F1 Testing 2017: Week 1 Barcelona (27th - 2nd)

Quick note on Manor, there is still hope apparently. Still in talks with someone so no sale of parts yet. Potential return by Barcelona.
Andi.

I was under the impression that at this point the 2017 car isn't made. There was talk about them asking if they could use the 2016 car or something for several races if they were bought because it was unlikely they'd have the 2017 car made in time. Though since then there was also mention some people were working still without pay in the hopes of getting bought. So maybe they are putting an already designed car together with materials they've bought but not used yet?

We'll see but at this point I can't see it happening.
 
I'm not sure they'd let that happen. The speed difference between the Manor and the front runners was already huge without the 4 seconds a lap on top to this car. They'd be even more of a liability.
 
Manor may have to use a 2016 chassis according to Craig Slater.
There is still hope for Manor F1 in 2017, according to Sky Sports News HQ's Craig Slater.

The team ceased trading after administrators failed to find a buyer for the outfit, but Craig reports that administrators are deferring their decision.

"Talks have been ongoing over the last couple of weeks with a party that would seek to buy the team," he says. "And that has meant that the administrators, who are in charge of the factory and the cars, have deferred any kind of auction or sale of all of those goods until they are sure that either they can go ahead with this sale or that it's not going to come to pass."

Manor could enter the campaign as late as the Spanish GP, though they may have to use an old chassis if they really were to return.
Andi.
 
Manor may have to use a 2016 chassis according to Craig Slater.
There is still hope for Manor F1 in 2017, according to Sky Sports News HQ's Craig Slater.

The team ceased trading after administrators failed to find a buyer for the outfit, but Craig reports that administrators are deferring their decision.

"Talks have been ongoing over the last couple of weeks with a party that would seek to buy the team," he says. "And that has meant that the administrators, who are in charge of the factory and the cars, have deferred any kind of auction or sale of all of those goods until they are sure that either they can go ahead with this sale or that it's not going to come to pass."

Manor could enter the campaign as late as the Spanish GP, though they may have to use an old chassis if they really were to return.
Andi.

Yeah, sounds like what I read. I think it's wishful thinking. Maybe someone thinking of buying them for the registration, have a bad year but a shortcut route into F1 for someone with the money to spend 20-30mil on a dire and embarrassing season. Not a real problem, just have it be Manor this year then rebrand for next year with a proper car.

But again, I really just can't see it happening unfortunately.


Anyway end of morning we have

Merc 79 laps, Ferrari 63, FI and Williams on 39, Sauber 33, Renault 22, TR 19, Hass 15, RBR 4 and Mclaren 1.

Which gives

Merc 157 laps
Ferrari 111 laps
Renault 45 laps
Honda 1 lap.

Pretty much the same story as since 2014 really. Merc killing it, Ferrari showing good testing reliability in general, Renault having issues and Honda a joke.
 
No. You can run illegal cars in testing.

While you definitely can run illegal parts in testing, in this case it looks almost certain the t-wing is legal. The regulations have a very obvious area you can make something that wide at that point and pretty much every team seems to have noticed it so, meh. I mean, they might do so little they all get rid of them anyway, same goes for the shark fin, but looking at the regulations around the t-wing there seems to be no reason to believe they'll be banned.

It's so weird, previously people go on about lack of variation with too many rules on what you can do for aero but every time something changes and there is a strange bit on a car people freak out because it looks weird.
 
I agree, Drunkenmaster, and I didn't mean to imply that they were illegal just that they've not yet been scrutinized and confirmed legal. Judging by the number of teams that have them I think they're a pretty sure bet. The bigger question is whether they can be made solid enough not to count as a movable element, and whether we'll see a quick rule change to ban them.
 
So, f1today says Mclaren is now switching out engines.... but I'm not sure if earlier when they said it would take ages just to get to where the oil leak is, at that time they didn't immediately start working on putting in a new engine(because they might have to anyway and it would save time), or if they found the oil leak, took ages doing that and are now moving on to moving engine which would likely take even longer. Either way, Mclaren down an engine after 1 lap, shock horror.

Also, apparently Hamilton tweeted that he'll be live instagraming from the cockpit through the afternoon? I don't know if that is a joke, Sky are taking it as a serious post. It wouldn't be at all difficult to have the camera hooked up, sending pictures and someone in the garage puts them up every now and then.

Ricciardo has been back on track, so their sensor issue has been fixed.
 
Also, apparently Hamilton tweeted that he'll be live instagraming from the cockpit through the afternoon? I don't know if that is a joke, Sky are taking it as a serious post. It wouldn't be at all difficult to have the camera hooked up, sending pictures and someone in the garage puts them up every now and then.

Could just be while he is sat in the car waiting in the garage?
 
I was about to post that shark fin image... I can't quite decide what i think of it. It's small, looks kind of like it's a broken 'normal' shark fin. I think it might look better if it was black like the t-wing.

I'm so up to date with this stuff, apparently live instragram means literally live streaming, not just posting at the time, I didn't realise you could stream on it, though it sounds like you need the app to get the live part so I likely won't bother. someone will whack it up somewhere to be seen later I would think.
 
Looks like a surgical instrument.

Edit: seems to have a vent at the top:

cc4ba67b-552b-47be-86d4-467d4ecac0ff_800.jpg
 
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cd9a6f58-6ceb-4f63-804e-b0a00d6ae204_800.jpg


Wow, Merc really do everything just that bit different. Shark fin is radically different in both design, size and function to everyone else.

Scarbs saying that's for cooling but meh, not sure I believe it They've put a fairly steep angle in the back of it which would make the air come out at a specific angle and without the sharkfin they didn't have that hole which makes me think it's mostly about shaping the way air comes out of the car and hits both wings there.
 
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