For the Dutch Grand Prix last weekend, Mercedes equipped its W14 machine with a revised floor edge, sidepod inlet and beam wing - all devised to chiefly improve performance at the rear of the car.
In part, the arrival of these new components is to help sustain the team for the eight non-European races at the end of the season, for which the costs of freighting upgrades are considerably higher.
Despite 13 of the scheduled 22 rounds now having run, and with teams placing increasing emphasis on developing next year’s car, Mercedes is finding more aerodynamic performance with the W14.
Trackside engineering director Shovlin said: “I think we're making reasonable strides in development still.
“But it's still a busy period of the year because the teams are trying to get the packages on the car that are going to take them through that flyaway region. I think it will all slow down in the relatively near future.
“But we have made some pretty significant changes to the design of the car, and that's actually opening up a bit of performance aerodynamically. So, we are still finding good performance on the W14.”
Shovlin clarified that none of the new parts could be directly linked to George Russell qualifying third at Zandvoort as the driver said he had bounced back from a difficult run of one-lap form.
Source: Autosport