Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team 2013

[jav]

FerrariPilot- I love you man, and...I stand corrected. As one of the oldest fans, you've never lost faith and while I admire (and respect) your loyalty, I regretably can't share it.....
W04 managed only 11 laps on the first day of testing. I'd say disappointment=1 optomism=0.

Testing day 2-

Pro- 3 laps more than day 1 & better lap time.
Con- Failure of another basic system- again requiring re-routing and abandoning rest of testing day.

Day 2:

Disappointment=2

Optomism still 0

...and the trend continues.

[lillschumi]

It´s the usual (burnt bodywork, ocacionally cockups etc.) BUT!! there is a difference, the car actually seems rather fast. They have not done any laps and mixed with setups but the times seems pretty competetive, let´s focus on that.

[dren]

It´s the usual (burnt bodywork, ocacionally cockups etc.) BUT!! there is a difference, the car actually seems rather fast. They have not done any laps and mixed with setups but the times seems pretty competetive, let´s focus on that.

Yes. And this is testing... I expect to see a lot of miles on the car tomorrow and Friday.

[Richard]

Many teams have flaws in the first round of testing. The teams with good leadership and technical direction fix those problems and then pile on the laps in the following weeks.

We can't really judge the team until we see how they perform in Barcelona on 19th. Then we'll see if they are able to develop and improve, or if they are scrambling around without any answers.

[wunderkind]

Optimism: Mercedes GP didn't miss this test or fielded the W03 instead.

[diego1960]

Which is the absolute minimum that is expected from an F1 team determined to carry the Mercedes name and badge, certainly not a positive as they threw W03's development down the drain and we ended up fighting with the Toro Rosso duo late in 2012.

[jav]

Optimism: Mercedes GP didn't miss this test or fielded the W03 instead.

Optomism:
plenty of fresh tires:
no wear on engines or gear boxes:
everyone showed up:
their garage looks neat and organized:

set the bar low enough and optomism abounds....

[Vasconia]

Optimism: Mercedes GP didn't miss this test or fielded the W03 instead.

Optomism:
plenty of fresh tires:
no wear on engines or gear boxes:
everyone showed up:
their garage looks neat and organized:

set the bar low enough and optomism abounds....

+1

We are in the pre-season test so we naturally should be a little bit optimistic, but after three bad seasons the team has to give us some REAL reasons/impression/data to be optimistic.

[flmkane]

Have people here forgotten the problems Lotus had last season?

Also, my opinion is that it's better to have the problems during tests, rather than during the season.

However, I believe that the issues the W04 has had so far were unacceptable. In another day and age, either of those accidents (fire, brake failure) could have killed the drivers.

[OppositeLock]

It's a frustrating start to testing. They still haven't managed enough laps to get the car tuned to the track. It's a positive that he car seems quick regardless.

[Diosfenix]

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xxbrno ... RJ4bme8FKI

[Phillyred]

I was quite disheartened when I woke up this morning and saw that Hamilton had a crash/brake failure.. BUT, I'd rather have the kinks worked out in pre-season testing.. I just hope they get some solid laps in before the Australian GP to work out these kinks.. The Mclaren is looking pretty good..

[elf341]

I was quite disheartened when I woke up this morning and saw that Hamilton had a crash/brake failure.. BUT, I'd rather have the kinks worked out in pre-season testing.. I just hope they get some solid laps in before the Australian GP to work out these kinks.. The Mclaren is looking pretty good..

True, better in testing. Last year the W03 covered considerable mileage/laps in testing but when the season came technical failures galore for Schumacher!

[dren]

Better it happen now at Jerez than at Barcelona!

[diego1960]

Or not have it at all, like Ferrari for example.