Ferrari now dealing with problem Lewis Hamilton once called a ‘disaster’ at Mercedes

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Ferrari’s major update appears to have been more of a step backwards for the Maranello squad, having only scored one podium in the last four races.

Their last win came in the form of Charles Leclerc’s at Monaco where Ferrari appeared to be the second-best car against Red Bull, but their form has slumped ever since they introduced a fast-tracked upgrade at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Both Leclerc and Carlos Sainz have been heard complaining about bouncing in the high-speed corners when they are in qualifying trim, which was noticeable at Silverstone through GPS data.

Sainz had to lift through the high-speed right-hander of Corpse Corner, while polesitter George Russell could take it flat out without lifting the throttle.

Whereas other teams have found ways to minimise or eliminate the bouncing effect since the introduction of ground-effect cars in 2022, it has been a characteristic that has carried through Ferrari’s cars.

A report from RacingNews365.com details how the Spain upgrade for the SF-24 was effective but created problems for Ferrari’s car setup.

Ferrari’s latest F1 car upgrade creates problems

According to the report, Ferrari engineers have found that while there is not a problem between the correlation in the factory and at the track, the upgrades work too well for the existing aero platform on the SF-24.

Ferrari has generated too much performance with their new floor and diffuser, and the existing front and rear suspension setup is not designed to cope with the increase in downforce levels they generate.

The suspension on the current generation of F1 cars is integral to extracting performance, it is why Red Bull has encountered problems in the last few races with its car as the rest of the field has converged.

Simulating porpoising with computational tools and in the wind tunnel is extremely hard to predict, which is why Ferrari would not know whether its upgrade would work as intended until they reached the track.

Now it is having the play catch up with the rest of the field, as it tries to understand how to effectively reach the same levels of aero performance that can match its suspension setup for a perfect car balance.

Ferrari encounters problem Lewis Hamilton branded a ‘disaster’ at Mercedes

The issue that is affecting Ferrari is currently what plagued Mercedes at the beginning of this regulation set, with Lewis Hamilton once referring to it as a ‘disaster’ during the 2022 season.

The W13 was a difficult car to get in the right setup window owing to the vast amounts of downforce it produced, but that would often lead to the bouncing effect and cause problems for Hamilton.

“For me it was a disaster. It’s like the car’s getting worse,” Hamilton told Formula1.com after practice for the 2022 Canadian GP.

“When it bounces, when the car leaves the ground a lot, and then when it lands it grips up and it goes in different directions, and you’re just trying to catch a car that jumps, hops, grips, hops, grips.”

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

Hamilton is set to move to Ferrari for the 2025 season and this persistent issue with their car platform will no doubt be a concern for the seven-time World Champion.

Mercedes has endured two difficult years trying to understand the phenomenon without sacrificing performance, and the last two race wins in a row are the result of that hard work.

While Ferrari might be chasing its own tail, they have brought on board several members of the technical team, including former Mercedes performance director Loic Serra, while legendary designer Adrian Newey is also rumoured to be heading to Maranello as part of his next move.