Wolff on the Halo: 'Heavy, alien and I wish I could saw it off!'

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is no fan of the Halo cockpit safety device, but admits it will help protect lives.

After a year of tests and trials, the Halo was declared as mandatory for 2018 by the FIA. But it's controversial presence sparked a lively debate among fans and F1 folk, with the majority accepting the component's introduction while criticizing its aesthetics.

"It's a dreadful piece," Wolff said to ESPN.

"We've had it in the staff briefing and we've shown it. It's a huge piece of metal, much too heavy, it feels completely alien and I'd like to saw it off if I could!

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"But then we need to look after driver safety and if there is a device that helps to protect lives, then we need to put it on the car."

Like many, Wolff is hoping the Halo will evolve. But in the interim, the devices' extra weight generated a few headaches among teams' designers.

"Maybe in the future we can find a solution that is a little bit more aesthetically pleasing than the halo," added the Austrian.

"In terms of aerodynamic development it didn't interfere too much and everyone has the same problem.

"With all the bolts and nuts it's probably 10 kilos that you have up at the highest point in the car.

So the centre of gravity moves up a large chunk and you need to compensate for that. So it's all wrong!"

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