We've Seen Half Of The Cars That Will Be On The 2024 Formula 1 Grid, So Let's Rank Their Liveries

The 2024 season is so close I can practically taste it. 

What does it taste like? It tastes like hastily brewed coffee to help fuel me through an early Sunday morning Grand Prix.

Delicious.

With just two weeks to go before all 10 teams will be on track for testing in Bahrain, we're starting to see some of the cars teams will use this season.

 As of Wednesday, five teams — McLarenhttps://www.outkick.com/tag/mclaren/, Haas, Williams, Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber (oof, that name), and Alpine — have unveiled their new rides for the 2024 season.

Of course, the cars they showed likely aren't the ones we'll see in Bahrain, but the liveries will be. 

So, let's look through the first 5 liveries to have the cover taken off of them and see who came out on top — and who didn't — in this first batch.

5. Alpine

I'm not going to lie: I think this has been a solid year for liveries so far. That said, someone has to be No. 5, and that someone is Alpine.

Alpine has one of the more interesting color combinations on the grid with the Alpine brand's signature blue mixed with the pink color used by title sponsor BWT.

It makes for a cool livery, however, I feel like this year's version is hurt by a lot of black.

That black isn't a stylistic choice, it's there for the sake of saving weight. That's a trend you'll notice with just about every livery. Black, exposed carbon fiber is a one-way ticket to shed a little bit of weight, and considering how heavy F1 cars are these days, they'll take any gains they can in that department.

It's a good, but not great look for the French outfit, and I'm having them 6 croissants out of 10.

4. Haas

Haas is sticking with their tried and true red, black, and white scheme and what they've got for their first season without former team principal Guenther Steiner looks pretty good.

Look, this is a perfectly fine livery. There's just nothing that makes you go, "Whoa."

This is kind of a progression of Haas' livery from last year, with what looks to be a little extra black, but I don't think it's an upgrade over last year. The black along the nose looks especially nice.

I'm giving Haas' new livery 6.5 "foksmashed" doors out of 10.

We miss you, Guenther…

3. McLaren

McLaren is dropping some of the blue from last year's look in favor of some — you guessed it — additional, black.

The team's signature papaya orange is front and center, and I've got to say, it's one of the cleaner looks McLaren has had over the last few years. They've had a habit of using some somewhat busy liveries in recent years.

I also really like the chrome numbers as a nod to the mid-2000s era, which was when McLaren was the last time McLaren was a consistent championship contender 

There's a chance that they're upfront once again after an incredibly strong finish to 2023, especially with one of the best driver lineups on the grid in Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. 

I'm giving this look a respectable 7.5 Lando Norris special event crash helmets out of 10.

2. Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber

The second worst team name on the grid — they've got nothing on Visa Cash App RB — has the second-best livery of the first five to see the light of day.

Even before the launch, Stake F1 was teasing some bright green. So, it's no surprise that that was part of the livery.

What was a little surprising was just how good it looks.

On a grid crammed full of black and dark-colored cars, that bad boy is going to be visible from space.

Sure, it's technically another black car, but that shade of green — which I believe they dubbed "Fluo-Racing Green" which is kind of genius — just pops. Just imagine that thing barreling down the Las Vegas Strip under the lights.

We may only see this color on the grid for two years at the most. I'm not so sure Audi will keep it in place when they take over in 2026. So, let's savor it while we can.

I'm giving the livery for Stake F1 Kick Sauber's C44 8 Valtteri Bott-ass cheeks out of 10.

1. Williams

Williams has struggled on the livery over the last few years. The team had some amazing liveries over its entire history including some amazing Martini & Rossi liveries in the mid 2010's. The problem for them has been that they want to look forward instead of just doing the same livery year after year.

They've had some misses because of this — I mean, go look up the Williams FW43B; yikes — but I think in 2024 they've struck a perfect combination of past and present with the FW46.

First off, it may not be to everyone's taste, but I love the Duracell battery roll-hoop. I can't explain why, I just think it's cool.

Williams is sticking with a blue-heavy look, with a couple of different shades and some red accents, and it looks great. I especially love the Gulf decals, and hopefully, their continued partnership means we'll get another special livery this year.

However, the best part of this livery is the pin striping around the nose. That's an old-school Williams look that makes me think of some of their classic cars from the ‘80s and ’90s.

I think it's such a good look for a team that is hoping to be right in the thick of the midfield fight.

In honor of the Logan Sargeant — the only American driver on the grid — I'm giving Williams 8.5 bald Eagles out of 10.

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What are your thoughts on the first crop of F1 liveries? Be sure to let me know what you think and why I was wrong by firing an email to mattreigleoutkick@gmail.com.