4478 replies to this topic

[CPR]

Performance wise it was as expected but reliability looked kinda okay but it's day one and the PU should last 5 weekends.

 

We managed to disappoint the trolls at least. That's a good start!

 

Though I suspect qualifying will be worse. I'm not that confident about getting out of Q1. If anyone can do it it would be Fernando - Stoffel has been notably slower.

 

Peak speed trap figures don't look terrible (better than winter testing) but I suspect the gap will grow come qualifying. Race pace speed trap figures are wider, it seems, though we didn't get much from Fernando. I suspect we'll have to do much more fuel saving too. We probably need at least 0.5 and maybe 1s more performance per lap to expect to be scoring points on merit, at a very rough guess.

[Borko]

We managed to disappoint the trolls at least. That's a good start!

It's sad that you call disappointed McLaren fans "trolls". Most of us are simply devastated because of the suferring McLaren is going through at the moment. If it continues like this, even McLaren's existance can be in question. But you are a Honda fan, not a McLaren fan, you can't understand that.

[RainyAfterlifeDaylight]

I really believe we can shave off about 1 second with better prepared Honda powerunit and chassis by Spanish GP.

Edited by RainyAfterlifeDaylight, 24 March 2017 - 07:11.

[CPR]

I've been a McLaren fan for 20 years, thank you.

[Rudex]

Im happy. I saw reliabiilty upgrade and the chassis look ok. Right now the engine look very detuned and I am very confident in the Testing days post Bahrain GP They can test the new spec engine and for Russia We will see a good package to be in the second group and go ahead for there.

[TakataDomeNSX]

It's sad that you call disappointed McLaren fans "trolls". Most of us are simply devastated because of the suferring McLaren is going through at the moment. If it continues like this, even McLaren's existance can be in question. But you are a Honda fan, not a McLaren fan, you can't understand that.

The assumptions people make...Sigh.

[Lazy]

Encouraging that Hondas fixes seem to have worked to  certain extent.

[Talisman]

We managed to disappoint the trolls at least. That's a good start!

Though I suspect qualifying will be worse. I'm not that confident about getting out of Q1. If anyone can do it it would be Fernando - Stoffel has been notably slower.

Peak speed trap figures don't look terrible (better than winter testing) but I suspect the gap will grow come qualifying. Race pace speed trap figures are wider, it seems, though we didn't get much from Fernando. I suspect we'll have to do much more fuel saving too. We probably need at least 0.5 and maybe 1s more performance per lap to expect to be scoring points on merit, at a very rough guess.

So what were they up to? Short runs for setup and general tests? No medium to long runs?

[Treads]

Very happy that they have taken at least a small step forward in reliability.

On the other hand it is so frustrating. Being where they are, with a half decent engine and more testing mileage, they'd move forward easily a second, possibly closer to two, and be at worst in 4th place behind the big 3, possibly mixing it with Red Bull here. Granted we'd be half a second or a second off Merc but then again who isn't.

[Lotus53B]

Due to the irritation called work, I didn't watch the FP sessions, but from what I've gleaned from here and there there are definite signs of improvement, which is good.  Honda and McLaren must have been burning the midnight oil over the last few weeks, let's hope these "green shoots of recovery^©" continue

 

Aye, it is still disappointing, but not nearly as bad as it could have been.  The car looks like it will last the distance, and races are different beasts to practice.

 

I'll definitely try and get to qualifying.

 

 

*Political joke in the UK

[CPR]

So what were they up to? Short runs for setup and general tests? No medium to long runs?

 

A mix of things. Fernando did a longer run in FP1 and Stoffel a longer run in FP2. Longer being around 10 laps.

 

Most runs looked like 5 laps to me, but there was also things like pitstop practice, start practice, back-to-back comparison of the "new" FW (not seen any pics of it).

 

Apparently gear changes still don't sound very good.

[Rudex]

Alonso "we have been able to test new elements that have worked and that is positive.I recover with the rivals in curves and I lose in the straights"

Alonso "we have had some problems but less than in Barcelona. There is a lot still to improve. I've gone pushing at max every time. We have learned things"

 

source:AlbertFabrega

Edited by Rudex, 24 March 2017 - 07:58.

[ERICTOPF1]

If that is the low point of the season, I'll take it.

[Lotus53B]

Isn't the gearbox a McLaren component?

[New Britain]

Isn't the gearbox a McLaren component?

 

Yes.

[Talisman]

A mix of things. Fernando did a longer run in FP1 and Stoffel a longer run in FP2. Longer being around 10 laps.

Most runs looked like 5 laps to me, but there was also things like pitstop practice, start practice, back-to-back comparison of the "new" FW (not seen any pics of it).

Apparently gear changes still don't sound very good.

Ok so a general mix. Top speed not as far off as I thought, definitely been a bit of progress since Barcelona.

[Marklar]

BREAKING NEWS: Alonso has left McLaren

 

[Talisman]

BREAKING NEWS: Alonso has left McLaren

No he just realised he would be quicker sprinting around the track on his own.

[Stelisto]

BREAKING NEWS: Alonso has left McLaren

It's funny...

[CPR]

Ok so a general mix. Top speed not as far off as I thought, definitely been a bit of progress since Barcelona.

 

Yes, does feel like progress. Not completely trouble free though and a long way to go both in terms of proving reliability and in outright performance.

 

Would be nice to know how much our performance is being constrained by reliability issues but I guess we'll get some hints on that in the coming days.

[pacificquay]

Roughly on a par with Force India despite a significantly less powerful engine is huge progress from Barcelona

[Rudex]

 

No so bad the trap speed.

 

We dont know the fuel charge but if you compare with Sauber, you can see the velocity is very similar. I think is good point to comparation with Ferrari 2016 engine. If they have higher speed than Sauber is a good step keep in mind the engine is detuned and with lack of fine tune on mappings.

 

 

btw, these figures from race Aus 2016:

Edited by Rudex, 24 March 2017 - 09:01.

[apexracing1]

So sad to see them back still stuck at 2015 level, 3 years wasted from Alonso's twilight years is a great tragedy, and also for McLaren. Even if Honda eventually become dominant it was not worth wasting these days and probably more. They are not even at Mercedes 2014 levels are they?

[Rudex]

fastest lap Alo onboard

 

https://twitter.com/...153723076653058

[V8 Fireworks]

But you are a Honda fan, not a McLaren fan, you can't understand that.

 

Indeed.  

 

McLaren fans are entitled to not understand the simple elegance of VTEC (two cam profiles in one engine, genius), Integra, Prelude, Civic, Accord, Legend, that Gordan Murrary was inspired to build the McLaren F1 after driving an NSX as his personal car, "Without racing there is no Honda", that this small motorcycle company dared to enter F1 and win in their first season, just as McLaren themselves were a small gariste team... they are entitled to not understand that.  That is up to McLaren fans. 

Edited by V8 Fireworks, 24 March 2017 - 09:09.

[RSRally]

This is pretty disastrous going into the third season of the McLaren Honda partnership but the thing which should give some hope is that they can update the engine this year.. no more tokens. I presume though that if they want to upgrade parts out of schedule they will have to take grid penalties?

[dierome87]

If the rumours that the engine is 100BHP down are true, then Alonso's time in FP2 is actually quite good.

 

McLaren could easily be the 3rd or 4th team with a decent engine...

Edited by dierome87, 24 March 2017 - 09:21.

[MCR]

If the rumours that the engine is 100BHP down are true, then Alonso's time in FP2 is actually quite good.

McLaren could easily be the 3rd or 4th team with a decent engine...

Woulda coulda shoulda ifs and buts...

Who cares... 2.4 second off the lead car is not on and Mercedes have a qualifying mode so it might be as much as 3 seconds

[Victor_RO]

http://forums.autosp...mcl32-part-iii/

 

Part 3 here.