Pictures: Hamilton and Rosberg reveal new Mercedes W05

2014 F1 cars

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The Mercedes W05 has broken cover – here are the first pictures of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg’s car for 2014.

Executive director of business Toto Wolff said the car and its V6 hybrid turbo engine was “the result of several years of intense effort” ahead of the introduction of F1’s new power unit regulations.

“But we know that the adventure has only just begun. We have a busy winter testing period ahead of us and a long season where both performance and reliability will be critically important.”

Paddy Lowe, the team’s executive director of technical, said the new engines represent “the biggest change in packaging in Formula One for many years”.

“There is a lot more equipment to cool: more hybrid systems plus the intercooler for the charge air from the turbocharger. That has both a packaging and an aerodynamic dimension.”

“With the introduction of a turbocharger, managing the heat around the exhaust system is important for both car integrity and also for performance,” he added. “If losses can be minimised in the primaries between the engine block and turbo, that is energy that can be recovered and used for car performance.”

Weight is also a significant concern, as Lowe explained. “Although the minimum weight has been raised to 691kg, it is far more difficult to achieve than last year’s target because of the extra equipment in the power unit and its associated systems, plus the cooling demand and the new, heavier side impact structures prescribed by the FIA.”

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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78 comments on “Pictures: Hamilton and Rosberg reveal new Mercedes W05”

  1. It looks stunning from the side!

    1. By far, the merc looks to be the best looking car as of now.

      1. Merc, Red Bull and Ferrari looks the best. But if Caterham would be quickest the rest would quickly follow. looks isn’t that important.

        1. Concur 100%. best looking 2014 car so far. hope its also the fastest.

  2. Finally! A 2014 F1 car that looks awesome!

    1. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      28th January 2014, 14:55

      this will be THE wallpaper car, finally.

  3. So far the prettiest. ..hands down :)

  4. Well, looks ok. Better than F14 at least.

    1. Looks AWESOME on track!

      1. Especially when flying across the gravel? Sorry, had to :p

    2. yeah, it seems Mercedes got the vacuum cleaner design much better that Ferrari

  5. At last a 2014 car that looks good! The packaging of the sidepods and the rear of the car look amazing in a few head on shots doing the rounds. Can’t wait for more images of the car.

  6. Thank god someone decided to make a good looking nose. Stunning car. Lets hope that it’s fast too.

  7. Well, at least Mercedes designers are no perverts, good to see that conservative people with traditional values still get appreciated in F1.

    1. I seriously doubt that was even considered by the design team, much less made a priority.

      Conservatism is only good in economics. Otherwise, it’s dangerous.

      1. +1 Prison Monkey +1!!!

    2. LOL . I just want it to be fast , Conservative or not .

  8. There is so much hype on this car. The teaser images released over the weekend just added to the hype that has been building over the last few years in anticipation of the 2014 revolutionary project that Mercedes have been working towards.

    Will this be the car to beat the Bulls? That’s the exciting question going into 2014. All I know is that it will be a huge underwhelming disappointment if it doesn’t at least run them close.

    Whatever it and it’s drivers achieve over the season, they will be doing it in style, the first real looker of 2014!

    1. I think Merc will be in deep water if they don’t satisfy the all the engine advantage hype !

      1. Well, I hear you, but at the same time I think the real advantage for Merc is their engine/chassis marriage…ie. not just engine. I’m sure the engine will be great but I’m sure Ferrari’s and Renault’s will be too, but Merc and Ferrari should have an overall advantage out of the box in terms of overall package. As to being in deep water if the Merc engine does not satisfy the hype? Not so sure about that. It’s a work in progress that carries no guarantees, and any time I hear someone imply ‘heads will roll’ if such and such doesn’t happen, that is also usually hype. I’m sure all the teams will have issues, and as professionals they will take them up as challenges.

        1. Well, I don’t believe in the “heads must roll” policy but looks like Merc do considering they removed Brawn after a great year . Don’t count out RBR and Renault for engine-chassis marriage yet. Renault are an integral part of RBR and I bet they would have modelled their chassis for specifically suiting RBR . But yeah , if there is a total surprise , imagine if Caterham goes quickest . LOL , we would be facepalming ourselves .Unlikely scenario though .

  9. Similar to Ferrari

    1. In that it’s an F1 car…

      that’s about it.

      1. @beejis60
        And the nose.

        As a Ferrari fan, if the F14 was the only car with that nose design I would have been seriously worried, but seeing as Mercedes have opted for the same rout makes me quietly confident.

        1. @kingshark Not exactly. The downgrade is more stepped with ferrari and merc is a bit more gradual. The opening between the ‘tip’ and the wing plane also APPEARS larger on the merc than the ferrari…

  10. So its 2 on 2 for works team (ala Ferrari and Mercedes) deciding against the anteater nose and having a decent nose. Seems like works engine teams have different aero philosophy than there customer engine teams. Will Red Bull also go with this type of nose ? Hoping for it…

    1. I don’t see how the Ferrari has a “decent” nose and, say, the Sauber doesn’t. The Ferrari looks just plain hideous to me, the ugliest of them all rivaled by STR only.

      1. Decent in comparison with others. For me Mercedes is the best looking car out there with Ferrari, Red Bull, Sauber, Mclaren following up in that order. I would any day love these letter box type nose instead of those anteater nose :)

  11. Brilliant car finally a good looker, hope it is fast though and doesn’t chew up the tyres

  12. Wow.

    Hope it’s fast and reliable. Lewis and Nico deserve a shot.

    I found it a bit “naked”, couldn’t they find more sponsors? Where are the numbers? I was hoping to see large visible number on the cars but…

  13. Nice car, nice shoes lewis..

    1. and Lou Bega hair style

  14. Those ears just ruin it for me.

  15. Beautiful! This is the first reveal that looks proper. Well done, Merc!

  16. That’s the closest thing to a pretty car we’re getting this year. Kudoz Mercedes.

  17. Archimedas (@)
    28th January 2014, 8:28

    How come is the nose so short (only up to halfway through the FW) ?

  18. The Blade Runner (@)
    28th January 2014, 8:45

    To be fair, aesthetically the best car yet.

    It will be interesting to see who is right when it comes to nose design. We could see all of the cars sporting a nose like Mercedes’ within a few weeks. Alternatively, they could all end up with a “strap on” like the Force India.

    1. “Strap On” LOL ……..

  19. It’s the least ridiculous one so far. Still a bit awkward with the wide nose, like the Brawn was, and it looks like they found some left-over bunny ears in an old Honda box.

    I hope these two are up the front so you can’t see the noses of all the other cars.

    1. I was thinking the same thing about the bunny ears. I really hope we don’t see bunny ears, antlers and shark fins creeping back into aero design over the next few years

  20. Thank goodness. It’s beautiful in comparison to all others so far!

  21. The most complicated front wing ever…

  22. Now this, Ferrari, is how you pull off the vacuum cleaner look nose.

  23. Great car . Looker . Now , just please end up being the fastest . fingers-crossed.

  24. How much are we betting that this car is one of the most expensive ever designed? Mercedes better perform…

  25. For me definitely the prettiest car, but time will tell whether such tight bodywork in the coke bottle area is a good idea this year – cooling must be a concern for all the teams, especially with all the additional electrickery for the ERS systems.

  26. Great looks.

    But how come the nose ends before the front wing ends? Have they done that by extending the front wing forward? But that is illegal, right?

  27. Looks like the car numbers are as prominent as ever this year… Is there even a number on that car?

    1. Some launches don’t feature the driver’s number on the car.

  28. It is a lovely car aesthetics-wise, and the livery looks brilliant with the black and the Petronas silvery turquoise.

    This is probably the best-looking one so far, ahead of McLaren in 2nd. Now it’s just got to go fast!

  29. I dare say that car was what the rule makers envisioned when they came up with the 2014 regs. It’s nice to see a car made in the spirit of the rules. It’s pretty good-looking, too.

  30. Michael Brown (@)
    28th January 2014, 11:42

    Looks fantastic. But will it be fast?

  31. Maybe someone can help me clarify something here; what does the rulebook say about the nose length? Because my impression is that, other than Merc and Ferrari, people opted for “long” pointy tips, obviously to reach a certain length within regulation, otherwise they would ditch the tip altogether no!

    So what have Merc done? Is the front wing altogether longer? I can’t make that for sure. I am confused as to how the different teams reach the mandatory car length really. If anyone can clarify, I’d appreciate it :)

  32. Must agree with most here…my first reaction was relief…finally a decent looking solution….wonderful. Looks great. Don’t mind the RBR either, nor the Ferrari, but I’m liking the Merc the best. Yay!

  33. Chris Brighton
    28th January 2014, 11:59

    It’s not looking so good now… Hamilton’s front wing failed… I think that’s it from him today

    1. Yeah looks like it. A real shame since he was slowly cutting laptimes, and was one of the few cars out on track.

  34. Look quite good. The nose is still awkward, the slope is a little odd and the horns doesn’t do it much good either. Still much better then anything else. It also looks properly well packaged.

  35. Am I the first to notice Rosberg’s new helmet?
    Guess he lost the draw when one of them had to change colors, because two yellow helmets in one team just didn’t work :P

  36. I find all the 2014 cars to be an improvement over the raised/stepped noses, but yeah, esthetically this is the nicest. I imagine those camera mountings will be challenged and/or imitated.

  37. Don’t like the black on the fin at all. Nor Rosberg’s helmet. And what’s happened to the Petronas logo?
    But finally, a decent nose! And I hope they win all races, to show everyone that the stupid noses weren’t necessary to win.

  38. I dub thee: The Mercedes Eyebrows

  39. If it races as good as it looks, we’ll be in for an interesting season.

  40. Wow that car is beautiful. To see a formula 1 car like that is just breath taking. You see all different kinds of road cars and sports cars and racing cars. Then you see a brand new, £200 MILLION works Mercedes Formula one car and it just leaves you in awe.

  41. OK, I love the car. It looks brilliant and I hope it runs well.

    My questions:
    How are they getting away with such tiny air intakes for the larger cooling needs this year?!?

    Will that nose get enough airflow “under the car” for performance.

    Will they get away with the camera mounts being used as aero devices?

  42. well it certainly looks fast, interesting that ferrari and mercedes have had a similar philiosophy on the nose

  43. good luck distinguishing it and the mclaren on track

  44. When I look at the Mercedes W05 it reminds me of the McLaren 2012 ( MP4-27 ). In 2012 almost every other car moved to the stepped nose concept while McLaren had a cleaner version of the nose which was gradually sloped. I see the same has happened to the Mercedes W05 this year. Every other car has the anteater or its derivatives on it while the Mercedes has managed to get a clean nose.

    Is this the Paddy Lowe Trade mark ????

  45. What I find remarkable is that in recent designs Mercedes so lacks the color accents typical of F1, the most bland competitive car on the track – again.

  46. Utterly stunning car.
    Best looking car for me since the MP4-23.
    When I first heard about the 2014 regs this is how I, and probably most imagined the cars would look like.
    The W05 and the F14 T are the only cars that have been launched that I think look good.
    Nice to see Lewis and Nico in the best looking though, that’s for sure!
    Let’s hope she performs as well as she looks!

  47. I’m hoping this is the fastest car….so for next year the 10 other teams have a similar design.

  48. I like it a lot, but the livery lets it down a little. The way the black on the engine cowling curls up while the lines of the car go down just looks wrong.

    Otherwise, this is exactly what I think a Formula 1 car should look like. Now we just need to find a way to really clamp down on aero. Get rid of six-element front wings, and limit the teams to one or two. Make the cars so difficult to drive that driver sill is the deciding factor in success.

  49. Nice.

  50. While I agree this is the best looking nose, (hard to admit as a Ferrari fan).
    That said, can someone clarify the regulation as both Mercedes and Ferrari seem to have noses that are behind the leading edge of the front wing, while the “ant-eater” noses all extend beyond the front wing.
    Does this mean the cross sectional requirement of the nose becomes that of the wing?

  51. this is the only car which doesnot have a **** and looks decent

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