Renault R31:
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Renault unveils its 2011 challenger
By Simon Strang Monday, January 31st 2011, 11:45 GMT
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.
Speaking to AUTOSPORT earlier in the month, the team's technical director James Allison described the development direction Renault has taken as 'brave' adding: 'Anyone who follows the sport will have seen that words like aggressive [and] brave are being bandied around across several of the teams this year for their solutions.
'I believe that we have chosen a direction that is really on the brave end of brave.'
The team also revealed that former HRT driver Bruno Senna will join Romain Grosjean, Jan Charouz, Ho-Ping Tung and Fairuz Fauzy as part of the team's test and reserve driving strength.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/89162
Sauber C30:
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Sauber pulls covers off new C30
By Jonathan Noble Monday, January 31st 2011, 10:02 GMT
Sauber C30
Sauber has unveiled the new C30 that it hopes will bring it a step forward in pace and deliver the improved reliability that it needs to become a more regular points scorer.
The Swiss outfit pulled the covers off its Ferrari-powered car at the Valencia circuit on Monday morning - with the car featuring what is now a standard high nose in F1 and a more slender rear end compared to last year's challenger.
Technical director James Key said: 'Our aim in the development of the Sauber C30-Ferrari has been to build on the strengths of the C29 and to eliminate its weak points.
'In addition, it is also important for us to go into winter testing with a car we understand, and we have worked hard on ensuring the characteristics of the car are heading in a direction we believe in. There will be much to learn about the new Pirelli tyres and in this respect we want to ensure there are no surprises with the way the car is handling.'
Key said that one of the primary targets for the outfit was to have a car that would be predictable from the start - because there remains so much uncertainty about how the new Pirelli tyres will fare.
'In order to take a step forward in 2011, we were already systematically tackling the C29's weaknesses over the last season – and we've made progress. The insights we gleaned were taken into account when the concept for the new C30 was being drawn up.
'Since some of the changes decreed by the regulations – particularly regarding the tyres – can only be analysed out on track, it was important for us to build, firstly, a fundamentally predictable car and, secondly, one that would provide sufficient flexibility to respond to ongoing findings at the track and during further development stages.'
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.
Team principal Peter Sauber said he hoped the C30 would help the team make progress in the areas where it was lacking last year.
'We want to finish in the points regularly and clearly improve our position in the FIA Formula 1 constructors' world championship,' he said. '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-Ferrari.
'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.'
Sauber has confirmed that the KERS units it will use in 2011 will be provided by Ferrari.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/89157