Mercedes has confirmed that their gearbox issues are now resolved after a double signed this Sunday at F1 Styrian Grand Prix
The German manufacturer had asked their two drivers to move away from the vibrators that caused huge vibrations and that damaged some of the electrical parts in the W11 gearbox during Austrian GP last weekend.
Mercedes introduced new components to their single-seater’s gearbox this weekend, but was not sure if it had solved the issue.
“A perfect result: congratulations to the drivers and the team! And especially to all those who were involved in solving the electrical problems we had last week,” Mercedes operations director, Andrew Shovlin said.
“We only had three days to figure out the problem and produce parts in time for the free practice, but we seem to be in the right place now, which is a huge relief.
“It certainly helped us to have a much smoother race today. The car was pretty solid and we were able to do what we needed in the first stint.
“It’s fantastic to leave here with two wins and leading the two championships; this has not been our favorite route for the past few years, but we are now looking forward to starting Budapest again in five days.” Shovlin added.
Like Shovlin, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff was delighted that their gearbox issues did not give a big impact on last weekend’s victory.
Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas storm to Styrian GP on Sunday.
“We had no worries today. I often asked Simon Cole [chief track engineer] if our systems worked, because last weekend was obviously a little scary.” Wolff said.
“The gearbox was good, and I’m really happy with what the team did, what the guys did to fix it. Regarding the suspension, we saw a little pressure put on the suspension but no overload. So it was a big step forward.
“When you have such a problem, you are never 100% sure you solved it, because we were not 100% sure of the cause. We think the sausage-like borders were part of it, but obviously we need to improve the design in these areas as they seem to be a bit vulnerable. I have no doubt that we will deal with it and understand it very soon.” Wolff added.
