Ferrari and Mercedes admit to plank changes based on FIA’s TD

Ferrari and Mercedes have both modified their car’s floor element in Las Vegas to comply with the FIA’s latest technical directive, but Scuderia boss Fred Vasseur called the latest ruling “strange”.

The TD was published ahead of this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix to address a loophole in the regulations involving excessive plank wear.

The FIA’s move targets the use of ‘satellite skids’ designed to protect the plank. The metal skids are installed further away from specific measuring points on the plank to offer further protection.

However, while the skids were meant to match the vertical stiffness of the main skids located at the plank’s measuring points, no specific thickness was mandated.

Using thicker skids effectively shielded the plank from breaching the FIA’s 1mm wear tolerance, which in turn allowed teams to run their car closer to the ground.

Red Bull reportedly raised the issue with the governing body, which led to this week’s TD.

• Read also: FIA clamps down on plank loophole after Red Bull complaint

Ferrari and Mercedes were among the teams alleged to have been exploiting the ‘satellite skids’, although Vasseur made it a point of insisting that its car’s plank was legal.

“Yes, we had to make a change, but we had also the confirmation before this that the plank was legal, from the FIA,” said the Scuderia boss.

“I think it was the right attitude for us not to fight that because I want to stay focused on the championship and not on this kind of discussion. But the approach was strange.”

Ferrari’s Senior Performance Engineer Jock Clear said that “fundamentally, the TD effectively acts as a regulation.

“We all know they’re sort of bolt-ons to a regulation, so for us, we just read the TD and respond to it,” he said.

“From what I’ve understood, it’s not been a big drama to deal with whatever we’ve had to deal with.”

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff also revealed that the Brackley squad “had to change the way we run the floor as well”.

In addition to Ferrari, the TD has also impacted Alpine and Visa Cash App RB, and even Red Bull who brought the issue to the attention of the FIA.

Over at McLaren, Zak Brown said the championship leader had not made any changes to its car based on the governing body’s TD.

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