The McLaren-Honda development car tested at Silverstone
Announced for the Abu Dhabi tests, the McLaren-Honda development car will hit the track starting tomorrow to verify the integration of the Japanese engine ahead of 2015.
MP4-29H. That’s the name of the development car built by the McLaren team to conduct initial runs with the Honda engine, which will equip the MP4-30 in 2015.
These initial runs were initially expected at the very end of the season, during the private tests in Abu Dhabi, which will take place the week following the Grand Prix. However, it is actually this Friday, November 14th, at the Silverstone circuit, that the manufacturer and engine supplier will be able to complete their first laps together since 1992.
Tomorrow will therefore be devoted to a promotional event, meaning a run that does not exceed 100km and is conducted with demonstration tires. It is Oliver Turvey, McLaren’s test driver, who will handle this first outing, which will be aimed at verifying the proper integration of the hybrid turbo block and identifying any problems in order to address them ahead of the Abu Dhabi tests.
Eric Boullier, the racing director, stated a month ago: “To ensure we are ready for the launch of the new cars in 2015, we decided to build a development car, as Honda needs to check the multiple systems. We also need to verify the information transfer between the track and Woking and between the track and Japan. Therefore, to avoid having to focus too much on these things during winter testing, we decided to run a development car.”
« In terms of the car’s design, it will be very similar to [the MP4-29]. We don’t want to throw money out the window in areas where it’s not necessary. We just need to ensure that certain technical options for next year are already on the car. »
