Caterham F1 Team seems to be doing better in the boardroom than on the track. No championship points yet, but another sponsor has been added to the list. Russian Helicopters has become an official partner of the team, and the helicopter maker’s logos will be seen on the Caterham CT01 from the Monaco GP, which is the next race.

Vitaly Petrov drives for Caterham alongside Heikki Kovalainen. Petrov, who is Russian, was dropped by Lotus, and replaced veteran Jarno Trulli in the Caterham team. It’s no secret why this new sponsor came on board.

“Russian Helicopters are delighted to announce the start of our partnership program with Vitaly Petrov’s Caterham F1 Team. It is important for Russian businesses to support projects which positively raise the profile of Russian interests worldwide.

“And as Russian Helicopters is a global high-tech company it is a natural step for us to support Vitaly, as Caterham’s Russian driver, in his role in a high-tech sport which is enormously popular all over the world,” said Dmitry Petrov, General Director of JSC Russian Helicopters.

Moscow-based Russian Helicopters is a subsidiary of UIC Oboronprom, which in turn is a part of Russian Technologies State Corporation. It is the only helicopter design and production company in Russia. Over 8,000 helicopters of Soviet/Russian make are operated in 110 countries worldwide, with demand highest in the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Russia, and CIS countries.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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It was a dramatic weekend in Spain for the Williams F1 Team. Pastor Maldonado won yesterday’s race ahead of Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen, ending the team’s victory drought that dates back to the 2004 Brazilian Grand Prix. The Catalunya victory is the first F1 win by a Venezuelan, and it happened on the weekend of team founder Sir Frank Williams’ 70th birthday.

If that’s not enough, the Wlliams team garage went up in flames after the race, injuring 16 people, one with severe burns. The race winner was seen carrying his 12-year-old cousin Manuel to safety in the blaze, which is believed to have been caused by an electrical fault in a fuel rig. Caterham said four of their mechanics were taken to the medical centre, one with a minor hand injury and three for smoke inhalation. Thankfully, there were no casualties.

Maldonado started first on the grid, as stewards penalised Lewis Hamilton for running short of fuel at the end of qualifying. Local hero Alonso beat him to the first corner, but Maldonado regained the lead after the second round of pitstops.

The red car was all over the Williams at the end part of the race, and a pass by Alonso looked inevitable at that time, but the two-time champ’s challenge faded away.

A charging Kimi was eating away at the gap between him and Fernando, but the Lotus man ran out of laps. Still, a second podium finish in two races is a good result for the returning Finn. Teammate Romain Grosjean finished fourth to cap off a good day for the team.

Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi did really well to claim fifth, while showing that he still has the kamikaze moves that made everyone sit up and notice. Defending champ Seb Vettel finished sixth after a successful late charge that saw him overtake both McLarens (Hamilton eighth, Button ninth) and Nico Rosberg, who finished seventh. Vettel was hit with drive-through penalty for failing to heed yellow flags. He also required a new front wing in his final stop.

After a great duel with a restless Mark Webber, Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg emerged to take the final point of the day.

Living legend Michael Schumacher had a bad day in the office, colliding into Bruno Senna when fighting for position at the end of the straight on lap 13. Stewards found Schumi to be the guilty party and handed the Mercedes man a five-place grid penalty for Monaco. Schumacher has collected just two points after five races, 39 less than teammate Rosberg.

Who had a worse day than him? Felipe Massa, perhaps. The struggling Ferrari driver was penalised for ignoring yellow flags and was lapped by his teammate at the end, finishing 15th. Massa also has two points to date, 59 less than joint-championship leader and teammate Alonso. The end has to be near for Massa…

Five races, five different winners. Next stop, Monaco.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

Related posts:

1. F1: Nico Rosberg wins the Chinese GP, his maiden victory and Mercedes’ first triumph since 1955!
2. Lotus F1 Team: An inside look into the team’s garage
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Damon Hill, the 1996 F1 champion turned pundit, will race for the first time since 1999 when he gets behind the wheel of the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup car. The event, a DTM support race, will be at Brands Hatch on May 18-19.

Hill, who became champion driving the famous Rothmans-liveried, Renault-powered Williams, will be joined by a group of his junior racing rivals for the Scirocco race. They are Mark Blundell, Perry McCarthy, Martin Donnelly and Julian Bailey (the rat pack), along with David Brabham. McCarthy organised the race reunion to raise funds for Damon Hill’s Halow charity.

“Perry, Julian and I are coming out of retirement for this race, so we are sure to be pretty rusty. But it promises to be a great weekend for all friends and family to get together and a great way to draw attention to the aims and objectives of the charity. I am looking forward to it,” Hill said.

If Damon needs some tips on the VW, he’s welcome to call our Harvinder, who has recent track experience in the racing Scirocco

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Formula 1 fans, do you want to own a part of the sport you love? Well, you can technically do so soon, as F1 is all set to make its debut on the Singapore stock exchange. The floatation on SGX, scheduled to happen next month, is expected to offer up to 30% of shares to investors.

The man running the show will be Austrian Peter Braback-Letmathe, a non-executive board member of Delta Topco, which is the parent company of CVC Capital Partners, the private equity group that holds F1’s commercial rights. Braback-Letmathe is also chairman of the board and a former CEO of Swiss food giant Nestle.

“We intend to float F1 in Singapore soon. Some roadshows and presentations have taken place already. It’s true that I said I would be ready to chair the board in a non-operative function. If F1 goes public it will be important to have an independent chairman.” Braback-Letmathe told Austrian newspaper Salzburger Nachrichten.

Pretty soon, “I own Formula 1″ will be a boast non-Bernie Ecclestones like you and me can pull off, even if it’s just 0.00001%

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Noticed the “True Blue” and “Out of the Blue” messages on Sauber engine covers in the past two races? Well, the blue link is apparent now – Sauber F1 Team has entered into a partnership with English Premier League club Chelsea FC, also known as The Blues. Expect to see Chelsea logos on the cars of Perez and Kobayashi in the next race, the Spanish GP.

“A partnership like this between Formula 1 and Football has never existed before in this form, yet there are numerous commonalities and possible synergies. In either case we are talking about team sport at the highest – and international – level,” said Sauber CEO Monisha Kaltenborn.

“Sauber and Chelsea FC are dealing with many of the same sporting and commercial topics and we want to strengthen each other in these areas. We are looking forward to exploiting these opportunities, and we congratulate Chelsea on making it to the final of the Champions League,” she added.

Chelsea Chief Executive Ron Gourlay added: “This is an innovative partnership that will see a football club link up with a F1 team like never before, bringing together two of the world’s biggest sports and uniting our fans. We felt that this Swiss team, the fourth oldest of the existing teams, reflects our own ideals perfectly.

“In a year when Chelsea celebrates 20 seasons as a Premier League team, Sauber does so as a Formula 1 team. We share many philosophies when it comes to how the respective organisations are run, from the development of young talent to constantly striving for success. Sauber’s philosophy towards grassroots development has produced some of the best drivers in F1, which mirrors our dedication to develop promising young football talent through our Academy.

“This partnership will benefit us both greatly, with the potential to create unique commercial opportunities. It is a shared vision to unite the two most attractive sports in the world. We look forward to working closely with the Sauber F1 Team and wish them the very best of luck for the remainder of the Formula 1 season.”

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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He didn’t have race winning pace yesterday, but Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg drove like a man on fire in Bahrain. Lots of action from the German, including two hairy incidents with Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. After investigation by the stewards after the race, the Chinese GP winner will get off scot-free.

The stewards of the meeting met with the drivers and their team reps after the race to look into the details of the clash. It happened when Hamilton exited the pits on lap 11 and tried to retake a position. Rosberg responded by moving across to the right on the exit of Turn 3, and Hamilton had to complete his pass off tarmac before Turn 4.

When Alonso wanted to overtake Rosberg, the latter tried the same thing, but this time, he succeeded in defending his position. The Ferrari man was furious as a result, and we felt a bit of his emotions via the radio.

The stewards said that because Rosberg had moved to the right to defend his position in a ‘constant and continuous straight line manner’ it was legal. Also, Hamilton was not alongside Rosberg as he began that move.

“Had a significant portion of Car 4 (Hamilton) been alongside that of Car 8 (Rosberg) whilst Car 4 still remained within the confines of the track, then the actions of Car 8 may not be considered legitimate,” they added, clearing the Alonso clash for the same reasons.

The Spaniard is still carrying anger. “I can only say that if, instead of such a wide run-off area there had been a wall, I’m not sure I’d be here now to talk about it,” he said. After hearing the investigation outcome, Alonso tweeted: “I think you are going to have fun in future races! You can defend position as you want and you can overtake outside the track! Enjoy!”

Those who saw the race, what do you think?

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Recall that Bahrain did not host the Formula One GP last year due to civil unrest in the nation. This year, however, the show continued in spite of what was happening beyond the boundaries of the racetrack.

Politics aside, Bahrain is also infamous for being dry in overtaking opportunities, as exampled so clearly during the 2010 season. Then again, the cars did not run with DRS in the 2010 season and KERS was not widely used till last year. I don’t have to say that this year was different. With both technologies in full effect, we now have four different winners in four different races; no one have a firm grip on the throne yet.

Red Bull Racing looked to have lost the momentum at the start of the season. And it took the Austria-licensed team with Sebastian Vettel three races before they could sit on pole, and continued on to grab the chequered flag. No mean feat because his rear view mirrors were kept frozen by the avalanche-like pace of the Iceman. Only a well-placed race strategy and crisp pitstops kept Vettel constantly in the lead. His teammate was not as fortunate. Mark Webber, who started third on the grid, lost his position to Grosjean and finished fourth.

Surprising finishers on the podium came from Lotus F1 Team – Kimi finished in second and Romain was placed third. This is the Frenchman’s first podium finish in Formula One. Blistering pace off the starting grid and pure hard work through the first set of corners set a beachhead that both drivers could mount an assault on in the later stints.

Romain started in seventh and meteorically shot into second position. Kimi gained four places up to seventh before clinically carving through the pack and found himself behind his teammate. A few laps later, Kimi swapped places with Romain. From then on, Kimi kept hounding the young German, never letting him rest his pace right till the chequered flag.

While McLaren-Mercedes started strongly, Hamilton in second and Button in fourth, things went horribly wrong for them. Hamilton suffered wheel nut problems in two of three pitstops, costing him precious seconds and even more valuable positions. He finished eighth. Jenson had a stronger race but a puncture at the closing forced him to pit, only to have an outlap that picked up what seems to be a problem with the exhaust at Lap 55 made the Brit park his car in the garage permanently.

Even Rosberg reported issues with his Mercedes but kept moving and secured fifth. Schumacher started in 22 due to a gearbox change and finished in seventh. For Rosberg, the story does not end. In two separate occasions during the race, Rosberg forced Hamilton and then Alonso experience the excursions off the racing track. The stewards will investigate the racing incidents after the race.

It could be said that Ferrari had an interesting race. Alonso, who started ninth, improved two places to finish in seventh. But it took the former world champion to squeeze every bit of performance from the car, to find tenths of seconds from the racing line and drive to the limit of the rules. Massa also found some speed in Sakhir. He started in 14 and finished in ninth.

Paul di Resta of Force India finished sixth, making a two-stop strategy work in his favour.

The 2012 Formula 1 season now takes a break before the Spanish GP in Catalunya starts on the second week of May. The break is important because it gives the teams the chance to update their cars with new parts that they hope could earn them a few extra seconds.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Nico Rosberg’s first win was always likely to be at the Chinese GP. The young German has led the race in Shanghai in recent years, only to fail to take the win. He showed that he had something extra in qualifying, where his fastest lap was half a second faster than the next man. Yesterday, he sealed the deal, and claimed his maiden win with a margin of 20.6 seconds!

Nico’s commanding Shanghai triumph is also Mercedes-Benz’ first as a works team since Fangio won the 1955 Italian GP, so it’s double joy for the team, which of course is sponsored by Petronas. Lots of screen time for the national oil company as a result.

McLaren’s two ex-world champs Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton completed the podium, while Red Bull drivers Mark Webber and Seb Vettel had to settle for fourth and fifth. The other team with two cars in the points were Williams – Bruno Senna and Pastor Maldonado finished seventh and eight, respectively. Lotus’ Romain Grosjean will be extremely happy with his sixth place, since he had completed all of five race laps before Shanghai.

The final two points paying positions were taken by Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari and Kamui Kobayashi in the Ferrari-powered Sauber. The kamikaze Japanese driver made a brave late move on teammate and Sepang hero Sergio Perez for the final point.

Mercedes AMG Petronas’ other driver didn’t have a good race. Living legend Michael Schumacher started alongside Rosberg on the front row after Hamilton took a grid penalty, but the team botched Schumi’s first pit stop. His rear wheel was incorrectly fitted, and he was the only man to DNF in China. The team were also fined €5,000 for the unsafe release.

It was a race dominated by tyre strategy, but Rosberg proved that Mercedes has resolved its rubber eating issues – a simple two-stop strategy and good pace kept him way ahead of the crazy battles behind.

Further back, Caterham’s Vitaly Petrov finished ahead of the rookie team drivers in 18th. Heikki Kovalainen was classified as last. Looks like Caterham is still nowhere near the midfield as targeted – while they’ve improved, so have others.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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What a race we had in Sepang yesterday! Let me repeat, WHAT A RACE! Fernando Alonso winning the Malaysian GP for a beleaguered Scuderia and Sauber’s Sergio Perez tailing him till the end – I’m sure no bookie had odds for such an outcome. This shows that rain is good for entertainment, but in the right amounts, since no one wants a repeat of 2009.

Fernando was at his very best, finding a sweet spot in the Ferrari and milking its performance to the max. As if trying to make his teammate look even better, Felipe Massa had another horrid afternoon, mixing with the new boys at the back. There are rumours that Ferrari’s patience with the little Brazilian is wearing thin, and Perez is the man they want. Yesterday’s performance by the young Mexican would have done his prospects no harm!

It was a landmark drive from Perez, meaningful for both man and team. Yesterday’s result was Sauber’s best as a non-manufacturer squad since Heinz-Harald Frentzen took third at the 2003 United States GP. Perez becomes the first Mexican to stand on the podium since Pedro Rodriguez did so at Zandvoort in 1971. Despite a late mistake, and “team orders” to take it easy, the 22-year old believed he could win.

“Really! I think the win today was really possible. Obviously the team did very good work to call me in at the right times. We lost one lap just at the end to Fernando on the dry tyres, so we lost about two seconds, and then my pit stop didn’t go so well with the clutch. And then I managed to catch him, lap by lap.

“Towards the end I had some understeer into a left-hand corner, the quick one, and I ran wide enough to go into the wet and then I just lost control of the car and went straight and lost the fight for the victory. When I caught him I knew it would have to be quick to overtake him because I was having a lot of degradation in my front tyres, especially going behind him. So I went looking for the way to get him and then I just ran a bit wide and touched the wet kerb – I was lucky not to go off,” Perez said.

“In the end, second it’s a great result for the team. Many points and I’m looking forward to the rest of the season. It’s only the second race of the season and hopefully we can keep improving our car to fight the big guys,” the affable young man added.

The last time we were raving about a young driver, the boy Vettel went on to be champion. Will this career defining drive be a launchpad for Perez? Click here for the full race report from our man on the field.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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The atmosphere of the entire SIC paddock never fails to come of peacefulness just before the race. It is like the collective paddock just sighed and sat their collective behinds on chairs. It could be that the cars are already lined up on the grid and the mechanics have pulled the organized chaos to the starting grid.

It was about 15 minutes before the start of the race and the national anthem was being sung. Since everyone has his or her own sense of music, I will not comment on how the Negaraku was being belted out. The sky, however, started to rain. The slicks came off and the intermediates were put on.

By the time the five lights went out, the heavens have already dropped everything it had on the racetrack. The first lap was nothing short of chaotic; the first corner was filled with high-strung nerves. In some sort of miracle, the cars began to shuffle into position. Hamilton had the lead of the train of cars behind him.

Kimi had a good start and placed himself in 8^th. He started at 10^th because of the penalty brought on by the change of gearbox the day before. He qualified in 5^th.

Grosjean made a superb start, leapfrogging from 6^th to 3^rd and pulled the carpet right under Schumacher’s tyres. But the Michael was never going to give the position without a fight. It was wheel-to-wheel with Grosjean in the first, second and third corner. By then, Michael had clawed back his position. Grosjean, with aggression on full, clipped Michael going into turn four. Both spun out, cars dodged to the left and right of them. Both rejoined the race in double-digits positions.

Lap 2 saw Sergio Perez of Sauber dove into the pits for the blue, wet tyres. This was the game changer.

Luck did not fly with the French-man Romain. It was in Lap 4 that he drove over a swimming pool’s worth of water, aquaplaned and slid into the gravel of turn 5. He ended his race with his nose pointed in the wrong direction.

The race did not, could not continue for long. The hard intensity of the downpour made visibility impossible. Yellow flags were out as well as the safety car. On lap 9, the red flags were waved to put a pause on the race. The cars were back on the starting grid.

It is about this time that I walk into the Garage Grandstand in Sepang for the last time this year. I look at the mechanics scrambling out into the rain with equipment, spare parts and new tyres while I place the communications headset on my head. On screen, I can see the cars are covered with a canopy. For a moment, the F1 grid looks like a WRC service stop.

And then, a whole new world for Formula 1 opened – not sight but sound. What was silence a second before became constant chatter between the team and Kimi. The KERS is not working in Kimi’s car and the mechanics are checking the problem. The engineers then put on their rain jackets and run into the downpour, no doubt towards Kimi.

The atmosphere calmed down again. One of the mechanics walked into the pit and pulls off his helmet. Or should I say, her helmet. It was as if Samus herself was in the garage. A lady mechanic in a male dominated job? Yes. Her name is Jenny and she is in charge of the organisation of spare parts. It is quite possible that Lotus F1 is the only team on the grid that has a female mechanic. A definite nod to equal opportunity.

It’s 4:50pm and Romain’s car rolls back into the pits, the mechanics providing the locomotion. No damage to the body… just disappointed expressions especially from Romain himself. The mechanics begins to dismantle the car. Romain looks dejected. Understandable; I leave him to his thoughts.

The radio crackle to life and the pit wall told Kimi that his KERS was working but if anything should happen, Kimi will need to put the KERS in failsafe. The rain, it seems, is affecting the system. There are also talks of the option of tweaking the brake balance in case the KERS packs up and leave Sepang completely.

The wets go on and the race starts. However, I was just told that I have to give up my time in the Garage Grandstand for other people. OK, back to the backup hospitality suite.

I rejoin the action just as Hamilton is bunching up the pack. The restart is chaotic. Almost 1/3 of the pack dive into the pits for different tyres. Some stayed out. And for the next three laps, the pits straights became an accident waiting to happen. It didn’t; the drivers leave with fresh intermediates. For a while, grid positions became meaningless. In that reshuffle of the deck, Alonso sneaks a place from Webber.

Sergio Perez stays out a lap longer than any one else. His change of tyres earlier must have primed his set for the long run in the wet. He leads the race for a couple of laps before coming in for a set of new tyres. He rejoins the race just in front of Alonso to keep the lead.

The World Champion could never be content with being second, especially to a mid-level team. By the third corner, Alonso moves up and assumes the role of the race leader. Sergio tries his best to keep close to Alonso. Perhaps it is the combination of new tyres or extremely poor visibility forced Sergio to let off the accelerator, but a gap opens between the two.

Down the order, Kimi had just taken 5^th from Rosberg, barely. Kimi is now forced to work hard to keep fifth and, for a while, have plenty of Rosberg in his rear view mirror. But ultimately, it is the Mercedes’ shocking lack of pace in the wet that keeps Rosberg from winning back his position.

Lap 32: Sergio pulls out some more speed from his car. He begins to eat up the seconds away from Alonso. Chunk by meaty chunk, Perez chomps the gap down. By lap 40, the 10-odd second lead is cut down to just 1.35 seconds.

Alonso boxes the car in lap 40, switches to slicks and remaines race leader. Sergio and Kimi take on their new set in lap 41. Sergio slips behind Alonso, Kimi gets behind Webber; losing a place. Again, Perez begins to hack away the distance between himself and Alonso. By lap 48, Perez is sniffing Alonso’s gearbox.

And then, a mistake in lap 50. Sergio runs too wide and goes off into turn 14, effectively throwing away whatever hope there might have been from finishing top of the podium. But the team did tell Sergio that second is good enough and not to be drawn into a mistake.

Somewhere along the way, Vettel picks up a puncture that forces him to come in for a new tyre. His stint did not last long after the pit stop. At the closing of the race, and a few miscommunications later, Vettel is told to stop the car immediately. Vettel’s misfortune is Kimi’s fortune as he picked up a position to finish in 5^th. He and the team will be taking that.

Ahead, Webber finishes fourth. Lewis passes the finish line in third. Sergio takes home second and Fernando Alonso miraculously pulls out a top podium finish from nowhere.

At the end of the race, I can only think what a freakish show it was. Ferrari, the team that never showed any pace, finished at the top. But there is still something fundamentally wrong with the car and the full score picked up today will go a long way.

Sauber, finishing second, had a tremendous race. While some have already wrote it off as luck, it was the brains of the team that turned an appalling weather condition into an invaluable ally.

McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull – the teams that were the strongest in Free Practice and in Qualifying – fell victim to the weather in one way or another.

As for Lotus F1, race day in Sepang mirrored the race day in Melbourne. In both races, Kimi had to fight his way into a point-scoring position from the back and Grosjean could not even finish half-distance of the race.

This is certain – the Lotus F1 car have constantly put on a strong pace throughout the weekend. It was quick and more importantly, looked well balanced. As proof; the best lap of the day belonged to Kimi with a time of 1:40.722. Then again, the 2012 season has barely started and the dice can still roll either way.

The full result is here. Next stop, Shanghai.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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9. BREAKING: Group Lotus is sole owner of “Lotus” name in F1, but Team Lotus can still race under its present name

It is a few hours before qualifying and I could feel the tension mounting behind the white panel walls of the Lotus F1 Team’s garage. The walls are the whitest I have seen; it is free of any sort of markings save for the large sign that is stuck on the wall of the entrance. The sign details what non-team personnel must never do when entering the garage; the greatest sin that one can commit inside is taking pictures.

You see, I could be working for another Formula 1 team and taking photographs is the easiest way to steal secrets. And in this business, secrets are most precious.

Which is a big pity because there are a quite a number of things that only a select few could ever get to see in their lifetime. Even diehard fans that travel with the team could only look into the garage from the front and never within. Yet, here I am, in my second Lotus F1 Team garage tour in two days. I have to thank sponsors TW Steel and Proton my experience as well as Mabel Dautzenberg and Francois Puentes of Lotus F1 Team for showing me around.

So let me paint the picture for you in words. The Lotus F1 garage arrived somewhere in the beginning of the week, in pieces. The mechanics then scrambled to assemble the garage that I am about to walk into. The garage was up and running between 24 to 36 hours.

The white-walled corridor is about 20 feet long and about 6 feet wide; the walls are about 8 feet tall – not enough to touch the ceiling of the garage but high enough to keep prying eyes out. The corridor ends with a door on the left and a sharp turn to the right.

Slide the door open and the first thing you will see is the amount of carbon fibre that is stored in here. Immediately in front of you is the underbody of the Formula 1 car set on a platform being wiped clean. In a sport where 1/100^th of a second can mean victory, every thing must be cleaned of debris picked up during the practice session so that the car has got the most optimal chance of scoring points.

To my left, on the floor, I can see the three race seats that belong to the three drivers of the team – Kimi Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean and Jerome d’Ambrosio. The seats are very thin, made out of carbon fibre and devoid of any luxury cushioning, these are pure racing seats made to make the drivers feel every single vibration the car goes through. There are other body panels that are leaning against the wall and some are hanging in a very organised manner of course. From where I am standing, which is close to the door, I can see side pods, front wings and engine coverings – all of which are spares just in case. The ones that are being used in the race are in front of the garage.

Deeper into the room, an engine rests under cover. It is a Renault V8 engine (code name RS27) that produces about 750 hp and weighs about 80 kg. And it is small. If you’ve seen a V-engines of super car, this one is smaller, possibly half the size. But I can’t make sense of what I am seeing: what is that carbon fibre canister, what kind of metal is it made from, where do these tubes go? The only answer I get is, “I wish I can tell you but it is a secret.” It is said with a smile. I understand, with a tinge of disappointment.

I step out of the room and began to move into the other side. On the way, I see three custom-made headset holders made out of carbon fibre. There are not just to hold the headsets but also to recharge the battery in receiver that is connected to it. With this headset, the team and non-team personnel are able to hear the communication between the driver and the pit wall. FIA also listens in to the conversation to monitor if there are any team orders given out. Team orders are regulated in Formula 1 and FIA keeps close tabs on communications. You could also hear communication broadcasted on TV. However, you don’t get to hear all of the chatter, only the juicy ones.

As of now, only Lotus F1 has this ‘cabinet’ but I am told that it is only a matter of time before the other teams have the same. I guess there are some things you cannot put a tight lid on. Oh, did I just let the cat out of the bag?

Now, in front of me are six computing stations. Here is where four of Renault’s engineers and two of Lotus F1’s engineers monitor the engine. The feedback coming in originates from the sensors that are connected to the racecar. They monitor everything that has to do with the car and engine – from hydraulics to engine temperature. Per race, there are 15 megabytes of data that is being sent from the car to the computers, of which will be fed back Enstone in real time. In case you didn’t know, Enstone is where the headquarters of the team is located.

For Lotus F1, every single byte of data is important. Without the budget of the bigger teams, Lotus F1 does wind tunnel testing on a 40% scale model of the racecar. The bigger teams do theirs with a 60% scale model. Obviously bigger is better because then the team has a more accurate reading on the aerodynamics.

The telemetry is also shown to a very privileged audience back in Enstone where the boffins there will explain the readings during a race. The data that gets sent back will definitely be analysed. From the data, changes will be made to the car. At the moment, Lotus F1 makes a change to the car once every four races, which makes the evolution of the car constant.

What is also constantly evolving is the engine oil and fuel that goes into the engine. The team carries with them a mini lab that examines and analyses the oil and fuel.

How does the engineer (there is only one person) monitor the health of the engine? Through the engine oil.

Think of it has a doctor drawing blood from your body, from which the doctor can tell if you are in the pink of health or will drop dead within the hour. It is the same for the engine. The engineer, through a spectrometer, measures the particles of the engine oil – he does this every single time the car comes back into the garage. This is the only way to check the health of the engine. Dismantle the engine without approval and FIA will slap the team with a hefty penalty.

And then, there is the fuel analyser as well. Because Formula 1 no longer allows refueling during a race, each team must squeeze every last bit of performance from every drop of fuel. So each team will develop its own fuel, within a 10% margin from the homologation set by the FIA, for better consumption and more power. It sounds like what fuel companies would write in the ads isn’t it? Again, every Formula 1 closely guard the secret to their fuel, but a sample must be sent to FIA – for obvious reasons.

Far back behind the Total Oil and Fuel Analysers, I can see a Perspex walls where the KERS systems are inside. I am not allowed near it.

Instead, I am being ushered to the Garage Grandstand. From this vantage point, I can see the engineers and mechanics – in full concentration – putting the cars together. Kimi’s is on my left; Romain’s is on my right. Each car has its own team of engineers and mechanics working on it.

Here’s something you may not know: the engineers that are working from the point of the driver’s shoulders to the nose are called ‘front-end mechanics’ while those working from the driver’s shoulders to the rear wing are called ‘rear-end engineers.’ Each has their specialist roles and responsibilities to follow.

I see Kimi’s car is ready. It was just yesterday, at this very same spot, that I watched James Allison, the Technical Director, and five other people who are probably engineers, are mulling about the gearbox. The gear ratios and cogs are in a tub and there is clearly a problem. It is only late last night that I learned the gearbox had to be changed. The team completed the change at 4:00am.

Here is the layout of the area: in the middle are the various toolboxes and fuel pumps and it acts as a separator between the two cars. On top of the toolboxes is where the driver’s helmets are placed and beneath it are fans that ventilate the inner part of the helmet. Every box, every tool, every plug and every hose in there comes in pairs – one set for each car.

The fuel pumps are also quite interesting. Two hoses are attached to the car during fuelling. One hose fuels the car while the other hose removes the air from the tank. On average, the fuel tank with fuel would weigh between 80 kg to 120 kg. The exact figure is secret; I asked.

A mechanic jumps into Kimi’s car, starts it up and goes through the various engine mapping. The revs sing with every turn of the dial, or growls when the rev limiter button is pushed. Then Romain’s car goes through the same rehearsal. The final Free Practice session will commence soon.

In spite of the increased nervousness of a team about to field their cars, the quick and calculated movement of the personnel is tempered with a certain calmness that can only be achieved by constant practice, respect and trust among teammates. A splash of professionalism does help the situation too.

After the race, the garage will be torn down, packed and shipped back to Enstone. The entire process will take the mechanics somewhere between 12 to 14 hours. Out of the 540 that work for the team, the 72 personnel who are on the ground in Sepang will make their long-awaited trip home.

And then, it all starts again in Shanghai.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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The weather at the Sepang International Circuit was not as hot as I expected it to be today. In spite of the sun beating down and the humidity rising with every passing hour, the conditions were surprisingly bearable. That said, there were dark clouds on the horizon.

I spent the free practice day with the Lotus F1 Team, my hosts for the weekend. As it turned out, the day didn’t turn out as promising as anticipated for them.

The first session showed much promise, with both drivers finishing in the top 10. Kimi Raikkonen concluded the session in 7th place. He completed 22 laps, and managed a best lap of 1:39.128, with his average speed being 201.303 km/h.

Meanwhile, Romain Grosjean did better, getting into 5th spot with a best lap of 1:38.919 and an average speed of 201.728 km/h, covering 17 laps in the process.

By the second free practice, however, things weren’t going as rightly, and both drivers dropped places. Grosjean slipped to 9th with a best time of 1:39.311. Luck wasn’t on his side, as one of his tyres picked up a cut, which means losing a set for the weekend.

Raikkonen ended the day in 15th, clocking in a best lap of 1:39.696. An issue with the KERS meant that the time he managed didn’t show the car’s true pace. Reports have since filtered in that the team has discovered a problem with the gearbox and have decided to change it.

With the rules stating that every unscheduled gearbox change will require the driver to drop five places on the grid at that meeting, it looks like Raikonnen might have to repeat his performance in Melbourne, storming from the back of the grid to finish in a point-scoring position.

As for Grosjean, he’ll be hoping that Melbourne will not repeat in Sepang. The again, this is only free practice. For the actual starting grid, well, we’ll just have to wait for tomorrow.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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The Malaysian GP weekend started today, and we were in Sepang to warm up for the big race this Sunday. Our man Chris Ng will be in SIC all weekend with the Lotus team (you’ll hear from him shortly), but I couldn’t resist making the trip down to catch the buzz as well. My host was champions Red Bull Racing, the energy drink maker the whole paddock is trying to beat.

Friday is always a quiet day at the Malaysian GP, and the best time to snoop around in the garage, with permission of course! Without a guide, it all looked like a bunch of men dismantling two cars (after P2), but thankfully I had the lovely Georgie from RBR to shoot questions at.

Georgie explained that there’s a team of up to 15 blokes working on each car, and they’re divided into few teams that take care of certain sections – floor, wings, gearbox etc. They were busy stripping the cars to improve and tweak for qualifying tomorrow, and will continue to work till 4am tomorrow morning. They will have to stop work at that ungodly hour, according to FIA rules, before getting back in the garage to resume at 10am.

I was sweating buckets in the enclosed section that you normally see the wives, girlfriends and celebrity guests hang out (standing room for 12 people, each with their own headset), and I was just in there for a mere 15 minutes! It’s a tough life for the crew, more so at hot and humid races like Malaysia.

I noticed that the body panels that were being taken off were gold in colour on the inside, and Georgie confirmed that it is indeed gold I was looking at – the precious metal is to reflect heat away from the engine. And did you know that the front wings are tested with ultrasound to ensure that there are no imperfections? F1 is science at work – it’s such a pity that photography is not allowed, so you just have to take my word for it.

She left the best for last. As the race happens in Malaysia, Red Bull Racing has a team of strategists locked up in a dark room in England (they “live in our time zone” despite being in UK) corresponding with the chief strategist on the pit wall. They study the data and telemetry, and recommend actions for the drivers. And all along I’ve been thinking that all they need is a fast car and fast driver to win!

We came out just in time to catch the bermuda-wearing Seb Vettel giving interviews. The easy-going double world champ would like to slide less tomorrow. “I would love to be a bit higher up this afternoon, but all in all we had decent running today – although there is still a lot to do,” he said, after finishing second in P1 and tenth in P2.

“The tyres drop off quite quickly here, which is the same for all the drivers, but I think we are sliding quite a bit and I would like the car to be a bit more stable. We made a good step today, the potential is there, but we need to get to it. We will see what we can do tomorrow,” he added.

Teammate Mark Webber, in Superdry shorts and flip-flops, is fine with the heat. “The rain held off, which is always fortunate and we have plenty of work to go through regarding our car set up and the tyres. In terms of the heat here, it’s fine, obviously it’s warm in the car but we come prepared for that,” he remarked coolly.

We’ll be in Sepang for the next two days, so you can look forward to more updates from the Malaysian GP. Have a good weekend!

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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There are a few new things going on for the Lotus team in Formula 1 this year, but it mainly focuses to two things. The first it that the team is no longer called Lotus Renault GP. Its new name: Lotus F1 Team. Much simpler to roll it off the tongue, don’t you think?

The second main change to the team is the driver lineup. Petrov, Heidfeld and Senna have left for other pastures and Kubica will not return to Formula 1 anytime soon. Which means, there are two empty race seats, which is now filled by Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean; both are no strangers to Formula 1.

Kimi left Formula 1 at the end of the 2009 season. He went on to take part in Finland’s favourite hobby, rallying. Yet, success was far from his reach because the front-runners are fast. The difficulties Kimi faced was not just the transition from open-wheeled racers to rally cars but also the various surfaces in which he has to drive in one race. Yet, he still loved racing.

Rumours floated around the paddock on the return of Kimi to Formula 1, which is now made true. The deal to get back into Formula 1 came quick. He and the team shared common goals and every one was happy. However, Formula 1 has changed in two years.

To Kimi, the races don’t look any different that since he last left the sport. But he does acknowledge that the tyres and DRS can be a game-changer.

Kimi’s thoughts on the DRS is that the “drivers now can overtake by just opening the rear wing and leave the driver in front no chance to defend himself.” He questions if this is really overtaking and does not think that it counts all the time.

On the new tyre regulations, he said that there is now a big speed difference between when the tyres are fresh and old.

He said, “In the old Formula 1, you had to be so much faster than the guy in front of you to have any chance to overtake, but now with the tyres and the DRS, it’s different.”

About the KERS and DRS, this is what Kimi has to say, “I’ve driven with KERS before and DRS is just a button. Once you’ve done it a few times it will be come automatic.”

Driving with Kimi this year is Romain Grosjean. He started his career with Formula Renault and have close ties to the Renault team ever since. Between 2008 and 2009, Romain have competed in GP2 as well as becoming the test driver for ING Renault F1 Team. Notably, in the 2009, he started in seven races alongside then-teammate Fernando Alonso.

So, you could say that he is half of a rookie. Perhaps his biggest challenge this year is that there are many race circuits that he has no knowledge of. For example, last week’s race in Albert Park was his first as well. Other racetracks that are not known to him are Shanghai, Canada, India, Korea and America. To be fair, no one knows how the track in Austin, Texas, is going to be. What about Sepang? Well, it just so happens that it is one of Romain’s favourite, especially when the weather is right.

Romain also notes the one major difference when he last raced in 2009 is the tyres. He said, “We need them (tyres) working when we need, and save them when we need. Things have changed a lot since the Bridgestone era. It’s part of the show today, to manage your tyres, and we have seen some big, big differences in tyre wear on some tracks which have made Formula 1 more attractive than a few years ago.”

It is a fresh year for Lotus F1 and the season has only just begun. With Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean it would seem that Lotus F1 have a strong driver line-up; after all Kimi is no stranger on Sepang’s podium.

How will Lotus F1 Team fare in Sepang? Do keep your web browsers locked here as we will be bringing you daily coverage of the team.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Before Lotus, Williams and of course, McLaren, there was Toleman. Continuing on our trip down nostalgia lane this week, some news about the car that Ayrton Senna began his F1 race career in.

The Toleman TG184-2 Formula One car driven by Senna in his debut F1 season is going up for auction in the UK. This particular car is perhaps best known for Senna’s remarkable second place drive in the rain-soaked 1984 Monaco GP, arguably the race which first demonstrated his extraordinary talents to the world.

Click to enlarge.

The car, which Senna also raced to third in the British and seventh in the Canadian Grand Prix’s, has been in private ownership for the past 16 years, and is now up for sale on the open market. Whoever ends up bagging it will be owning a much sought after piece of motorsport and Ayrton Senna history.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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A rough guestimate of the number of people within KLCC Concourse could easily reach 1,000, Malaysians and citizens of foreign lands. The queue starts at the heart and snakes outward to the fringes and around the 2012 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix Showcase. On the floors above, I can also see people leaning on the rails looking down curiously at the hustle and bustle below them.

There is no doubt that KLCC has seen more people before but to have them gathered in one place could only mean one thing – something is going to happen.

Then, as if on cue, the energy of the crowd heightens, the DJ announces the arrival of two very special guests – racing heroes to most of the people gathered here – Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg from the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team. Instinctively, cameras goes up, flash goes popping and the crowd surges forward even before the drivers could take their seats. Is this excitement or kiasu-ism at work? Maybe a bit of both.

One by one, the drivers meet, shake hands and scribble their signatures on prepared memorabilia, and leaves out the rear. Others quickly pull out cameras and phone-with-camera to get their Kodak moment. But not only photo-cards are being autographed but branded handbags, t-shirts and… did I just spot a cap that originates from the days when Michael wore red overalls?

I take a look around and the line is still too long. Michael and Nico only have about half an hour here; about 15 minutes have already ticked by so it is doubtful they’ll meet everyone.

In the end, the drivers stayed on a little while longer to sign as much as they can. The queue never thinned and it is now time for the drivers to leave. For those who did not catch their race heroes, consolation comes in the form of pre-signed memorabilia.

If you have missed the autograph session, don’t fret… there is always next year.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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True to form, Renault has come up with a limited edition car celebrating an F1 win. While there’s no more Renault F1 Team to promote, Renault is still a major engine supplier in Formula 1, powering the cars of Lotus, Williams, Caterham and champions Red Bull Racing. This hot Clio celebrates the latter’s 2011 Constructors’ title win. Expect to see Twingo and Megane equivalents soon.

The Renault Clio R.S. Red Bull Racing RB7 is based on the Clio RS 200 Cup that was recently launched here. Highlights include 18-inch black Interlagos wheels with Bridgestone RE050A tyres, Profond Black body colour and Sirius Yellow on the F1-style blade, door mirror housings and diffuser. There are also Renault Sport chequered-pattern roof decals and Red Bull Racing badging on the doors.

Inside, the RB7 gets a personalised numbered plaque and a Renault Sport-badged gear lever knob. Other things are all identical to the Clio RS sold by TC Euro Cars. Automatic climate control, automatic headlights, key card/push start, yellow Recaros, and R.S. Monitor are all standard.

This car will be will marketed in five countries only, and they are France, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria. So you can’t have it here, but our Clio RS is also a limited edition model from the “Ange & Démon” series. Click here for our launch report.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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It has only been two days since the race in Melbourne ended and already the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team has hit the road to visit the Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s Pekan Plant in Pahang, where they also met-and-greeted 40 orang asli children from Kampung Meranti and Kampung Landai who were visiting the plant at the same time. Nice.

This effort was made possible by Mercedes-Benz Malaysia and Petronas. The visit was part of the team’s annual programme before the race. This visit also tightened the partnership between the German car manufacturer and Malaysia’s lube company, since Petronas does supply fuels, lubricants and functional fluids to the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team as well as the Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains.

The visit also underlines Mercedes-Benz’s market strength in the country. According to Roland Folger, president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Malaysia, the Pekan plant has already put together 21,000 premium vehicles, more than any other premium passenger brand in Malaysia. The plant is also the only one in the country that assembles a car with a price tag of more than RM1 million – the S500L BlueEFFICIENCY.

Of course, it was not all business. Michael Schumacher, Nico Rosberg and Sam Bird demonstrated what they and the SLS AMG, E 63 AMG and the CLS 350 are capable of in the hands of a professional. Plus, they probably gave a few of the VIP Guests an experience of a lifetime with a taxi ride in one of those uber cars.

If you want to catch Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg for their autographs, then they’ll be at the Showcase that is happening at the concourse of Suria KLCC tomorrow, March 21 at 5 pm.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Returning ex-champion Kimi Raikkonen was in the thick of the midfield battle last weekend in Australia, eventually scoring some points with seventh place. But the Finn is in a confident mood, and is looking to compete higher up in Sepang this weekend. He’s thinking of the podium!

“The car feels very good. In the race I was stuck in traffic a lot so it didn’t show so much, and who knows what might have happened if we had a better grid slot. There is a lot of speed in the car. As long as qualifying goes well we could be fighting for podiums. There’s much more to come. We’re learning about the car all the time and the last race didn’t really give us a chance to use its full potential. Hopefully Malaysia will be a bit more straightforward,” Kimi said.

“We’ll be trying to improve our performance in Malaysia. We don’t know how the car will behave there but it’s been good everywhere so hopefully it’ll be the same there. You still need a good car [at Sepang] and that looks to be what we have. Hopefully we’ll have a smoother weekend than we did in Australia with no mistakes,” he added.

Kimi’s team mate Romain Grosjean, who started third on the Melbourne grid but crashed out, is similarly pleased with the Lotus E20. “The car was working very well in Australia. There are always small improvements you can make but there’s nothing major I could point to right now. The car is performing very well,” said the Frenchman.

Lotus will be one of three teams with Malaysian links on the grid in Sepang. The others are Tony Fernandes’ Caterham F1 and the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Some say that Formula 1 cars, at full speed, can drive upside down on the ceiling. No one has ever done it yet; so far the feat only happens within complex mathematics and computer simulations. It is very possible of course, when the conditions are perfect.

What is very possible in the real world is this: anchoring two Formula 1 cars, with engines deleted, on a steel frame. While it would seem that Petronas has managed to balance the cars on a pinhead, architects will see the principles of cantilevering in action. How did they do it? We got the footage of its construction right here.

It is eye-catching, especially when you walk into KLCC via the Dewan Philharmonic Petronas lobby. Keen eyes will notice that both cars are different. The one on the left is the team’s 2010 contender and the right has raced in the 2011 season.

The fact that it is being suspended gives you a different view of the Formula 1 car. While most exhibitions show the shell of the car, this one gives you a view of the underside of the car, also known as the undertray where some of the car’s aerodynamic secrets are held. No, the view is not what you would call exciting but you can see, in finer detail, the guts rather than the glory of the race machine. See if you can spot the little fins that smoothens the airflow into the side pods.

You can also see the skid block here. In case you didn’t know, the skid block is a wood plank that measures 10 mm. This one is painted in the team’s silver. It is FIA’s low-tech solution to a very high-tech problem. You see, Formula 1 cars used to run very close to the track to enhance handling which enables drivers to take corners at break-neck speeds. It is also very dangerous; it caused Ayrton Senna’s death.

Today’s regulations require the skid block to be measured before and after the race. Cars with skid blocks that are found to be less than 9mm post-race will be disqualified.

It is not often you get to see the undertray. The only time you get to catch it is usually during a race incident when the car flips over during a race. Even then, unless you can pause the telly, views of the undertray is always too brief.

Of course, this is not all. The installation is part of the 2012 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix Showcase. A mouthful, I know.

Plenty to see and do… there’s the Formula 1 car on display together with the CLS 350 and the SLS AMG Roadster. Fans of the team should really get over here because the latest line of team merchandise is here to make you part with your money.

Highlight of the showcase has got to the Speed of Sound AR Game. Is it hard? Extremely. You race by matching the pitch of your voice to the pitch that is shown on screen. Hit the mark and you get seconds taken off your time. Miss the mark and you’ll notice the seconds can really add up. To win, you need a near perfect pitch and a very quiet room. Still, our Harvinder managed a time of 10.40 seconds in this noisy concourse and is on the top ten leaderboard. See if you can knock him off his lofty perch.

The showcase has already begun and will come to a close on March 25. I’ll leave you with one last thing to nibble on – Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg will be meeting fans and signing autographs on March 21 from 5.00pm onwards. Fan or not, it is worthwhile to visit this showcase.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Well, if you were looking forward to not just the Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix, but also the F1 Rocks in Malaysia event in KL this weekend, you’re going to have to do without the latter.

The gig, which was supposed to feature Kylie Minogue and American R&B artiste Kelis as well as other acts such as James Baum and Reshmonu, has been called off. Event organisers Enterprise Entertainment issued a simple release on the matter, stating that due to unforeseen circumstances its events scheduled for March 23-24 have been cancelled.

No idea what the unforseen circumstances are, but there you are, no music for you later this week; you’ll just have to make do with the race proper.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Yesterday, we saw Jenson Button win the season opening Australian GP, doing so comfortably ahead of double world champ Seb Vettel and dejected teammate Lewis Hamilton. The Brit was blazing in Melbourne, but we know now that he could have gone even faster! Red Bull, take note.

“We were more than marginal. Had we raced unfettered we would not have got to the finish line with either car, so from lap eight we were in severe fuel saving mode,” said team boss Martin Whitmarsh. “I think unquestionably we could have gone a little bit quicker. We had a quick car here, and we should have got a 1-2, but we are not too displeased with where we are,” he added.

Whitmarsh went on to praise his driver. “Jenson did a fantastic job. He turned it on when he needed to. When he thought that Vettel after the safety car was going to get into a DRS zone he just opened the gap, so I think it was testament to him. He drove a really beautiful race: smooth, controlling, and he pressed when he needed to – just like a champion would”.

Hard to disagree

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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It’s good to have Formula 1 back, on the telly for most of you but on the laptop for me. The Australian GP just ended at Albert Park, Melbourne, and McLaren’s Jenson Button has carried over his good form from the end of last season by taking the chequered flag. It was a comfortable win for the Briton, ahead of defending champ Seb Vettel and teammate Lewis Hamilton.

Red Bull’s Vettel did the most he could have done, and benefited from a safety car period to get to second place. In contrast, pole man Hamilton looked dejected and stony faced after the race – he saw Button pip him to the lead at the start and never had a sniff from then on. The safety car period, caused by Caterham’s Vitaly Petrov stalling his car on the main straight, wasn’t too kind to him either.

It was worse for some. Pastor Maldonado in his new, much faster Renault-powered Williams car, was sixth behind Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso when he crashed out, unprovoked. It was a shame, as the Venezuelan looked comfortable until that moment. Alonso eventually finished fifth, behind Mark Webber. This fourth placed finish is the Red Bull No.2 driver’s best ever result in his home race.

Behind all these men were a big scrap, with Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi coming in sixth, ahead of returning ex-champ Kimi Raikkonen for Lotus. The Finn edged ahead of Kobayashi’s Sauber teammate Sergio Perez at the end, while Daniel Ricciardo took ninth in his Toro Rosso. Force India’s Paul di Resta took the last points paying place. STR new boy Jean-Eric Vergne nearly had a points scoring debut, but he showed flashes of speed, in patches.

It wasn’t a great start to the season for Caterham, the Tony Fernandes-owned team previously known as Team Lotus. New recruit Petrov retired with a steering problem on lap 36, and the ensuing safety car period saw Heikki Kovalainen go out with a left front suspension issue.

“Obviously we did not want to finish like that, but after both Heikki and Vitaly negotiated their way around the first corner clash, we were quickly up to speed with the likes of Force India, Williams and even Ferrari, and that’s very encouraging for next week,” said Riad Asmat, Caterham Group CEO.

The man responsible for the Ferrari name being dragged in there is Felipe Massa. The Brazilian was way off the pace battling with the new boys, and ended his evening by taking out compatriot Bruno Senna. That’s no place for a Ferrari to be, even for a slow one, and we wonder for how long more will the Scuderia persevere with Massa.

Click here for the full results. See you in Sepang next week!

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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The Formula 1 2012 season is beginning this weekend with the Australian GP, and a week after that it’s time for Malaysia to be hit with the F1 fever. Like every year, PETRONAS Motorsports has loads of F1 related activities in store for both MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS fans as well as all F1 fans in Malaysia.

Think you’re good at imitating an F1 car? Our very own Harvinder Singh is particularly good at this, and he can even “sing” exactly how an F1 car sounds like around a lap on certain tracks.

If you think you’re as good as him, PETRONAS Motorsports has a virtual augmented reality game called “Speed of Sound” online on their website where you can use your voice to control an F1 car and stand a chance to win exclusive tickets to the F1 Rocks in Malaysia concert featuring Kylie Minogue and Kelis. Head on to the Speed of Sound game site to try your luck now! Hurry because entries end on the 17th of March 2012.

There’s also the PETRONAS F1 Grand Prix Showcase happening at KLCC Concourse from the 17th of March 2012 to the 25th of March 2012m 10 AM to 10 PM. You can purchase PETRONAS Motorsports, MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS F1 team as well as and F1 merchandise, you can check out displays highlighting the new W03 2012 race car, there’ll be daily trivia quiz sessions and games with attractive prizes up for grabs. They will also be displaying the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster and the CLS 350 there. There are also some special activities happening:

• 17th March 2012 – Grid Girls Costume Preview by Bill Keith
• 20th March 2012 – Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra – Performance by Marcus Young
• 21st March 2012 – Meet and Greet Session with MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS F1 team

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Here is PETRONAS Motorsports’ latest TV commercial, highlighting their partnership with the MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS Formula 1 team. It features the F1 team members at work, continuously working on the car to ensure they squeeze every fraction of a second possible off their lap times.

If you watch the timeline of the TVC, you get to see the team working on different parts of the car before assembling it together, but the part where they show the F1 car driving on the track is actually a couple of seconds at most, which basically reflects how much work is actually happening at the back stage of an F1 team in proportion to the car being on track.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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It looks like the Lotus F1 Team (formerly known as Lotus Renault GP) has a new sponsor – the Formula 1 team has just announced a three-year partnership with Microsoft, effective immediately.

The Microsoft Dynamics branding will be uploaded on the car, the E20, as well as the drivers’ overalls. You can spot the logo starting from the Australian Grand Prix that will be on this weekend – the first race of the season.

What does Microsoft Dynamics bring to the table? Well, the solutions will be implemented in the team’s home base in Enstone to facilitate the team’s business transformation.

The deal is good for three years. Microsoft personnel will work directly with Lotus F1 to optimise operations that will allow the team to open another window of business opportunity.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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If you’ve been at the foyer of the Dewan Filharmonik Petronas very recently, you’ve probably walked under the F1 display, where two Mercedes AMG Petronas racecars can be seen sitting suspended on a structure. It’s all part of the comms and promo activities for the upcoming 2012 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix.

The Suspended Formula 1 Cars Project, to give the display its name, has the two F1 cars mounted on a custom-built steel-frame structure. It took a team of 20 engineers and technicians exactly 14 days to fabricate, test and install it.

Check out the video by Petronas Motorsports on how the team got the cars up there. The display will remain in the lobby of the company’s concert hall for the duration of the 2012 F1 season, so be sure to keep an eye out for it the next time you’re thereabouts.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Without a seat in Formula 1, Rubens Barrichello will contest in the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series season. The veteran is joining KV Racing Technology and will partner Tony Kanaan, a big name in IndyCar and the 2004 IZOD IndyCar Series Champion.

“I was at Sebring when Rubens first got into an Indy car. The smile when he got out of the car was a great moment and lasted for three days. Rubens ended up the fastest at the end of the test, showing the speed he is capable of and his experience setting up a car. Teamed with his “brother” Tony Kanaan this is going to be an exciting and successful season for the drivers, the team and the fans,” said KVRT co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven.

“This is a new experience, but I am very very happy. With all my experience I will start as a rookie, but I think I will get better as the year progresses. My main thing is to be an addition to KV Racing Technology. They have been doing very well and Tony brought the team to a different level last year, so I hope with my contribution we can build on this and take the team to another level. I am extremely happy and have a big smile on my face,” Rubens said.

Barrichello spent 19 years in Formula 1, and was the most experienced driver on the grid last year with 322 starts. The 39-year old Brazilian earned 11 victories, 14 pole podiums and 68 podiums performances in that time, and finished runner-up in the championship in 2002 and 2004.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Marussia F1 Team, formerly known as Virgin, has failed FIA’s mandatory crash test, and won’t be able to test its MR01 (pic shows last year’s car) ahead of the 2012 F1 season’s first race in Australia.

The car did not pass the last of the 18 crash tests required. This is the first time cars have to pass crash tests for pre-season testing – they previously had to pass before the first race.

“We are disappointed to confirm that the planned first test of its 2012 race car – the MR01 – has been delayed as a consequence of not passing the final FIA crash test.

“All cars are required to pass 18 FIA-observed tests for homologation to be granted. Despite the fact that the MR01 has passed all 17 of the preceding tests, the regulations require the car to have completed all of the tests before running commences.

“We will now not take part in the final pre-season test in Barcelona later this week (1-4 March) and will instead focus its efforts on repeating the crash test at the end of the week,” the team said in a statement.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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Caterham F1 Team, formerly Team Lotus, has announced that Vitaly Petrov has joined the team as race driver, replacing Jarno Trulli with immediate effect. The Russian was formerly employed by the other Lotus on the grid – Lotus Renault GP, which will race as Lotus this season.

Vitaly was at the Caterham’s factory in Hingham today for a seat fitting ahead of his first run with the team at the second pre-season test in Barcelona next week.

“When we first met it was immediately clear that Vitaly understands and shares our vision for how we want our team to grow. As the first Russian to race in F1 he carries the hopes of a huge nation with ease and his talents, experience with one of our current competitors and insights on and off track will play a huge role in our development as we fight to join the established teams ahead,” said Team Principal Tony Fernandes.

“I also want to take this opportunity to thank Jarno for the absolutely pivotal role he played in the formation and progression of our team since he joined us in December 2009. Jarno knew that when he joined us it would be a very different environment to where he had been before, and when we gave him the package he wanted he absolutely shone.

“With that in mind it was not an easy decision to bring Vitaly in to replace Jarno, but it was one we made to ensure that we give fresh impetus across the whole team and with a realistic eye on the global economic market. Jarno has an incredible natural talent behind the wheel, and his winning record and longevity in the sport will bear testament to that talent in the F1 annals forever, but now it is time to open a new chapter in our team’s story, and Vitaly is the right person to help us do that,” he added.

“I have been training hard all winter and am ready to get back into the cockpit and go to work. From what I have seen already, our new car is another good step forward from 2011 and now I cannot wait to see how it feels when we get to Barcelona,” Petrov remarked.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 13:16:32 +0000.

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