Mercedes F1 Were Afraid Their Power Unit Would “Rust” During the Shutdown

The coronavirus pandemic hasn’t been kind to anyone, not even F1. However, after a super long wait, we are finally going to get some F1 action. The season is set to commence in Austria in just five days’ time. The long period of lockdown hasn’t been easy for the drivers and team personnel. Mercedes F1’s Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin, reveals that due to the period of inactivity, the team could have inherited a major problem with the car.

Mercedes survive ‘rusting’ scare with W11 power unit components

In a video clip posted by Mercedes Formula One team, Andrew Shovlin spoke about some of their concerns before they got back to work with the team. He said, “The race in Melbourne was obviously canceled quite suddenly. When we were packing up for that race, we didn’t think it would be so long till we actually got to look at the bits, back here in Brackley.”

“But all of that frame was packaged when it got back here. We were in lockdown in the country, also Formula One had shut down, so we weren’t allowed to work. We couldn’t actually open it all up and check that all the bits were ok. The big concern for us there was that if things get damp. There’s a lot of steel parts, particularly with the PU. If there is any damp in there it can cause rust and that’s a major problem.”

However, luckily for the Silver Arrows and their fans, everything was ok. Shovlin added, “Thankfully, all of that was actually ok. But it was one of the things that could have been a significant issue for us, given the complications of the lockdown and the shutdown.”

Sorry to disappoint all the Tifosi and Red Bull fans out there. But it seems like Mercedes are well set for the season opener. The Brackley-based outfit will hope that Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas can get a solid start in the back to back Austrian Grand Prix’s. Once that’s over with, they’ll be hoping to build a base for yet another title-winning campaign.

Equipped with a brilliant car, and two awesome drivers, it looks as though Mercedes’ modern-day dominance in F1 will continue. At least for another year.