Mercedes are working on reducing the weight of its W08 challenger, with reports suggesting it is currently over the minimum weight limit of 728kg, in an attempt to overhaul rival Ferrari following its defeat at the season opening Formula 1 race in Australia.
Although the minimum weight limit was increased for this season to allow for wider tyres and wider cars, teams have been forced to strengthen parts to withstand the greater forces from the increased cornering forces. In addition to that, the power units now need to be more durable, and therefore strengthened, as drivers have just four each for the entire season.
Teams will often design their cars to run under the minimum weight allowance, which gives them the ability to place ballast in certain areas to improve balance, which helps to improve driveability and tyre life – an issue Lewis Hamilton complained about during the race which ultimately led to his early stop, which Sebastian Vettel capitalised on to win the race.
Germany's Auto Motor und Sport suggests the W08 is as much as 5kg overweight, with team boss Toto Wolff confirming it is an area highlighted for improvement over the course of the opening races.
"I don't want to go too much into detail but it's an area we can definitely improve," explained Wolff.
"With new regulations and the size of the cars, you need to balance out all the time between performance parts and the weight, and that's an ongoing exercise which we are doing."
