A lot of respect between the two partners - Lom
Fabrice Lom, Principal Engineer for Red Bull Racing Track Support, looks back at the Spanish Grand Prix. David Coulthard collected the first World Championship points of the 2007 season for the team last weekend.
“Pretty good overall. We had no problems with the engine and David Coulthard finished in a promising fifth place. Unfortunately, Mark Webber had to retire early on in the race and was unable to show what he was capable of achieving.”
The Red Bull Racing team used a new aero package in Barcelona...“Yes. The new bodywork, among other modifications, has no chimneys on the sidepods.”
Why?“The Renault V8 is very efficient in terms of its cooling, and that meant it was possible to close off some of the bodywork openings in the engine cover of the RB3. After testing and learning about the engine, the chassis designers have decided to remove the chimneys.”
Is being an engine supplier different to what it was ten years ago with Williams, for example?“The relationship is similar. There’s a lot of respect between the two partners, and the chassis guys also expect a lot from us. In some respects the preparation work before the grand prix doesn’t require the engine supplier to help his partner as much as in the past. When Renault supplied Williams, only the engine manufacturer has simulation programmes enabling us to choose the gear ratios. Today, the chassis team also has this type of simulation software, meaning we can now work together on this subject. Equally, the data analysis is much more in-depth study than before.”
Red Bull Racing uses a Pi electronic system whereas Renault runs Magneti-Marelli electronics. Does having to work with the two systems cause a few problems from time to time?“Not really. In fact, I’m rather surprised at the quality of the communication between the two systems. The links are a bit slower than if all the operations were carried out by the same system, but the result is satisfactory."
How do Renault F1 Team and Red Bull Racing communicate at the grand prix?“To put it bluntly, we don’t! Unless there’s an incident like a batch of defective parts for the engine, we each go our own way. For example, there’s no exchange of information on race strategies or the amount of fuel on board. Of course, the preparation for the Grand Prix is done beforehand with all the engineers in the Viry factory. There, the working parameters of the engine for each circuit are defined for all the Renault engines.”
What’s the atmosphere like at Red Bull Racing at the moment?“It’s good. Motivation is strong. The only negative point is tiredness. Chassis development is continuous and a lot of physical demands are made on the guys. The results are starting to come and that helps them to cope. Their ambition is to do better and better for the rest of the season. It’ll also be important to count on two cars at the finish in the future. The team’s working on it.”
Source Renaultf1
