Windsor: 'With Mercedes powertrain, Williams is on the way to genuine recovery'
F1 News
- GPblog.com
Last week saw the announcement of a closer partnership between teams Mercedes and Williams. The Grove-based team, now owned by Dorilton Capital, will compete for points from 2022 with the complete Mercedes powertrain. F1 expert and journalist Peter Windsor gives his analysis of what this could mean for the Williams of the future.
In an analysis on his Youtube-channel Peter Windsor predicts that, by bringing in the complete Mercedes-powertrain Williams can make a huge step forward. In addition to the engine, Williams will also start using the Mercedes gearbox and transmission systems from 2022 onwards, something that will mean a total change at the back of the car for the team.
“Williams will be using a full Mercedes powertrain from 2022 onwards: that means the same engine of course, but now they are switching to the Mercedes gearbox,” Windsor began. “It’s a beautiful gearbox; that Mercedes cassette system. It allows for great structural integrity of the overall case whilst inside you can basically just change ratios, do whatever you need.”
Windsor argues that the lightweight gearbox Williams has used to date is severely outdated, and explains part of the team's lagging performance.
Windsor: “Going into the hybrid era the advantages of that very small, very light Williams gearbox, it kind of faded away because of all the other architecture that is needed around the back end of the car. It’s been on a job list for Williams for the last four to five years, for sure. … There’s always been this unanswered question [at Williams[: If we had the Mercedes gearbox would we have a very different rear end on the car? Would we have better traction? Would we have more geometrical advantages that perhaps we would not get with our own gearbox?”
Only benefits
Windsor also predicts nothing but benefits for the Grove-based team when it comes to bringing in the Mercedes transmission system. “I think one of the reasons Williams has been suffering so much for the last three to four years, five years, is because they don’t have that Mercedes transmission system in the car. For 2022 the regulations are gonna change, and from then on Williams will be running with Mercedes transmission, and that is a really good move. Apart from anything else I think this shows that the new owners of Williams have got a really sharp idea of how to move into the future. It looks like now as if they are on the road to genuine recovery.”