Sidepod

A sidepod is a bulging section on either side of a racing car's body, located between the front wheels and the rear of the vehicle, which houses cooling systems and shapes airflow around the car.

In Formula 1 and other open-wheel racing series, sidepods are among the most visible and important parts of a car's design. If you look at a modern F1 car from above, you'll see these prominent structures extending along both sides of the cockpit where the driver sits. They're called sidepods simply because they sit on the sides of the car and form pod-like shapes.

The primary job of sidepods is to keep the car cool. Inside these structures, teams pack radiators and cooling equipment that prevent the engine, electronics, gearbox, and other components from overheating during a race. Without proper cooling, a racing car's engine would fail within minutes due to the extreme temperatures generated at high speeds.

Beyond cooling, sidepods play a crucial role in aerodynamics, which is how air flows around the car. The shape and size of sidepods can dramatically affect a car's performance by controlling airflow. Teams design sidepods to reduce drag (air resistance that slows the car down) and increase downforce (air pressure that pushes the car onto the track for better grip).

Different teams use different sidepod designs to gain competitive advantages. Some teams prefer wider sidepods that push disturbed air away from the rear of the car. Others use smaller, more compact designs to allow more air to flow underneath the vehicle. These design choices can make the difference between winning and losing races.

Modern sidepod designs often include special features like undercuts, which are carved-out sections on the lower part of the sidepod, or scallops, which are depression-like indentations on the top surface. These features redirect airflow to specific areas of the car where it can improve performance.

The evolution of sidepod design has been dramatic since the 1980s when teams first realized how important aerodynamics were to racing success. Today, when Formula 1 introduces new technical regulations, teams often reveal wildly different sidepod concepts. For example, recent seasons have seen everything from Ferrari's wide-pod approach to Mercedes' radical zero-pod design, which minimized the sidepod structure almost entirely.

Understanding sidepods helps explain why racing cars look the way they do and why teams spend millions of dollars testing different shapes in wind tunnels and computer simulations. These seemingly simple body panels represent a complex balance between cooling requirements and aerodynamic performance that can determine championship outcomes.