F1 Bahrain Test 2014

Zcott

The first of two tests at Bahrain starts this week, and we should start to see a few answers:

Is the Mercedes genuinely quick?
Has everyone copied the McLaren rear suspension yet?
How does the Lotus perform?
And the big one...are Renault anywhere near fixing their issues?

The weather forecast is hot and sunny all week (no surprise there) with temperatures around 20° every day. A good test of a car's cooling capabilities...

Here's the driver lineup for this week:

Red Bull: Sebastian Vettel - Wednesday and Thursday; Daniel Ricciardo - Friday and Saturday.

Mercedes: Lewis Hamilton - Wednesday and Friday; Nico Rosberg - Thursday and Saturday.

Ferrari: Fernando Alonso - Wednesday and Thursday; Kimi Raikkonen - Friday and Saturday.

Lotus: Romain Grosjean - Wednesday and Thursday; Pastor Maldonado - Friday and Saturday.

McLaren: Kevin Magnussen - Wednesday and Thursday; Jenson Button - Friday and Saturday.

Force India: Nico Hulkenberg - Wednesday and Thursday; Sergio Perez - Friday and Saturday.

Marussia: Jules Bianchi - Wednesday and Saturday; Max Chilton on Thursday and Friday.

Caterham: Robin Frijns - Wednesday; Kamui Kobayashi - Thursday and Saturday; Marcus Ericsson - Friday.

v3ttel

Surprised at Caterham only putting Ericsson in the car for one day. Surely track time is vital, especially when you are a rookie and even more so when they had exceptionally limited track time at Jerez.

Mitch Connor

v3ttel wrote: »

Surprised at Caterham only putting Ericsson in the car for one day. Surely track time is vital, especially when you are a rookie and even more so when they had exceptionally limited track time at Jerez.

at the same time they might want some with exp in the car for car development reasons, precisely because of the limited tract time at Jerez.

Zcott

Red Bull again look to be in some trouble. No sign of the car yet and more people reporting hearing cutting and grinding noises coming from the garage, suggesting they're still struggling with cooling.

antodeco

Hamilton leaps back to the top of the times on his 53rd lap of the test. First man into the 1m37s, putting him just a second shy of Vettel's fastest race lap at last year's Bahrain Grand Prix

Surely thats a good sign that the speed is there!

antodeco

And again!

Hulkenberg goes fastest for Force India with a 1m37.155s. That's 0.7s clear of Hamilton in the Mercedes, and only 0.2s slower than last year's race fastest lap set by Vettel's Red Bull.

Shows that the heat doesnt seem to be causing too much of an issue. Obviously its race pace as oppose to qualifying pace, but its still very good to see!

cherryghost

Vettel with only 7 laps so far today.

Zcott

Hard to know what's going on with fuel loads but they do seem pretty quick.

Any update on the Red Bull? I see the Toro Rosso has stopped out on track...

Andrew76

Zcott wrote: »

Hard to know what's going on with fuel loads but they do seem pretty quick.

Any update on the Red Bull? I see the Toro Rosso has stopped out on track...

Vettel just stopped out on track according to the BBC. Fastest time for him so far is a 1:40.224.

TheDoctor

Afternoon gents, I see the Red Bull has picked up where it left in Bahrain

v3ttel

Mitch Connor wrote: »

at the same time they might want some with exp in the car for car development reasons, precisely because of the limited tract time at Jerez.

They put in Robin Frijins in for a day, instead of Marcus Ericsson because want someone with experience? Both are rookies, if you could even give Frijins the rookie label seeing as he has never been given an F1 race seat.

The obvious choice for an experienced driver, if they really did want to go down that route, would be to go for Heikki, seeing as he knows Caterham inside out and has plenty of F1 experience.

That's even discounting the fact that they've already got an experienced driver in the form of Kobayashi running for 2 days.

If quality of feedback was a primary concern, then you'd probably put your most experienced driver first, not a rookie, as it's better to have the highest quality feedback as soon as possible, giving the engineers the most amount of time possible to work with it. They've not done that.

And also, if they aren't willing to trust the rookie they've picked to as their driver, to give the required feedback to develop the car, then they've made the wrong decision IMHO. I think the most likely reason for putting Frijins in is that it was a marginal call to go for Ericsson over him, but surely they've got to back the choice they made and give Ericsson every possible opportunity to learn about the car and F1 generally.

Zcott

Assume you mean Jerez? And yep...stopped on track. Folks there reporting a burning smell...

Zcott

Actually, does anyone recall a worse start to a year for any team? MP4/18 comes close but wasn't this bad...

Hanalei

Really wish they would lift those damn testing restrictions. With major rule changes like this it was inevitable that at least one team would have major issues. Renault appear to be in big trouble, had unlimited testing been allowed they could have identified this issues months ago, more than a year ago even. Now they are facing a race against time which they will inevitably lose and for some teams the first few race meetings will be reduced to nothing more than glorified test sessions.

I had hoped all along that Red Bull wouldn't be as competitive after the changes, but their current problems give me no satisfaction whatsoever. I really hope they sort these issues out as soon as possible.

Zcott

Hanalei wrote: »

Really wish they would lift those damn testing restrictions. With major rule changes like this it was inevitable that at least one team would have major issues. Renault appear to be in big trouble, had unlimited testing been allowed they could have identified this issues months ago, more than a year ago even. Now they are facing a race against time which they will inevitably lose and for some teams the first few race meetings will be reduced to nothing more than glorified test sessions.

I had hoped all along that Red Bull wouldn't be as competitive after the changes, but their current problems give me no satisfaction whatsoever. I really hope they sort these issues out as soon as possible.

It's not necessarily Renault that are in trouble. The Caterham has run well all day, and the Toro Rosso ran ok with one minor issue. The issue here is Red Bull.

Let's also not lose sight of why there are testing restrictions - the biggest teams would literally spend their way to victory. With limited testing, everyone is in the same boat and no team can hire a circuit for a month to develop a car. It gives folks like Caterham and Marussia a level playing field to develop their car on track.

No, the Red Bull issues don't give me great joy but it's good to see a possible shake up in the pecking order. Red Bull have the resources to fix it, but they don't have time. This doesn't take away from the fact that it's fundamentally not a good design, both from Renault and Red Bull.

PopePalpatine

antodeco wrote: »

Shows that the heat doesnt seem to be causing too much of an issue. Obviously its race pace as oppose to qualifying pace, but its still very good to see!

Are you talking about the weather over there, or heat from the "power unit"?

smellslikeshoes

Zcott wrote: »

It's not necessarily Renault that are in trouble. The Caterham has run well all day, and the Toro Rosso ran ok with one minor issue. The issue here is Red Bull.

Let's also not lose sight of why there are testing restrictions - the biggest teams would literally spend their way to victory. With limited testing, everyone is in the same boat and no team can hire a circuit for a month to develop a car. It gives folks like Caterham and Marussia a level playing field to develop their car on track.

Do you really think that when unlimited testing was done away with the big teams just stopped spending that money ? Restricted testing has failed miserably, F1 costs are higher than ever. Instead of spending the cash on testing it is being spent in other areas like CFD/Windtunnel/simulations etc.

The only real effects lack of testing has had is make it harder for talented new drivers to get into the sport and make it harder for teams with problems to get them sorted.

Zcott

Day 2: Red Bull have done 34 laps so far!

ScumLord

smellslikeshoes wrote: »

F1 costs are higher than ever.

We don't know that the cost wouldn't be ten times more by now without limited testing. The cost of F1 are always going to go up, they're adding new technology all the time and even the materials the cars are made out of are constantly going up in price. That's always going to be the case when your on the cutting edge.

The only real effects lack of testing has had is make it harder for talented new drivers to get into the sport and make it harder for teams with problems to get them sorted.

I would say the top ten teams should carry on with testing as it is while the rest of the pack gets an extra day or half a day.

Today's formula one is the most competitive it's ever been according to Allan McNish in this video, and I agree with him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzRoKW7LHz8

ZiabR

Update on the times today:

1 Magnussen McLaren 1m34.910s
2 Hulkenberg Force India 1m36.445s +1.535
3 Alonso Ferrari 1m36.516s +1.606
4 Rosberg Mercedes 1m36.965s +2.055
5 Bottas Williams 1m37.328s +2.418
6 Kobayashi Caterham 1m39.855s +4.945
7 Vettel Red Bull 1m40.340s +5.430
8 Vergne Toro Rosso 1m40.609s +5.699
9 Gutierrez Sauber 1m40.717s +5.807
10 Grosjean Lotus 1m41.670s +6.760
11 Chilton Marussia 1m42.511s +7.601

2.6 seconds off last season's pole. Maybe these cars aren't as slow as some have been hoping.

ScumLord

Deleted User wrote: »

2.6 seconds off last season's pole. Maybe these cars aren't as slow as some have been hoping.

Which is an amazing engineering feat in it's own right.

Zcott

Must say, Magnussen has been very impressive so far. Might revise my fantasy team at this rate...

ZiabR

And the running laps today:

Bottas (Williams) 116
Alonso (Ferrari) 97
Rosberg (Mercedes) 85
Kobayashi (Caterham) 66
Hulkenberg (Force India) 59
Vettel (Red Bull) 59
Vergne (Toro Rosso) 58
Gutierrez (Sauber) 55
Magnussen (McLaren) 46
Grosjean (Lotus) 18
Chilton (Marussia) 17

Myrddin

Deleted User wrote: »

2.6 seconds off last season's pole. Maybe these cars aren't as slow as some have been hoping.

ScumLord wrote: »

Which is an amazing engineering feat in it's own right.

Indeed, the times yesterday were only a few tenths off the fastest lap of the race from last year too. Amazing stuff.

kryptonmight

I think Hulkenburg or Magnessen went faster this week that the fastest lap in the race from last year. Still a few seconds off pole though.

Great to see Williams get a load of laps in today (over 100).

I kinda hope Red Bull have a challenge this year. I really don't want to see them run away with it again.

Zcott

I suspect it's for a few reasons:

1. It's cooler in February than April, and engines run better in cooler temperatures
2. Low fuel loads
3. Fresh tyres
4. Drivers not in fuel/engine/gearbox saving mode
5. Or I could be making this all up...

Zcott

Zcott wrote: »

I suspect it's for a few reasons:

1. It's cooler in February than April, and engines run better in cooler temperatures
2. Low fuel loads
3. Fresh tyres
4. Drivers not in fuel/engine/gearbox saving mode
5. Or I could be making this all up...

Most of which applies to qualifying anyway.

Ghost Train

Cars not sounding to bad on sky, nice echo

McLaren just 1.2 off their quali time from last year, pretty good going.

ZiabR

Laps and times from today so far:

Times:

1 Hamilton Mercedes 1m34.263s
2 Gutierrez Sauber 1m37.180s +2.917
3 Button McLaren 1m37.315s +3.052
4 Maldonado Lotus 1m39.642s +5.379
5 Perez Force India 1m40.369s +6.106
6 Raikkonen Ferrari 1m41.336s +7.073
7 Kvyat Toro Rosso 1m41.612s +7.349
8 Ricciardo Red Bull 1m41.629s +7.366
9 Ericsson Caterham 1m43.602s +9.339
10 Chilton Marussia 1m46.672s +12.409

Laps:

Bottas (Williams) 33
Gutierrez (Sauber) 30
Hamilton (Mercedes) 25
Ericsson (Caterham) 19
Maldonado (Lotus) 18
Button (McLaren) 14
Kvyat (Toro Rosso) 13
Ricciardo (Red Bull) 13
Raikkonen (Ferrari) 12
Perez (Force India) 4
Chilton (Marussia) 4

Zcott

Both the Lotus and the Marussia have already broken down today so far. Not good considering both teams have only managed a handful of laps on the previous days.

christy c

Bottas did 55 out/in laps this morning for pit stop practice. Seems odd to me

Peanut Butter Jelly

Now down to only 9 tenths slower that Rosberg's 1:33.3 from qualifying.

Zcott

Not really; 55 goes at changing tyres for the team and entering the pitbox for Bottas because he has no experience of that. They all practice stops relentlessly.

Anyway, Massa is out there setting times now.

Edit: this is clearly full of nonsense

christy c

Zcott wrote: »

Not really; 55 goes at changing tyres for the team and entering the pitbox for Bottas because he has no experience of that. They all practice stops relentlessly.

Anyway, Massa is out there setting times now.

?? Bottas drove last year.

Anyway I've just never saw it before

Zcott

christy c wrote: »

?? Bottas drove last year.

Anyway I've just never saw it before

Wow I am stupid. Might report my own post.

ZiabR

Update on the laps:

Gutierrez (Sauber) 65 laps
Ericsson (Caterham) 60 laps
Bottas (Williams) 55 laps
Button (McLaren) 48 laps
Hamilton (Mercedes) 45 laps
Kvyat (Toro Rosso) 43 laps
Perez (Force India) 34 laps
Ricciardo (Red Bull) 28 laps
Massa (Williams) 24 laps
Maldonado (Lotus) 19 laps
Raikkonen (Ferrari) 12 laps
Chilton (Marussia) 4 laps

ZiabR

Issues for Marussia:



While Red Bull use leads of Hi Vis paint:



Looks like it is channeling the air very very well around the side pod and to the rear bottle neck.

ZiabR

Final Laps and Times for the day.

Laps:

Button (McLaren) 103
Ericsson (Caterham) 98
Gutierrez (Sauber) 96
Hamilton (Mercedes) 67
Massa (Williams) 60
Perez (Force India) 57
Kvyat (Toro Rosso) 57
Bottas (Williams) 55
Raikkonen (Ferrari) 44
Ricciardo (Red Bull) 28
Maldonado (Lotus) 26
Chilton (Marussia) 4

Times:

1 Hamilton Mercedes 1m34.263s
2 Button McLaren 1m34.976s +0.713
3 Massa Williams 1m37.066s +2.803
4 Gutierrez Sauber 1m37.180s +2.917
5 Perez Force India 1m37.367s +3.104
6 Raikkonen Ferrari 1m37.476s +3.213
7 Kvyat Toro Rosso 1m38.974s +4.711
8 Maldonado Lotus 1m39.642s +5.379
9 Ricciardo Red Bull 1m40.781s +6.518
10 Ericsson Caterham 1m42.130s +7.867
11 Chilton Marussia 1m46.672s +12.409

PopePalpatine

Imagine if there was this much of a spread between the drivers when we get to Melbourne...could you imagine how many failed to meet the 107% rule? :pac:

Myrddin

It seems Red Bull are getting some laps under their belt? Still, at six seconds off the pace you'd have to wonder how hard they're pushing....

Mitch Connor

Myrddin wrote: »

It seems Red Bull are getting some laps under their belt? Still, at six seconds off the pace you'd have to wonder how hard they're pushing....

engines are restricted to 100-150 bhp off top power, and no functionality tests being done yet - so the work they can put in with the engine has been very very limited and near useless so far.

ZiabR

Myrddin wrote: »

It seems Red Bull are getting some laps under their belt? Still, at six seconds off the pace you'd have to wonder how hard they're pushing....

I would very much doubt it. They are still working through issues. If I am honest, I dont think anyone was pushing.

I think we will see some pushing in the third test. I expect the times to come down next week and I believe these are as fast as last years cars. I think they will match last years pole next week.

Red Bulls Issues:

The team's race engineer co-ordinator Andy Damerum revealed that a mechanical problem was found on the car while set-up changes were being carried out, and the issue required the crew to dismantle the RB10 so it could be fixed for the final day of running on Saturday.

Zcott

Should add that the mechanical issue Red Bull found was something that's been there a while and they up just hadn't spotted it. They're hopeful tomorrow will be better as a result.

kryptonmight

It will be interesting to see how the teams get on when they push the engines fully. Renault really seem to be behind the 8 ball at the moment.

The Merc and McLaren seem good. Saw a quote from Gary Anderson who reckons Williams have made a big step. I hope so, I'd like to see them do well.

ScumLord

I wouldn't read too much into failing engines and stuff at this stage. You learn a lot from pushing the engine to breaking point, at least those guys know for sure where the limits and problems are. Best to get that stuff out of the way now instead of finding out about it on race day.

Gillespy

Williams had a few issues with pitstops last year, didn't they have to manually check the retainer was engaged before releasing the car. Today might have had something to do with that?

ScumLord

ScumLord wrote: »

I wouldn't read too much into failing engines and stuff at this stage. You learn a lot from pushing the engine to breaking point, at least those guys know for sure where the limits and problems are. Best to get that stuff out of the way now instead of finding out about it on race day.

You can read a huge amount into reliability at this stage. We're already halfway through testing, engine homologation is in 7 days and they're going racing in 3 weeks.

Renault have serious, serious problems.

Frank Bullitt

Its funny and desperate to read some of the comments on the RB over on the Autosport forum.

One poor soul claimed RB showed "good pace" with the few laps they did, god bless him.

Zcott

Yeah, 6s off the pace is good going.