The first aerodynamic developments arrive for Renault F1
The RS16 had to be developed in a hurry, and the results are not yet optimal for Renault. But the French team, which has a substantial budget at its disposal, is speeding up development of its single-seater.
Everyone knows that the development of the Renault RS16 began too late – at the end of last November – to allow the French car to be among the leaders of the current Formula 1 season. However, with resources worthy of a leading team, Renault has begun the accelerated development of its single-seater and will soon reap the first benefits.
Nick Chester, the technical director for the chassis, has confirmed the arrival of some developments at the next Grand Prix: “We have a few small aerodynamic parts to try even though we will have more in the future, both on the aerodynamic and engine sides. These should then represent a good step forward. The cars in front of us are separated by very small gaps. Therefore, we don’t need much to make tangible progress.”
As Bob Bell, the team’s technical director, points out, aerodynamic developments will arrive at each race, while a major engine development is expected for Canada in June: « We will obviously approach development on two fronts: engine and chassis » revealed Bob Bell. « In the first half of the year, we will focus on the engine and have a classic development program for the chassis. We will have the usual aero developments race after race, like everyone else, then complex mechanical elements when we approach the testing program in Europe. I think we have a credible plan to improve the car, but we obviously need to find a balance between what we want to do next year and our expectations for this year. » The ambition, however, is to focus early enough on preparing for the 2017 season, which will be marked by the introduction of new technical regulations.
The RS16, although born prematurely, almost scored points in Melbourne, as in Sakhir. Nick Chester confirms that Renault’s race pace is much better than in qualifying: Kevin [Magnussen] had a good race finishing eleventh, close to the points despite starting from the pit lane. In the race, the R.S.16 is very strong with the supersoft tires. The field is incredibly tight during the race. We saw it both in Australia and in Bahrain. Our qualifying pace is relatively lower than our race pace. This is an area we are focusing on, but it goes hand in hand with our overall goal of performance improvement.
Fredéric Vasseur, the competition director, is pleased to see his Renault competing with Force India and Williams during the race: « If someone had told me in Barcelona [during pre-season testing] that we would be fighting in a race with a Force India or a Williams, I would have laughed! It’s a good surprise. (…) Towards the end of the race, our pace was good, similar to Force India and close to Williams. It’s encouraging for the team and a solid foundation to build on ».
