Formula One's teams are expected to formally agree on 2017's new aero regulations next week, with the current draft offering more downforce and "retro" styling according to Williams' technical director Pat Symonds.
After criticisms in recent years that F1 cars are not as fast as they were in the mid-2000s, the FIA agreed to work towards a new set of regulations for 2017 that would make the cars up to five seconds per lap quicker. Pirelli will introduce wider tyres to help reduce lap times, while the aerodynamics of the car will be reworked to offer more downforce and look more aggressive.
Williams technical director Pat Symonds, who has worked closely on the proposal, said the latest draft of the 2017 regulations meets the brief the sport was given.
"It has ended up with a bigger diffuser and a substantial front wing and some quite attractive styling," he said. "It is a little bit retro, but the brief from the Strategy Group was to make the cars quicker and to make the styling a bit better. I think we have done those two. It is not for me to say whether it is the right thing or not."
Symonds said the draft of Article 3 of the regulations, which defines car dimensions and bodywork, is due to be agreed upon next week.
"There is a set of regulations, there is a draft of Article 3, largely Williams is putting all the wording together, although of course the discussion has been very wide. That draft is going to the teams within the next week, but it is essentially everything that has already been agreed, it is just putting it all down into one document.
"It does fully define the aerodynamic regulations. In itself, it doesn't define the tyre size, but we have agreed on the tyre size and the regulations are built around those tyre sizes because although Article 3 doesn't refer to any tyre sizes, obviously various widths of wings and bodywork and things are all linked to that. I believe that we have now a fully defined set of rules that relate to all of the bodywork. I believe we have an agreement with Pirelli as to what the tyre sizes should be."
It is not yet clear how much quicker lap times will be in 2017, but Symonds says there was similar uncertainty ahead of the last major overhaul of aerodynamic regulations in 2009.
"There are some differing opinions as to what the performance of the package will be, as indeed there was in 2008. There were differing views on performance then. But we are in the position to go ahead.
"As far as I know the Strategy Group, everyone is happy, the Formula One Commission is happy I believe. The rules need to be ratified before March and there is time for that. There is another meeting the week after next hopefully. So, we are pretty well there. We have done what we were asked to do."