For the return of ground effects in 2022, Mercedes pioneered its distinctive size-zero sidepod car concept but concluded its defence of the constructors’ title with only one grand prix victory.
Having run the car too low that year, Mercedes raised the platform for 2023 but hit an aerodynamic performance ceiling to prompt major bodywork design changes from Monaco.
For this year’s W15 challenger, Mercedes has adopted a more conventional downwash sidepod architecture to cure lingering rear-end instability, but enters this weekend’s Australian GP only fourth in the points, having fallen behind Ferrari and McLaren.
But Hamilton insists the fundamental car platform still has plenty to offer and it is not an “evil sister” – with team boss Toto Wolff having previously described ground-effect Mercedes as a “diva”, “miserable thing” and “nasty piece of work”.
Hamilton said: “It's definitely not that evil sister or anything like that. I do think we have an amazing car; it has a lot of potential in it. We just haven't maximised it at the moment through set-up.
“We’re obviously not happy with the performance in those first couple of races. But I think there's a lot more potential in it that we just haven't quite extracted yet.
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“So, that's what everyone's focus is on, just trying to understand the car. We're hoping this weekend is a step forward.
Source: Autosport