LOTUS-RENAULT R31
Renault has unveiled its new R31 challenger to the press in Valencia's pitlane, ahead of the three-day pre-season test which begins at the Spanish venue tomorrow. The car, which carries black and gold livery following its deal with Lotus Group, is the fourth 2011 car to have been launched this week. The car was fired up for the first time at the team's Enstone factory last week, and Vitaly Petrov is schedule to drive the car for the first time on Tuesday before Robert Kubica takes over for the last two days. Renault has opted for a pull-rod suspension for the rear end, with the structure under car above the tea tray that appears quite radical compared to rival cars.
Lotus Renault team boss Eric Boullier says:
"With the arrival of a long-term partner in Group Lotus, we have the financial stability to build on these strong foundations and ensure a very competitive future. That is incredibly motivating for everybody in the team and gives us all the belief that we can continue to compete at the sharp end of the grid with the strongest teams in the sport."
"With the R31, work started before the R30 had even done a single race. In 2010 we achieved a very high rate of development and the car that finished the season was two seconds per lap quicker than the car we had at the first race. During the winter, that same determined approach to the workload has continued, which is a testament to the spirit and commitment of the people we have in this team. Yes, the workload is huge at this time of year, but if we keep our heads down and maximise the winter test sessions, I'm pretty sure we will have a strong start to 2011."
"We live to race and our goal is to win. It's the core of our philosophy. All the hard work over the last twelve months has been focussed on delivering a big improvement for 2011, and that means we should be more competitive than last year. Will we be stronger than our competitors? Hard to say, but based on the efforts of everybody here, I feel we deserve it."
LOTUS T128
Team Lotus launched its car, T128, online in the early hours of Monday morning, a move according with name dispute with their rivals Lotus-Renault which is also laying claim to the Lotus name. The car was originally supposed to be called the TL11 which, according to the team, was to simplify what could have been another point of contention with Renault over the use of the name "Lotus".
Lotus had always admitted that last year's T127 was a deliberately conservative machine built simply to get the team onto the grid in a very limited timescale, rather than with outright performance in mind. It halted development on the 2010 car early in the season to focus on the 2011 design, which is more in line with modern F1 practice, and features Renault V8 power and transmission systems from Red Bull.
The images released so far suggest the car features a more intricate front wing design, sharply sculpted sidepods, as well as a more conventional higher nose, and an airbox and roll hoop reminiscent of the 2010 Mercedes, suggesting Lotus has found a way around the rules that appeared to have outlawed such blade designs.
SAUBER C30
Sauber today present its new C30 car in Valencia, with the goal of providing greater consistency and more points finishes in 2011. The new C30 features a fully integrated blown diffuser, and the team has been able to sculpt the sidepods more aggressively through fitting its radiators more vertically. Sauber has also opted to use a single mounting for its rear-wing, rather than the twin-mounting arrangement it used on the C29.
Peter Sauber, team principal said:
"We want to finish in the points regularly and clearly improve our position in the FIA Formula 1 constructors' world championship. 2010 marked the 41st year of our company history and one of the most difficult. Never before had we faced such reliability problems, but we managed to overcome them in the second half of the season. We implemented some well-considered structural changes. The appointment of James Key as Technical Director already bore fruit last season, and he is now in charge of development of the Sauber C30. At the same time, we have managed to secure our business foundation for the 2011 season. In these economically straitened times that is something we can be proud of too."
