The AT03 was the third car of the Scuderia AlphaTauri era and it was used in the 2022 Formula 1 World Championship.

THE CONCEPT. It’s a case of revolution not evolution with the AT03 being Scuderia AlphaTauri’s first car to meet the very significant change to the technical regulations introduced for 2022. Our designers therefore started from a clean sheet of paper, working with rules that have simplified the aerodynamics, placing greater emphasis on the underside of the car, with a switch to larger low profile tyres. The only “carry over” from the 2021 car is the team’s ability to produce a competitive car.

AERODYNAMICS. This is the area where the biggest and most obvious changes can be seen, although the most important new element is actually hidden underneath the car! A ground effect floor features two tunnels so that a much greater percentage of a car’s downforce is generated from the underneath of the car. Among other 2022 rules, the front and rear wings are much simpler in design, with no rear wing endplates or bargeboards. Each team can interpret the rules as they wish, but within very strict templates for what is permissible. The aim? To make for closer racing!

THE CHASSIS. The chassis is the core element around which the entire AT03 is built, able to absorb more energy than before in front, rear and lateral impact tests. The 2022 design also requires the power unit to separate from the chassis in a crash without damaging the fuel cell. To further protect the driver in a frontal impact, the nose section is longer. All these changes have seen the car’s minimum weight increase by approximately 5% to 795 kilos.

THE POWER UNIT. Although Honda officially left the sport at the end of last season, the Japanese company continues to build and supply our PU through the newly-formed Red Bull Powertrain operation, run out of Milton Keynes, in the UK. The regulations regarding the power unit are essentially the same as last year. However, as the sport continues to head towards a greener future, the fuel used this year will have a higher 10% bio-component ratio, moving to “E10” fuel, now common for current road cars.

THE TYRES. Another very visible change is the switch from the 13-inch wheels that have been the norm in F1 since the 1960s, to 18 inch wheelrims, with just one supplier – BBS Motorsport – for all ten teams. Aesthetically more pleasing and modern, the real function of the bigger low-profile Pirelli tyres is to make them less prone to overheating, so that the drivers can push harder for longer. However, they still have a performance drop-off to allow for interesting strategy choices. The compounds are also new this year, with Pirelli producing five different dry weather compounds of which three are chosen for each Grand Prix, along with two wet weather options.