Category: Lotus

Romain Grosjean has added to the reputation of Lotus being quick during the off-season by setting the fastest time in Day 2 of testing in Barcelona overnight.

Wet weather greeted the teams again for most of the day, although conditions did allow some dry running in the afternoon before the rain returned in the closing minutes. However, the cool conditions meant the drivers were unable to get their tyres to optimum operating temperatures and overall the lap times were below par.

Grosjean managed to pilot his Lotus E21 around the Circuit de Catalunya in 1:22.716 using soft compounds, almost half a second quicker than his closest rival, Jenson Button (McLaren, 1:23.181). Pastor Maldonado (Williams, 1:23.628) was third on the lap charts.

It’s interesting to note that Ferrari chose to concentrate on long stints using the hard compound tyres and while Alonso racked up over 100 laps his best lap time was the slowest of the day, more than five seconds off Grosjean’s best lap.

Young Aussie hope Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso, 1:25.483) posted the seventh best lap of the day. Despite being frustrated by the weather, Daniel remained optimistic, “Looking on the positive side, the changing weather meant I was able to try the Pirelli rain, intermediate and soft tyres, so that was interesting. I’m looking forward to achieving more on my last day on Sunday, when the weather is meant to be much better.”

Kimi Raokkonen will take over for Lotus during the last two days of pre-season testing and Grosjean was happy to end his winter on top. “Even though the weather was far from ideal it was a pretty good day for us,” he said. “And it’s certainly a better feeling to end the session with the fastest time on the board rather than the slowest!

“We had strong reliability again today and the E21 feels good in all conditions, which is very promising for the season ahead. Of course, I wish I could have more time in the car before the season starts, but if we’re in the same position on the monitors when we get to Australia I’ll be very happy indeed.”

[Pic: Lotus F1 Team/LAT Photographic]

Kimi Raikkonen dashed the hopes of Force India interviewee Jules Bianchi to set the quickest time on Day 4 of Formula 1 pre-season testing in Jerez overnight.

Raikkonen’s time in the Lotus E21 of 1:18.148 just edged out Bianchi in the VJM06, who hopes to land the vacant seat at Force India, by a mere +0.027. The 2007 world champion’s best lap was set in the afternoon session on soft compound tyres and is a fraction quicker than teammate Romain Grosjean’s best time, which claimed top honours on Day 2 of testing.

“We continued our work from yesterday and made some good progress,” Raikkonen said. “We’re at the top of the timing monitors, but that means nothing in testing. Our focus has been testing parts on the car, but I’ve been able to get the set-up more to my liking.

“The car feels strong and we seem to have a good idea of where we’re going with improvements. Let’s see what happens in Barcelona.”

Sebastian Vettel enjoyed his second day out in the Red Bull RB9 completing 96 laps on the way to setting the third fastest time (1:15.565).

Lewis Hamilton also got some good seat time in his new rig, accumulating 145 laps of experience. Sauber rookie Esteban Gutierrez took a similar approach notching up 142 laps.

Testing resumes in Barcelona on Tuesday 19 February. A full list of times from Jerez can be seen after the break.

[Pic: Lotus F1 Team/LAT Photographic]

While it can often be foolhardy to put too much faith into times achieved in Formula 1 pre-season testing we learnt early on last year that Lotus would have good raw pace. And it looks as though that will be the case again in 2013 after Romain Grosjean sent the Lotus E21 to the top of the time sheets on the second day of pre-season testing in Jerez overnight.

Grosjean’s time of 1:18.218 is six tenths faster than Jenson Button’s best from yesterday. Grosjean was quick all day and one of the few drivers to improve his lap time during the afternoon session.

The Frenchman completed 95 laps and has left him full of confidence before handing over test duties to Kimi Raikkonen tomorrow. “It was good today; the programme went to plan and we showed we have good reliability,” Grosjean said. “For me, the whole test has gone well which bodes well for the year ahead. My feeling in the car is good and it was great to be at the top of the times. Even if it doesn’t mean anything during testing, it’s still good to be at the front.

“We used the soft, medium and hard compounds and whilst we’re not 100% yet on the differences between each we have a good idea. Kimi will be working on this area for the next two days so we’ll have a better understanding when we head to Barcelona.”

Meanwhile, spare a thought for Lewis Hamilton, or have a wee chuckle, depending on your opinion of the 2008 world champion. Just 15 laps into his Mercedes AMG career he suffered a brake failure in the F1 W04 which caused him to crash and miss the rest of the day. He was unharmed in the incident and is happy, for now, to tow the party line.

“These things happen and it’s all part of testing,” said Lewis. “Of course, it’s better that we get these small issues out of the way sooner rather than later, and the guys are working really hard to overcome them.”

For the record, he was a fraction faster than Sergio Perez in his first outing in the McLaren MP4-28.

Mark Webber had a good day, locking away 101 laps and despite not being at the top of the times is very happy with his two days in the RB9. Fellow Australian Daniel Ricciardo notched up 83 laps and set the third fastest time in the Toro Rosso STR8. He too was happy, although a little circumspect, after his track time.

[Pic: Lotus/LAT Photographic]

As the first F1 car revealed for season 2013 it’s an opportune time to compare the new Lotus E21 alongside its predecessor, the E20. The image above is taken from the 2013 Lotus F1 Team media kit (see here) and for extra comparison we’ve compared old and new in a series of three images after the break.

Sounding more and more like an old BMW model, this is the E21, the car the Lotus F1 Team, hopes will propel them to greater heights in the 2013 season.

Here at Ausmotive HQ we were hoping to see the end of the terrible ‘platypus’ nose design from last year. But it seems as though Lotus thought the addition of some more red paint, further diluting the classic Lotus livery from the 1970s and 80s, would be enough to distract people’s attention that, really, this car looks pretty much like last year’s E20.

To be fair there’s not been a lot of regulation changes in the off-season. It’s the calm before the storm that the new 2014 regs will bring in, with the switch the turbocharged V6 engines being the major change.

There’s more pics for you after the break and some introductory motherhood statements from the key Lotus men. We’ll update this post a bit later with more fluffy text from Enstone as well.

UPDATE 29 January: Q&A interviews from Kimi Raikkonnen, Romain Grosjean, Eric Boullier and James Allison have been added below, along with a special bonus right at the end.

Thrill-a-minute grand prix stunt driver Romain Grosjean has capped off a brilliant weekend with the news he has re-signed with the Lotus F1 Team for the 2013 season.

Needless to say the young Frenchie is very happy with this turn of events: “It’s fantastic for me to be continuing with Lotus F1 Team for 2013. It’s superb to have the support of everyone at Enstone. I’m really looking forward to rewarding their faith when we take to the track in Australia.

“I learnt a lot in my first full season in Formula 1 and my aim is to put these lessons into practice with stronger and more consistent performance on track next year.”

Clearly, when Romain isn’t crashing into his colleagues he’s a fine driver. Let’s hope he can prove his talent beyond doubt in 2013.

You’ll recall Kimi Raikkonen’s classic radio banter when he won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Shortly afterwards Retro Formula 1, makes of fine F1 apparel, proposed to make a t-shirt helping to immortalise Kimi’s words.

We’re not sure if they’re getting any credit or not, but Lotus, through Finnish fashion agency MPH, has revealed some official merchandise very much in line with what Retro Formula 1 first proposed.

So far it seems that sales are only available to European countries, but where there’s a will there’s a way.

[Source: leavemealone.fi]

It’s only a few weeks since Kimi Raikkonen demanded we leave him alone because he knows what he’s doing. Well, this rather amusing clip from the Brazilian Grand Prix tends to suggest otherwise.

After a minor off, Kimi tried to take a shortcut down an alternate entry onto the Interlagos race track. But, as you’ll see, he didn’t have a clue what he was doing until it was all too late.

For added lolz we’ve found the footage via Finnish TV and while you probably won’t understand a word they’re saying, laughter is universal!