Why Mercedes steered clear of an F1 car concept revamp despite early struggles

Mercedes failed to regularly challenge Red Bull and Ferrari at the front of the pack through the first half of this season as it struggled with porpoising and bouncing on its W13 car.

The team opted for a different design route compared to the rest of the field, chasing a slimline sidepod solution that was dubbed the ‘zeropod’ when it debuted in Bahrain testing.

As the season progressed, Mercedes gained a better understanding of its car and the issues it faced,…