2013 Season Car Launch Dates

Post by **mario** » 20 Dec 2012, 22:06

Whilst the 2012 season has only recently finished, the teams have already been hard at work ensuring that their 2013 cars are under construction.

We have already heard about Sauber's successful crash tests of the C32 recently, whilst two teams have already announced their launch dates for their new cars. Force India will be launching their car at Silverstone on February 1st (as in 2012, they want to have the launch and shakedown test on the same day), whilst McLaren have just announced that they will be launching their car on January 31st (according to Adam Cooper's Twitter feed, and backed up by reports in Autosport).

So, might as well keep a quick list of the car launches this year:
Caterham: 5th Feb, Circuito de Jerez
Ferrari: 1st Feb, Maranello
Force India: 1st Feb, Silverstone
Lotus: 28th Jan, Enstone (to be presented online and via Sky)
Marussia: 5th Feb, Circuito de Jerez
McLaren: 31st Jan
Mercedes: 4th Feb, Circuito de Jerez
Red Bull: 3rd Feb, Milton Keynes factory
Sauber: 2nd Feb, Hinwil factory
Toro Rosso: 4th Feb, Circuito de Jerez (reportedly, it'll be only a few hours after Mercedes holds its launch)
Williams: 19th Feb, Barcelona

Pre-Season Test Sessions
Jerez: 5-8th February
Barcelona: 19th-22nd February
Barcelona: 28th February -3rd March

Post by **mario** » 25 Dec 2012, 14:34

Latest news is that Sauber have announced their launch date as the 5th Feb at the Jerez circuit - in the process, they also seem to have confirmed that the first winter test is going to be starting at about the same time too, because the car is "fully homologated and ready for winter testing" according to their Twitter statement.

razta · Post by **razta** » 26 Dec 2012, 05:32

I know from my source that the Merc is being launched in Jerez too on the first day - And i've been invited :-D

AdrianSutil · Post by **AdrianSutil** » 26 Dec 2012, 10:02

Sauber seem the most confident team so far, I've read a few twitter posts and they've pretty much got everything ready for testing. Should be interesting if a midfield team is the first out of the blocks.

Post by **mario** » 26 Dec 2012, 12:10

razta wrote:I know from my source that the Merc is being launched in Jerez too on the first day - And i've been invited

So you can be our man in the loop, as it were, for that test? I jest - I'm sure that you'll have a good time (and more than a few opportunities for spy shots). That would be on the 5th Feb and run alongside Sauber's launch, I presume?

AdrianSutil wrote:Sauber seem the most confident team so far, I've read a few twitter posts and they've pretty much got everything ready for testing. Should be interesting if a midfield team is the first out of the blocks.

They have been quite quick to confirm things and seem to have made a decent amount of progress, although to a certain extent that is not surprising - the midfield teams have generally been keener in recent years to simply crack on with testing rather than having glitzy promotional events (Sauber, Force India and Williams have tended to shy the more traditional launch events in favour of a quick photo session in the pits combined with the shakedown session).
There was something of a feeling, it seems, amongst the paddock that the C31 was a better car than either the drivers or team could demonstrate (Newey was especially interested in their car in the earlier part of the season), but if they can build upon that base and Hulkenberg carries the same sort of form into next year that he showed this year, then he and the team should be in a very strong position.

razta · Post by **razta** » 28 Dec 2012, 04:53

@Mario,I'll do the usual photos and comments etc via twitter, fb etc.. but yeah, speaking of Mercs Ambitious targets for 2013
here's a rather insightful technical article we've translated from AMuS about the AMGW04 - as they're referring to it as.
http://mercamgf1-fans.com/2012/12/27/th ... mpetitive/

and yes.. 5th of Feb

SeedStriker · Post by **SeedStriker** » 28 Dec 2012, 17:01

http://www.planetf1.com/driver/18227/8363892/Toyota-lends-Ferrari-a-hand

In short, what should've been an eventual TF113 will have a brand Ferrari logo on it's nosecone. How low can you fall, Luca?

Post by **mario** » 28 Dec 2012, 18:31

razta wrote:@Mario,I'll do the usual photos and comments etc via twitter, fb etc.. but yeah, speaking of Mercs Ambitious targets for 2013
here's a rather insightful technical article we've translated from AMuS about the AMGW04 - as they're referring to it as.
http://mercamgf1-fans.com/2012/12/27/th ... mpetitive/

and yes.. 5th of Feb

Thanks - I'll be interested to see your photos and comments about the launch, since it sounds as if the W04 is intended to be a more marked departure from its predecessor than for some teams (particularly with the modifications they've made to the gearbox and rear crash structure). Anyway, I'll update the initial post in accordance with your information.

SeedStriker wrote:http://www.planetf1.com/driver/18227/8363892/Toyota-lends-Ferrari-a-hand

In short, what should've been an eventual TF113 will have a brand Ferrari logo on it's nosecone. How low can you fall, Luca?

Not quite - in fact, since Toyota's wind tunnel and research facilities at Cologne were some of the best in F1 and, thanks to the fact that Toyota has switched to sports car racing, Toyota have kept investing in those facilities, Toyota have, as a result, been making a not inconsiderable amount of money as an external consultant for several of the top teams. As that article points out, McLaren have been there virtually as regularly as Ferrari, and I believe that Sauber have also occasionally made use of Toyota's facilities, and that doesn't seem to have caused any problems for either team this season.
If anything, it kind of makes sense for Ferrari to use Toyota's facilities given that there have been issues with the calibration of Ferrari's wind tunnel for some time - Toyota do not seem to have had the same sorts of problems as Ferrari have, so it should help them pin down the problems they have had with their wind tunnel whilst they can continue development of their 2013 challenger.

FMecha · Post by **FMecha** » 28 Dec 2012, 18:41

Speaking of Toyota's facilities, what happened to P.U.R.E. engine project? I recall they used Toyota's Cologne facilities.

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 28 Dec 2012, 19:41

FMecha wrote:Speaking of Toyota's facilities, what happened to P.U.R.E. engine project? I recall they used Toyota's Cologne facilities.

According to Wikipedia, they suspended the engine program due to funding issues, probably caused by the fact that nobody wanted their engines.

Post by **mario** » 28 Dec 2012, 20:41

JeremyMcClean wrote:
FMecha wrote:Speaking of Toyota's facilities, what happened to P.U.R.E. engine project? I recall they used Toyota's Cologne facilities.

According to Wikipedia, they suspended the engine program due to funding issues, probably caused by the fact that nobody wanted their engines.

That is indeed correct - they put the project on hold, seeming permanently, after the withdrawal of funds from one of their primary backers. Speaking of which, I was under the impression that that they would also be using part of Peugeot's former facilities as their design offices as well as operating out of Toyota's facilities (which would be where the testing and manufacturing operations would be located), in part because PURE, IIRC, were co-operating with Mechchrome.

Backmarker · Post by **Backmarker** » 28 Dec 2012, 21:03

mario wrote:
JeremyMcClean wrote:
FMecha wrote:Speaking of Toyota's facilities, what happened to P.U.R.E. engine project? I recall they used Toyota's Cologne facilities.

According to Wikipedia, they suspended the engine program due to funding issues, probably caused by the fact that nobody wanted their engines.

That is indeed correct - they put the project on hold, seeming permanently, after the withdrawal of funds from one of their primary backers. Speaking of which, I was under the impression that that they would also be using part of Peugeot's former facilities as their design offices as well as operating out of Toyota's facilities (which would be where the testing and manufacturing operations would be located), in part because PURE, IIRC, were co-operating with Mechchrome.

No, they were based in France and it was thought they might use the old Vélizy workshop, but instead they moved to Cologne.

Post by **mario** » 28 Dec 2012, 21:54

Backmarker wrote:No, they were based in France and it was thought they might use the old Vélizy workshop, but instead they moved to Cologne.

OK then, I was under the impression that they were planning on retaining a small base in France in order to maintain their links with Mecachrome, who were supposed to be their development partner, but presumably they chose not to in the end. Not that it really matters all that much given that P.U.R.E. has effectively abandoned the project...

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 29 Dec 2012, 02:40

If I were a small F1 team owner, I'd be running out of Cologne as much as my budget allowed. I don't see how it's possible to have instant access to good quality facilities other than to rent some space at the Toyota facilities. If one of the new teams had set up shop there from the very start, and run the majority of their operations from Cologne (combined with reasonable funding of course), we'd have a 'new' team that had scored points by now.

razta · Post by **razta** » 29 Dec 2012, 03:28

mario wrote:Thanks - I'll be interested to see your photos and comments about the launch, since it sounds as if the W04 is intended to be a more marked departure from its predecessor than for some teams (particularly with the modifications they've made to the gearbox and rear crash structure). Anyway, I'll update the initial post in accordance with your information.

yeah Lauda said it earlier that the new car would be a "NEW" car from scratch.. with Costa heading the Project as well as employing his genius on the mechanical side.. Aero is being headed by Elliott with chief designer John Owen. They're moving away from the BGP001 bloodline.
Also, if Newey's the Aero Genius and Costa is a Mech Genius.. i wonder what would happen if both of them got together? :shock:

Post by **mario** » 29 Dec 2012, 08:55

kostas22 wrote:If I were a small F1 team owner, I'd be running out of Cologne as much as my budget allowed. I don't see how it's possible to have instant access to good quality facilities other than to rent some space at the Toyota facilities. If one of the new teams had set up shop there from the very start, and run the majority of their operations from Cologne (combined with reasonable funding of course), we'd have a 'new' team that had scored points by now.

I can only conclude that the reason why most of the new teams have not chosen to work out of Toyota's facilities would be the fees that Toyota are charging - access to those high quality facilities, plus the technical assistance to operate them, probably comes with a fairly hefty price tag, which would be why only the larger teams have been using those facilities reasonably frequently. Either way, it does beg the question of what could have been achieved by the newer teams had they set up base there instead - especially an outfit like Caterham, which, through Gascoyne, would have had some links to Toyota anyway.

razta · Post by **razta** » 29 Dec 2012, 08:59

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07Wm7SiJRoo

yep.. I was bored.. very bored! lol

razta · Post by **razta** » 30 Dec 2012, 00:58

My mockup of the W04

going into the details..
1. redbull rear end
2. nose blended/covered - so no "bump"
3. lowered the middle element of the front suspension to mimic the layout of the F2012 pullrod

Post by **mario** » 30 Dec 2012, 10:28

razta wrote:My mockup of the W04

going into the details..
1. redbull rear end
2. nose blended/covered - so no "bump"
3. lowered the middle element of the front suspension to mimic the layout of the F2012 pullrod

So you've heard the rumours about Mercedes switching to a front pullrod suspension layout then? It'd be a pretty radical departure if true.

razta · Post by **razta** » 30 Dec 2012, 13:29

mario wrote:
razta wrote:My mockup of the W04

going into the details..
1. redbull rear end
2. nose blended/covered - so no "bump"
3. lowered the middle element of the front suspension to mimic the layout of the F2012 pullrod

So you've heard the rumours about Mercedes switching to a front pullrod suspension layout then? It'd be a pretty radical departure if true.

yeah. and guess who else is joining the front pull rod layout too?
Mclaren
http://www.omnicorse.it/magazine/24051/ ... po-ferrari

Faustus · Post by **Faustus** » 02 Jan 2013, 11:41

razta wrote:yeah. and guess who else is joining the front pull rod layout too?
Mclaren
http://www.omnicorse.it/magazine/24051/ ... po-ferrari

Another website has reported this as well:

http://www.blogf1.it/2012/12/30/mclaren ... la-mp4-28/

Nosecone to highest height, pull-rod front suspension and rear suspension 'inspired by the Red Bull'.
Apparently a passive DRS system was also incorporated in the design of the 2013 car.
I guess we'll see when the car is launched.

Faustus · Post by **Faustus** » 02 Jan 2013, 11:44

The same website is also reporting on the new Toro Rosso:

http://www.blogf1.it/2012/12/31/toro-ro ... -nel-2013/

Apparently, no more double-floor. Boooo!
Also, changes to the sidepods and the position of the radiators. Pull-rod front suspension was considered but the new car will stick with push-rod front suspension.

As an aside, the above site has a nice regular column from Luigi Mazzola, the ex-Ferrari engineer and ex-test team manager. I'm going to start checking it regularly, because his column is worth reading.

Post by **mario** » 02 Jan 2013, 12:03

Faustus wrote:
razta wrote:yeah. and guess who else is joining the front pull rod layout too?
Mclaren
http://www.omnicorse.it/magazine/24051/ ... po-ferrari

Another website has reported this as well:

http://www.blogf1.it/2012/12/30/mclaren ... la-mp4-28/

Nosecone to highest height, pull-rod front suspension and rear suspension 'inspired by the Red Bull'.
Apparently a passive DRS system was also incorporated in the design of the 2013 car.
I guess we'll see when the car is launched.

I guess that it makes sense for McLaren to consider raising the nosecone given that they did make a slight amendment to that during the last season, although the limitations on chassis homologation meant they couldn't raise it much further. They certainly have a lot of room to play with - I recall scarbsf1 pointing out that McLaren could probably have raised the nose and the front of the chassis about another five centimetres or so up whilst still retaining the smooth nose section, so it is probably the most likely change to happen for 2013.
Now, the front pull rod suggestion seems surprising given that it gave Ferrari quite a few handling problems during the pre-season tests and the opening races. The author of that article seems to be suggesting that it is for aerodynamics reasons rather than mechanical performance, which would be a marked change given why McLaren went for a conventional push rod set up in 2012 (they felt that they were better off sacrificing a little bit of aerodynamic performance for more flexibility on the front suspension geometry) - I'm not quite so sure that we'll see that change, but time will tell.

As for the Toro Rosso design, it's a shame that their sidepod design is being ditched but I can only assume that it hasn't worked out quite as they had hoped and they feel that they have maximised its development potential. It sounds like a slightly more conservative design for the STR8 then, which is perhaps not a bad thing.

f1andrea · Post by **f1andrea** » 03 Jan 2013, 18:09

The new Sauber will be launched the 2nd February

Post by **mario** » 03 Jan 2013, 21:06

f1andrea wrote:The new Sauber will be launched the 2nd February

Thanks for that - I might also add in the dates of the pre-season tests as well to my first post for context.

I'll be interested to see how Sauber do this year, since their prospects are a bit mixed - on the one hand, the presence of Gutierrez should ensure that the team remains in a decent financial situation, Hulkenberg is coming off the back of a strong end to the 2012 season and should be pretty confident and Pirelli's decision to bring in tyres that heat up more rapidly should help both drivers in qualifying and should play to the traditional strengths of Sauber in recent years (being relatively kind with their tyres).
On the other hand, James Key's departure to Toro Rosso will have some impact on the team - he was reportedly quite good at reorganising the team to use its resources more efficiently - plus, with Pirelli providing the teams with more information in advance and relatively stable rules between 2012 and 2013, we're probably not going to see the same sort of chaotic conditions that allowed Sauber its moments of glory last season. Somehow, I get the feeling that Sauber will slip back a bit next year as the larger teams reassert themselves - they'll probably still have their moments in the sun, probably with Hulkenberg (given he's the more experienced driver, he should be better placed to take advantage), but perhaps fewer and further between than 2012.

[EDIT] Some interesting news from the Red Bull stable - in an interview with Autosport that has been picked up by the BBC, Newey has stated that Red Bull were pushing so hard to secure the titles in 2012, with upgrades being introduced on the RB8 right up until the penultimate race, that they have ended up compromising their 2013 program and may have fallen slightly behind schedule with development of the RB9. The team is even suggesting that it might have to miss the opening test session in Jerez, since their current schedule is rather tight for time - mind you, they've also skipped out on test session in previous years with relatively few ill effects, so it may not be that much of a disaster if they do have to miss that test. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/20898956

Post by **mario** » 17 Jan 2013, 14:15

Bumping this back up, Mercedes seems to have made a slight change to their schedule and are now launching the car on the 4th Feb, still at Jerez (presumably to get the shakedown test out of the way before the first test session begins).
Toro Rosso, meanwhile, have announced that they will also launch their car at Jerez on the 4th - with Ferrari having also confirmed when it'll launch its car, the only three that are missing are Lotus, Caterham and Marussia. Whilst I was expecting Marussia and Caterham to have very low key launches (i.e. a quick on track photo shoot and then right into the shakedown session, which is what most midfield teams have done), I'm surprised that Lotus are yet to confirm their plans.

Post by **Ataxia** » 17 Jan 2013, 19:23

mario wrote:Bumping this back up, Mercedes seems to have made a slight change to their schedule and are now launching the car on the 4th Feb, still at Jerez (presumably to get the shakedown test out of the way before the first test session begins).
Toro Rosso, meanwhile, have announced that they will also launch their car at Jerez on the 4th - with Ferrari having also confirmed when it'll launch its car, the only three that are missing are Lotus, Caterham and Marussia. Whilst I was expecting Marussia and Caterham to have very low key launches (i.e. a quick on track photo shoot and then right into the shakedown session, which is what most midfield teams have done), I'm surprised that Lotus are yet to confirm their plans.

Lotus might be planning a big one. Why? They'd previously snared Microsoft; now they've got Coca-Cola on board. I'd expect a flashy launch.

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 17 Jan 2013, 19:24

Ataxia [BacLettNinj] wrote:
mario wrote:Bumping this back up, Mercedes seems to have made a slight change to their schedule and are now launching the car on the 4th Feb, still at Jerez (presumably to get the shakedown test out of the way before the first test session begins).
Toro Rosso, meanwhile, have announced that they will also launch their car at Jerez on the 4th - with Ferrari having also confirmed when it'll launch its car, the only three that are missing are Lotus, Caterham and Marussia. Whilst I was expecting Marussia and Caterham to have very low key launches (i.e. a quick on track photo shoot and then right into the shakedown session, which is what most midfield teams have done), I'm surprised that Lotus are yet to confirm their plans.

Lotus might be planning a big one. Why? They'd previously snared Microsoft; now they've got Coca-Cola on board. I'd expect a flawed launch.

Fixed

pasta_maldonado · Post by **pasta_maldonado** » 17 Jan 2013, 19:27

Phoenix wrote:
Ataxia [BacLettNinj] wrote:
mario wrote:Bumping this back up, Mercedes seems to have made a slight change to their schedule and are now launching the car on the 4th Feb, still at Jerez (presumably to get the shakedown test out of the way before the first test session begins).
Toro Rosso, meanwhile, have announced that they will also launch their car at Jerez on the 4th - with Ferrari having also confirmed when it'll launch its car, the only three that are missing are Lotus, Caterham and Marussia. Whilst I was expecting Marussia and Caterham to have very low key launches (i.e. a quick on track photo shoot and then right into the shakedown session, which is what most midfield teams have done), I'm surprised that Lotus are yet to confirm their plans.

Lotus might be planning a big one. Why? They'd previously snared Microsoft; now they've got Coca-Cola on board. I'd expect a flawed launch.

Fixed

So much techno wizardry, a fuse blows and the whole room is plunged into darkness and a crushing silence only broken by the sound of Raikkonen opening a Magnum.... :lol:

Zetec · Post by **Zetec** » 17 Jan 2013, 19:53

Some pictures from the Sauber factory today in swiss-newspaper.

http://www.blick.ch/sport/formel1/hier-entsteht-der-neue-sauber-bolide-id2172719.html

But I'm not sure, if the floor is really from the new car. I wouldn't expect that a team would reveal such details before the season.

Post by **mario** » 17 Jan 2013, 20:08

Ataxia [BacLettNinj] wrote:
mario wrote:Bumping this back up, Mercedes seems to have made a slight change to their schedule and are now launching the car on the 4th Feb, still at Jerez (presumably to get the shakedown test out of the way before the first test session begins).
Toro Rosso, meanwhile, have announced that they will also launch their car at Jerez on the 4th - with Ferrari having also confirmed when it'll launch its car, the only three that are missing are Lotus, Caterham and Marussia. Whilst I was expecting Marussia and Caterham to have very low key launches (i.e. a quick on track photo shoot and then right into the shakedown session, which is what most midfield teams have done), I'm surprised that Lotus are yet to confirm their plans.

Lotus might be planning a big one. Why? They'd previously snared Microsoft; now they've got Coca-Cola on board. I'd expect a flashy launch.

It is indeed possible that Lotus are keeping their powder dry and have decided to make a last minute flashy presentation - it's a bit tight for time given that the first test is now less than three weeks away, but they have been hinting on their Twitter feed that an announcement is due soon (amongst, as a nice touch, sending happy birthday wishes to Piercarlo Ghinzani).

The other possibility is that Lotus may have decided to sacrifice one test session in exchange for a few more weeks of development, given that the next test session isn't until the 19th Feb. Red Bull did sacrifice some pre-season testing time for that very reason in 2010 and 2011, and probably would have done the same in 2012 had Pirelli not made the changes it did to the tyre compounds.

Zetec wrote:Some pictures from the Sauber factory today in swiss-newspaper.

http://www.blick.ch/sport/formel1/hier-entsteht-der-neue-sauber-bolide-id2172719.html

But I'm not sure, if the floor is really from the new car. I wouldn't expect that a team would reveal such details before the season.

I would have thought that it is more likely to come from an earlier car, perhaps the C31, but there is a slim chance that it could be from the C32 given that it appears to show the front section of the floor that is effectively proscribed by the FIA, and therefore would probably be of fairly limited value to a rival team.

Speaking of photos, this one caught my eye:

That partially constructed chassis in the foreground does have a slightly unusual little winglet on the sidepod - I don't recall Sauber using that on the C31 and I don't think that appeared on their earlier cars, so I am a little curious as to what is going on there.

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 17 Jan 2013, 20:10

Zetec wrote:Some pictures from the Sauber factory today in swiss-newspaper.

http://www.blick.ch/sport/formel1/hier-entsteht-der-neue-sauber-bolide-id2172719.html

But I'm not sure, if the floor is really from the new car. I wouldn't expect that a team would reveal such details before the season.

The photo with the cars is from 2011, I'm pretty sure about that. Look at the livery, the rims, for example.

Post by **Ataxia** » 17 Jan 2013, 20:52

I think those cars are the 2010 cars with the 2011 livery...look at the airbox config and the exhaust area. The shark fin's been lopped off, though.

That winglet you mentioned, mario; I think it's the mounting point for the mirror stand thing.

Post by **mario** » 17 Jan 2013, 22:15

Ataxia [BacLettNinj] wrote:I think those cars are the 2010 cars with the 2011 livery...look at the airbox config and the exhaust area. The shark fin's been lopped off, though.

That winglet you mentioned, mario; I think it's the mounting point for the mirror stand thing.

Looking at it, I think I've now worked it out - it was the mounting point for the sidepod deflector that Sauber ran on the C29, but because both it and the sidepod were painted black on the C29, it didn't show up in the same way that it does here (hence my confusion).

Post by **mario** » 18 Jan 2013, 13:27

Slight amendment needs to be made to the launch schedule - Williams have announced that they will launch their car on the 19th Feb at the first test in Barcelona. They are now planning on using a modified FW34 for the first test, which should have a number of interim parts that they would like to test before installing them on the FW35. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105178

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 18 Jan 2013, 15:10

mario wrote:Slight amendment needs to be made to the launch schedule - Williams have announced that they will launch their car on the 19th Feb at the first test in Barcelona. They are now planning on using a modified FW34 for the first test, which should have a number of interim parts that they would like to test before installing them on the FW35. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105178

Ugh, bad news. Looks like Williams is going to start on the back foot already.

takagi_for_the_win · Post by **takagi_for_the_win** » 18 Jan 2013, 15:20

CarlosFerreira wrote:Ugh, bad news. Looks like Williams is going to start on the back foot already.

Or maybe they're just anticipating Maldonado's near inevitable big crash, and would rather he did it in last years car, rather than in the shiny new one.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 18 Jan 2013, 15:24

takagi_for_the_win wrote:
CarlosFerreira wrote:Ugh, bad news. Looks like Williams is going to start on the back foot already.

Or maybe they're just anticipating Maldonado's near inevitable big crash, and would rather he did it in last years car, rather than in the shiny new one.

Come back Bruno, all is forgiven.

IdeFan · Post by **IdeFan** » 18 Jan 2013, 17:56

CarlosFerreira wrote:
mario wrote:Slight amendment needs to be made to the launch schedule - Williams have announced that they will launch their car on the 19th Feb at the first test in Barcelona. They are now planning on using a modified FW34 for the first test, which should have a number of interim parts that they would like to test before installing them on the FW35. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105178

Ugh, bad news. Looks like Williams is going to start on the back foot already.

Missing the first test isn't a huge deal, RBR have done it a couple of times recently, as have McLaren. Its probably better to come to the second test with a properly developed car than to the first one with an undercooked one which will probably break down (thats if Pastor doesn't break it first).

Post by **mario** » 18 Jan 2013, 19:27

IdeFan wrote:
CarlosFerreira wrote:
mario wrote:Slight amendment needs to be made to the launch schedule - Williams have announced that they will launch their car on the 19th Feb at the first test in Barcelona. They are now planning on using a modified FW34 for the first test, which should have a number of interim parts that they would like to test before installing them on the FW35. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105178

Ugh, bad news. Looks like Williams is going to start on the back foot already.

Missing the first test isn't a huge deal, RBR have done it a couple of times recently, as have McLaren. Its probably better to come to the second test with a properly developed car than to the first one with an undercooked one which will probably break down (thats if Pastor doesn't break it first).

Lotus also did next to no running in the first test in 2012 after they discovered that their chassis was defective, yet recovered from that to put in a very strong performance. As you rightly point out, missing a test isn't necessarily in itself a disaster if you are able to fill that time in with other productive activities - it is a trade off between having slightly more time to develop your car and doing enough testing to acquire useful data for the opening races.

If it is a carefully planned decision, which, by the sounds of things, it is (they've taken the time to produce a test hack version of the FW34 for back to back tests), then probably won't hinder them in any real way. It might even prove to be slightly beneficial if there is any disruption to the Jerez test, since they'd have lost little and perhaps gained more from a couple more weeks of development time.