Alpine Technical Director Matt Harman has acknowledged that the team aimed to “push the boundaries” when it came to revamping its car design for the 2024 Formula 1 season. The Enstone squad had entered the previous season with the goal of solidifying its fourth-place position, which it had achieved under the initial year of the current ground effect regulations in 2022. However, Alpine faced a challenging campaign last year, finishing in a disappointing sixth place in the Constructors’ standings, behind both Aston Martin and McLaren. After encountering limitations with their previous approach, Harman revealed that Alpine was determined to make significant changes for 2024.
Harman emphasized that Alpine’s 2024 challenger has undergone a complete transformation to address the narrow operating window of its predecessor. “There are numerous significant modifications on the A524, our car for the 2024 season,” Harman stated. “We maximized the potential of the A523, so the A524 is entirely new from front to back. We extensively analyzed the key aerodynamic concepts that we wanted to pursue with this car in order to explore greater aerodynamic freedom and fully unlock these concepts’ potential.”
“With the A523, we discovered that it operated within a very limited range. This was a weakness as it restricted our ability to exploit the car’s capabilities, and there were specific characteristics where it excelled and others where it struggled,” Harman explained. “Therefore, for the A524, our goal is to broaden this range as much as possible to give ourselves a better chance of maximizing its potential.”
Elaborating on the changes made from the A523, Harman detailed how Alpine has positioned itself for more development opportunities throughout the season with the choices made during the recent winter. “We have completely redesigned the chassis, implemented a new rear suspension system, optimized the front suspension, and integrated a new heat rejection system to enhance our operational efficiency at each event,” the British engineer revealed. “Additionally, we have devoted significant effort to our brake system, particularly in terms of thermal management, as there is performance to be gained from effectively dissipating heat through the system.”
“The floor of the car is a crucial factor in performance, and we have taken an aggressive approach to its development, exploring various concepts and expressing our creativity,” Harman continued. “We have also made changes to the front wing and nose in order to better manage airflow at the front of the car.”
“By implementing these changes, we are providing ourselves with a much broader scope to enhance performance over the next two seasons, even if it requires some compromises in reaching specific targets, which we have pushed to the maximum,” Harman concluded. “We must continue to pursue this dynamic development across all aspects of the team.”