Winter testing 2014

Merc is kicking ass today. Ferrari looking strong again. Would love for 2014 to be a battle between those two teams.

 

Merc power showing early strength. They must be pleased.

 

I have no problem at all seeing JB do well this year.

 

Quote "from today, the Ferrari engine definitely has more turbo whistle"



Not sure if that's so much turbo whistling as the energy recovery systems spooling up.

 

Button just laid down a monster time! 1:24.1

 

@WilliamsF1Team: "It's all system & reliability checks before we focus more on performance in Bahrain. Before we can have a quick car we need a reliable one!"

 

They are beginning to open it up a little more. I don't expect we'll see the cars' true potential until the Bahrain sessions. I think Mercedes-powered cars have to be happy with their results. Ferrari-powered cars are going well also (except Force India). Renault seems to have some bugaboos to work out, but it IS putting them behind the others in terms of development. Nico Rosberg has completed twice as many laps today as all of the Renault-powered teams combined over the first two.

 

JB's helmet tribute to his dad
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I saw that. Very cool

 

Apparently people track side are saying that you don't need earplugs anymore and it's quieter than GP2

 

To me the MP4 is still the best looking car all things considered.

 

I wish I didn't just read that.....

 

Ferrari's front wing looks SO basic, almost F10-like. I think it's pretty obvious that this is the absolute base version of the car. Hopefully we see some aero bits added at the Bahrain test. Rosberg up to 88 laps. Impressive!

I was sad to read it too. Let's hope it's because the wick hasn't been turned up yet...

 

16:08 Day 2 results:

1 Jenson Button (McLaren) 1m24.165s, 43 laps
2 Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) 1m24.812s, 47 laps
3 Valtteri Bottas (Williams) 1m25.344s, 35 laps
4 Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) 1m25.588s, 97 laps
5 Sergio Perez (Force India) 1m28.376s, 37 laps
6 Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber) 1m33.270s, 53 laps
7 Marcus Ericsson (Caterham) 1m37.975s, 11 laps
8 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) 1m38.320s, 8 laps

 

Was it still wet? Or did the track start drying up?

 

They turned off the sprinklers and let the track dry out. The cars were testing 3 variations of Pirelli tires, it should be noted. (e.g. Nico was running a special "winter hard" tire, while Jensen and Kimi were running with mediums).

Not much should be taken from the times. The engines won't be opened up until Bahrain. Biggest development of the day are the Renault engine issues. While many are proclaiming 'Red Bull will be the fastest once they get their engines sorted', that must be tempered with the question of when will they get it sorted and how long will it last. The Merc unit is looking great so far, while the Ferrari unit has been pretty good also. When you think about the fact Force India has done about as many laps as all Renault's combined, you realize that they have some ground to make up to the Merc- and Ferrari-powered teams.

That gap won't just magically disappear (from a reliability standpoint, if not speed)

 

Vettel speaks about driving styles for this year....

"For sure there will be new elements of driving skills, different skills generally that you will have to get on top of and adapt to. It's a new car so it will feel differently. If you drive it the same way you did last year in a race you won't see the chequered flag, that's a very simple one to understand. But which way is the best, every driver needs to find his own way."
Read more at Driving like last year won't work - Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull | Formula 1 news, live F1 | ESPN F1

 

It must be a big change for Vettel after driving for so long with the help of the sealed diffuser. He's use to just mashing the pedal and expecting the car to stick to the track.

 

Adrian Newey has hinted to that being a big change for Red Bull this season. We'll see if that holds true or if he finds another way to make the car stick to the track.

A torquey car will definitely be a change for Vettel's driving style. But it will be for everyone else also. However, it's not like all of these guys haven't driven something wilder than the 2013 F1 cars before. They'll adapt…it's just a question of who feels the most comfortable with that driving style.

I'll guess the "technicians" will struggle more than the "daredevils" initially.

 

I think Kimi may have fun and success this year. The rally cars he drove were modern turbos.

 

[ame]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=z9OYmVw2QjA[/ame]

Here is the difference between the V6 and V8. God I hope they are not running at full RPM's

 

Does anyone know why the rain light keeps going on and off irregularily? Some sort of indicator for when energy is being generated?

 

I read somewhere that they were only going so far with RPMs this week, so probably true

 

He's already been quoted as saying he doesn't see any need to change his driving style. Typical Kimi...

 

The Renault clearly sounds off in every clip I've seen of the STR car so far. It sounds horrible when it shifts, too.