In comparison to the preceding
Williams FW29 car, Williams Technical Director
Sam Michael described the aim of the FW30's construction as being "refining our package and weight distribution" Although not confirmed by Williams, weight distribution was likely moved forward somewhat, to better utilise the traction characteristics of the single-supply
Bridgestone tyres. the cockpit sides are significantly raised in comparison to previous years. The exhaust chimneys were altered from the FW29's side-exit design, to a slimmer, vertical-exit one. Other, less obvious, chassis alterations include an increase in the number of cooling louvres in the upper surfaces of the
side pods, made in response to a change in the orientation of the main
radiators within the pods, and an increase in the backward sweep of the
roll bar-mounted mid wing. Later in the season, prior to the
2008 German Grand Prix, Williams also altered the lower front wing elements, offering their drivers a choice of drag-reducing flap tweaks to the rearmost element. The bumps expected at the new
Marina Bay Street Circuit, used for the
2008 Singapore Grand Prix, prompted Williams to tweak the design of the front wing yet again. On this occasion the central "spoon profile" was given a more rounded aspect, in place of the rather more squared-off design used to this point. The change in profile reduced downforce slightly, but resulted in the FW30 being significantly less sensitive to the changes in ride height expected as the cars negotiated the bumpy surface. For the final race of the season, the
2008 Brazilian Grand Prix, Williams again tweaked the profile of the main and middle elements of the front wing. Small curved steps were added to the outer extremities of these elements to increase the speed of airflow through the wing tip, increasing downforce without increasing drag. Small sidepod winglets were significantly altered prior to the
2008 French Grand Prix, providing twin turning vanes to better control airflow over the rear of the car. At the Canadian Grand Prix tweaks were also made to the flip-up flaps in front of the rear wheels, to reduce drag. For the
Italian Grand Prix, at the low-downforce
Monza circuit, Williams tweaked the design of the FW30's bodywork, and front and rear wings. Sporting only a single element, with its outer edges turned upward, the rear wing was designed to reduce drag on Monza's long, fast straights, while still providing sufficient downforce during cornering. Final adjustments were made to the FW30's rear aerodynamics prior to the Brazilian Grand Prix. Here, the small winglets in front of the rear wheels were augmented by the addition of a small flap beneath their main elements, in order to better deflect airflow around the wheels and reduce the aerodynamic disruption caused by the wheels' rotation. In a later documentary, William stated that the front wing of the FW30 generated 800kg of downforce and accounted for 25% of the car's total downforce of 3200kg at 300 kilometres per hour. For the
Monaco Grand Prix, a race that traditionally demands a high-downforce set-up, Williams experimented with a "shark fin" engine cover, similar to that run by
Renault and
Red Bull. A modification was made to the front brakes' cooling ducting specifically for the
2008 Canadian Grand Prix, enlarging them to better cope with high brake loads commonly experienced when racing on the
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Engine and transmission For the first time since the
2005 Formula One season Williams maintained continuity with their engine supplier. The FW30 is powered by
Toyota's RVX-08 engine, which conforms to FIA
V8 regulations. One major change within the engine package is due to the enforcement of a standardised, FIA-approved
ECU, manufactured by
McLaren Electronic Systems and distributed under the
Microsoft brand. This was introduced to eliminate
traction control and engine-assisted braking. Drive is via Williams's own seven-speed,
semi-automatic transmission, with an electro-hydraulically activated, seamless shift mechanism. ==Competition history==