Renault Sport Formula 1 Team’s Nick Chester has revealed that the Halo is proving a difficult addition to the car, claiming it has a big impact on the work the team need to do for next year.
The relatively late-in-the-season decision to run the Halo from next year was met with widespread criticism from the fans, and it seems that even the teams are struggling with the safety device.
Speaking to Autosport Magazine, Chester said “The loadings from [the Halo] are quite big. It affects the structure in the chassis. It has quite a big impact.
“Outside the chassis it won’t have much of an effect on car performance. It’s just the actual design of the chassis to take the loads which is difficult.”
One additional reason that teams are struggling to accommodate the new fixture is the relatively free rules on additions to the Halo device. Whilst the Halo is a standard part, the FIA’s Charlie Whiting has allowed teams to use “non-structural fairings” around the device that can be “no more than 20mm from the main structure”.
These are intended to help teams both improve the look of the Halo and with aerodynamic loading – something Chester is conscious of.
“We can’t change too much, otherwise we’ll be changing the loading so it’s fairly fixed.
“There’s a bit of wake into the airbox which is slightly painful, but the regulations allow a fairing which will help.”
