Formula One 2013

[MJB]

Annoying isn't it?

[Lineker]

Former Ferrari chief designer Rory Byrne is playing an active role in work on the team's 2014 Formula 1 car.

A Ferrari spokesperson confirmed that Byrne is "offering operational support for 2014" to the F1 team in his capacity as a consultant, adding that the South African's full-time focus remains on road cars.

The 69-year-old has remained on Ferrari's books as a consultant since leaving the Formula 1 team at the end of 2006 and retained an office at Maranello, although he generally spends around two-thirds of his year in Thailand.

Byrne has had some limited input into the Formula 1 side of Ferrari during that time. But AUTOSPORT understands that he is playing a greater role in the 2014 machine, which is being worked on under chief designer Nikolas Tombazis and project leader Fabio Montecchi.

Byrne came into F1 with Toleman, which he had worked for in Formula 2, in 1981 and was responsible for the car that claimed the first victory for the team, which by then had become Benetton, in the 1986 Mexican Grand Prix with Gerhard Berger.

He left Benetton in 1996 after helping the team win two drivers' and a constructors' world title before being lured out of a brief retirement by Ferrari, where he played a key role in the team's dominance of the early years of this century.

Lotus is heading to next week's second pre-season Formula 1 test at Barcelona confident there will be no repeat of the suspension dramas that forced it to withdraw last year.

After once again showing promising form in the first test at Jerez, Lotus needs no reminding that its pre-season preparations in 2012 suffered a major setback when it had to quit running at Barcelona because of suspension failure.

Technical director James Allison says that lessons have been taken on board about what happened last year to ensure that there is prospect for it to suffer the same dramas again.

"We had a problem last year because we designed a single joint poorly," Allison said in an interview with the official Lotus website.

"We had created a suspension mounting which was capable of withstanding the loads if it had been made absolutely perfectly. However, that style of joint was very difficult to make accurately enough to get repeatable performance from each chassis.

"We ran chassis #01 at Jerez and the suspension joint in this chassis was good enough to cope with the loads. We ran chassis #02 at Barcelona and the joint in this one was made just a whisker differently; it was not capable of taking the loads and so failed instantly.

"Once we realised our error we redesigned the joint so that the glue lines were capable of delivering the required strength without any scatter from chassis to chassis.

"On the E21 we've paid particular attention to this area so we're not expecting any repeat dramas."

Both Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean showed the potential of the E21 when they set pace-setting time during last week's Jerez test.

The new Williams-Renault FW35 has passed the final crash test ahead of its track debut at next week's Barcelona test.

Williams ran its 2012 machine in last week's first pre-season test at Jerez after deciding not to use the new car there in order to focus on evaluating the 2013 Pirelli tyres.

But after passing the final nose test as scheduled last Thursday, the new car will be able to hit the track on February 19.

At Jerez last week, Pastor Maldonado told AUTOSPORT that he was confident about the new machine.

"It's a step," said Maldonado. "We try to look at every single component, everything.

"But all the cars look very similar to last year because the rules are the same.

"It's a small improvement all round the car and we are quite confident that it will be very competitive this year, even better than the previous one."

[Lineker]

Annoying isn't it?

SO annoying! I really hope that something gets done about it.

[Katsuya]

I think Anderson is good at the tests, but Kravitz is much, much better during races. Ted seems to run around and find everything and anything out, Anderson didn't seem to add much when I watched the BBC races.

[Katsuya]

Sutil has had a seat fitting at Force India and might be part of the Barcelona test.

[MJB]

I can understand Force India wanting Sutil back but I'd have rather seen Bianchi get the second seat, personally.

[Lineker]

The F1 Show returns tonight!

[Lineker]

Seven of the 11 Formula 1 teams are struggling financially to the extent that they are in "survival" mode, says McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh.

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Red Bull boss Christian Horner admits there is a chance that one of Formula 1's current frontrunning teams could make a hash of the 2014 rules and end up stuck in the midfield.

With teams preparing for the switch to all-new regulations next year - when 1.6-litre turbo V6 engines are introduced - there is no guarantee that current competitiveness will flow through into 2014.

When asked about coping with the threat of being shuffled down the order - either through getting the car or engine wrong – Horner said: "I think that for sure 2014 is going to be a risk for everyone.

"Nobody knows where anybody is with their respective engines at the moment, and you can see within Viry [Renault's engine headquarters] there is a lot of determination and a lot of good work going on.

"Renault has a tremendous track record and we have a lot of faith in the engineers at Viry. You can see where they are with their programme, while Mercedes and Ferrari are also pushing extremely hard as well.

"The racing in F1 next year could be quite different, and there could be more focus on economy than absolute performance. It will be an interesting challenge.

"We have confidence in our engine partner, but we will only know in 2014."

Although it has been suggested that manufacturer teams Mercedes and Ferrari will have an advantage for 2014 because of the increasing importance of integrating the engine and chassis, Horner is not so convinced.

He believes that the close ties that Red Bull has with Renault are enough to ensure that his team is not left on the back foot.

"I think we have an extremely good relationship with the guys in Viry," he said. "And we have a clear [works] status with Renault.

"There has been an awful lot of exchange of design ideas, and the way you integrate your chassis and your power plant into your chassis is a clear element.

"Whether it is Mercedes in Brackley dealing with Brixworth or Milton Keynes dealing with Viry, that relationship I would assume is reasonably similar."

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Caterham team principal Cyril Abiteboul believes Formula 1 must consider easing the criteria that teams have to meet in order to qualify as a constructor.

The designated 'listed parts' that teams must produce themselves to qualify as a constructor have, for the first time, been published in the public domain in this year's Sporting Regulations.

The list exists to prevent full-blown customer cars from being used, but Abiteboul believes parts that are not significant performance differentiators should not be on the list.

"We need to have a fresh look at that and see whether these parts contribute to the show or if it makes a fundamental contribution to the performance," Abiteboul told AUTOSPORT.

"If the answer is no, or not really, then we should be open to more exchanges between the teams.

"Obviously, you need to look at the details in F1 because you always try to find ways to go around what is written in black-and-white and there is no spirit of the regulations.

"We have to make sure that it is extremely clear for everyone."

Abiteboul re-iterated his belief that there is the need for greater collaboration between the teams given the current economic climate.

Despite that he is wary of F1 allowing full customer cars, as called for by Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo numerous times, and sees a relaxation of the listed parts rule as a better way to ease financial pressure.

That would allow more technology to be shared between the teams, a model that has worked in the automotive industry.

"There is a discussion in Concorde about what exactly is a constructor," he explained.

"Personally, I do believe that it is offering a nice avenue without going into the extreme of complete customer cars.

"Even if the pure definition of competition is that you should not be collaborating, there is still some stuff [we can do].

"We are in a tough economic climate and a good way to mitigate everyone's exposure and cost is to ease the things that are not altering the fundamental principle of the show."

Article 6.3 of the 2013 F1 sporting regulations defines a constructor as follows: "A constructor is the person (including any corporate or unincorporated body) which designs the Listed Parts set out in Schedule 3 to The 2009 Concorde Agreement.

"The make of an engine or chassis is the name attributed to it by its constructor. The obligation to design and use Listed Parts shall not prevent a constructor from outsourcing the design and/or manufacture of any Listed Parts to a third party in accordance with the provisions of Schedule 3 to The 2009 Concorde Agreement."

For the first time, those listed parts are included in the Sporting Regulations in Appendix 6. They are:

- Monocoque

- Survival cell as defined in Article 1.14 of the F1 Technical Regulations

- Front and side impact structures used to meet the requirements of Articles 16.2, 16.3 and 16.4 of the F1 Technical Regulations

- Roll over structures - roll structures as regulated by Article 15.2 of the F1 Technical Regulations

- Front and rear suspension without rotating parts

- Suspension geometry and suspension members as regulated by Articles 10.2 and 10.3 of the F1 Technical Regulations

- Heat exchanges (oil and water)

- Bodywork as defined in Article 1.4 of the F1 Technical Regulations and regulated by Article 3 of the F1 Technical Regulations with the exception of airboxes, engine exhausts and any prescribed bodywork geometries

- Wings

- All parts of the steering system- Seat

- The brake and throttle pedal assemblies and mechanisms

- Pedals

- Brake balance adjustment

- Front and rear brake duct

- Front wing adjustment actuation system

- Switchboard and paddles

- Floor

- Diffuser

- Fuel cell

[DJ Ice]

Can't wait for this new season! Hopefully Lewis Hamilton flops and dies a slow death at Mercedes (As highly unlikely as that sounds) and Sergio Perez (Greatest man on earth) gets a few race wins and doesn't end up like Hekki Kovalinen!

[Katsuya]

F1 Show was good, even if Chilton was a non-entity and entirely uncharismatic. Brundle made a very good point that Ricciardo and Vergne didn't show they were better than Alguesuari and Buemi last season. I do hope that Jaime comes back soon; him and Vergne would probably be a good duo.

[Lineker]

I like Ricciardo. Probably because he is an Aussie and was so young that he wore braces last year.

I really dislike STR being Read Bull Jr. though. It should become Minardi again!

[Lineker]

Williams became the final team to unveil its 2013 Formula 1 car when the FW35 was launched ahead of the second winter test on Tuesday morning.

The team had used a modified version of its 2012 design for the opening test at Jerez earlier in February, having decided to continue with the development work of the new car that is making its debut at Barcelona.

The FW35 retains Renault power and features aggressive undercuts on its sidepods.

"Given the rule stability over the winter," said technical director Mike Coughlan, "I'm pleased with the gains that we've been able to make with this car.

"It's a better, more refined Formula One car than the FW34 and I think everyone involved in the project can feel proud of the work they've done."

The team said that, despite being an evolution of last year's car, the FW35 is 80 per cent new, with a new gearbox, new rear suspension, new radiators, a new floor, new exhausts, new bodywork and a new nose.

Williams returned to the top step of the podium after seven win-less seasons when Pastor Maldonado won last year's Spanish Grand Prix.

But inconsistent form meant this breakthrough was not reflected in the standings, with Williams only eighth in the constructors' championship at the end of the season.

Maldonado stays on for 2013, with Valtteri Bottas promoted from the reserve driver role to replace Bruno Senna in the race team.

Williams and Caterham may have to drop the controversial vanes that sit in the 'Coanda channel' of their 2013 Formula 1 cars after being advised that the FIA considers them to be illegal.

The new Williams FW35 features a two-part vane behind the exhaust, mounted at the top of the U-shaped channel into which the exhaust pipes exit, while Caterham has a similar one-piece part placed a little lower.

Technical director Mike Coughlan was adamant that the part is legal when asked about it in the wake of the car being unveiled on Tuesday morning.

He believes the fact that the vane is in two parts makes it permissible, whereas he sees the Caterham design as illegal because it is a single piece and fully encloses the Coanda channel.

But the Williams team has confirmed that the FIA approached it on Tuesday morning to express its view that the design, along with that of Caterham, is illegal.

The FIA insists that an exhaust's primary purpose must not be to affect the aerodynamic performance of the car, a stipulation governed by a combination of the technical regulations and private technical directives issued to the teams.

In order to ensure this is not happening, it deems that the sides of the Coanda channels are not allowed to converge in any way, meaning that they must be vertical or slope outwards.

Exhaust gases are allowed to have an incidental aerodynamic effect, but what Williams and Caterham have attempted is understood to be seen as overstepping the mark.

Despite the FIA's concerns, its current position is only advisory and both teams can continue to run their designs during testing, which is unregulated beyond safety standards.

Should they continue to run them once the season starts, the FIA is able to refer the matter to race stewards for consideration.

When contacted about the situation, a spokesperson told AUTOSPORT: "The team spoke with the FIA this morning (they approached us), which is when they gave us their view.

"The team are now seeking further clarification on this and a decision as to whether this design will be carried forward will be made before the first race."

The Williams FW35 in pictures

Nico Rosberg narrowly edged out Kimi Raikkonen to put Mercedes on top on the first day of Formula 1 pre-season testing at Barcelona.

Both men found improvements after bolting on Pirelli's medium-compound rubber in the final 20 minutes of the day.

Rosberg, whose morning had been disrupted by lengthy gearbox checks, was the first to make his move. New overall bests in the final two sectors produced a lap of 1m22.616s and vaulted him to the top of the timesheets.

Minutes later Raikkonen staged his own late rally, but despite bettering Rosberg's sector two time he fell seven thousandths of a second short of putting Lotus on top.

Fernando Alonso, again on mediums, was another late improver.

On his first day in the Ferrari F138 last year's championship runner-up worked his way down to a 1m22.952s to end the day in third.

The flurry of late improvements knocked morning pacesetter and reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel down to fourth.

The German had gradually improved his lunchtime best and was the first man to dip into the 1m22s bracket, only to be bumped down the order in theclosing stages.

Having launched its FW35 in the morning, Williams ended the day in fifth position courtesy of Pastor Maldonado, a racewinner at Barcelona last year.

The Venezuelan spent time at the top of the timesheets in the morning and racked up 85 laps in total, behind only Alonso in 110.

Daniel Ricciardo in the Toro Rosso STR8 shaded McLaren's Sergio Perez in the fight for sixth, while Paul di Resta - the day's third busiest man - was just two hundredths of a second down the road for Force India.

After bringing about the day's first red flag with an early out-of-fuel run, Esteban Gutierrez was ninth fastest and just over 2.5s off the overall pace for Sauber.

Charles Pic was the only other man to cause a stoppage, pulling to the inside of Renault due to a mechanical issue with his Caterham.

He dropped to 11th in the afternoon as Marussia's Max Chilton found improvements with the soft tyre.

[Katsuya]

Obviously it's hard to know what programs they were running etc, but I wonder if Sauber are slightly worried that Hulkenburg beat Gutuerrez's best time by about 3 seconds today.

[Katsuya]

Bernie, probably seeing the dollar signs in his eyes again, is trying to get a race in Mexico in 2014. Shades of "hey, this Alonso rookie's pretty good, let's take advantage of that!"

[GA!]

Bernie, probably seeing the dollar signs in his eyes again, is trying to get a race in Mexico in 2014. Shades of "hey, this Alonso rookie's pretty good, let's take advantage of that!"

There's one of the reasons most of the teams are financially unstable - they have to travel to wherever Bernie wants a working holiday. F1 needs to scale back in that respect.

[MJB]

Paddy Lowe will join Mercedes for 2014 after being placed on 'gardening leave' by McLaren for the rest of this year.

This will probably signal the end for Ross Brawn at Mercedes aswell.

[Lineker]

Sky are saying that Sutil will race for Force India this season.

[MJB]

Their source is Bianchi's agent.

If that's right, we have our 22 drivers for Melbourne

[Adam]

Maria de Villota (woman who lost her right eye in a testing accident for Marussia last year) has been cleared to drive. Wonderful news, glad she's recovered alright and still wants to get behind the wheel.

[Katsuya]

Yup, Sutil has just been confirmed as the second Force India driver. Saying that, Marussia are apparently going to get rid of Luiz Razia because his sponsors haven't paid their money. Rumour is that Kovalainen is in line to take the spot.