1:18 Mercedes F1 W10 EQ Power+ – Vallteri Bottas 2019 German GP

Description

Mercedes F1 W10 EQ Power+, Valtteri Bottas – (110191177):

The Mercedes AMG F1 W10 EQ Power+ was a Formula One racing car, which was designed and then developed under the direction of James Allison, the Technical Director. It was the successor to the Mercedes AMG F1 W09 EQ Power+, and was assembled to compete in the 2019 Championship.

As Mercedes’s first attempt at the newly introduced regulations, the team ran a pair of distinct aerodynamic packages during pre-season testing: one each with ‘inboard’ and ‘outboard’ front wing philosophy. The latter also gained a significantly revised nose, bargeboards, floor and engine cover. It was subsequently chosen as the package the Mercedes team would be racing for the 2019 season.

As it was the successor of the W09, Mercedes were clearly demonstrating their increased exposure of their own electric car models. AMG was included to reflect the ever-strengthening relationship between Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes-Benz. The chassis was also a continuation of Mercedes numeric system, representing the tenth Formula One car Mercedes had constructed since 2010.

In the hands of long-term Mercedes drivers Hamilton and Bottas, the W10 was a phenomenal machine. It took an incredible fifteen wins out of a possible sixteen, eleven for Lewis Hamilton and four for Valtteri Bottas, ten pole positions and nine fastest laps. The W10 also propelled Mercedes to a record-equalling sixth consecutive Constructors’ Championship, which was an achievement only previously attained by Scuderia Ferrari between 1999 and 2004. It was also Lewis Hamilton’s sixth Drivers’ Championship.

The car performed exceedingly well in the initial five rounds of the season, where it was renowned for its newly-acquired slow and medium-speed corner strength, in contrast to its predecessor. It was often compared to Ferrari, the W10 had immense straight-line speed, low-drag and quick acceleration. The W10 was also frequently credited for its brilliant downforce.

However, a major weakness was exposed in Austria, when team members remarked on the inability of the W10’s deliberately tight cooling to operate optimally under high-altitude and hot temperatures. In Germany, the team revised the car’s rear-facing cooling outlets, sidepod vanes, bargeboards and a new rear wing endplate design. Overall, it was a major upgrade, along with necessary low-drag modifications in both Belgium and Italy.