5kg of weight you save, it’s about two-tenths of a second a lap quicker, so there is a natural reward to starting the race a little bit lighter.
“There is still a competitive edge from making an efficient car – both power unit and aerodynamics – and racing smartly to make sure that you have good pace at the start of the race as well as through the race.”
