When Caterham unveiled its 2013 car in the Jerez pitlane early on Tuesday, observers immediately spotted the ‘step’ nose and a new, brighter livery.<\/p>\n
“Cool!” said Dutch rookie Giedo van der Garde when asked what he thinks of the new green hue.<\/p>\n
“Last year it was a little too dark, which sometimes didn’t look good on TV,” he told Dutch magazine Formule1.\u00a0 “We have had a good response so far.”<\/p>\n
The next most noticeable feature of the CT03 is its nose, still ‘stepped’ as in 2012 despite the FIA allowing teams to smooth it with a ‘vanity panel’ in 2013.<\/p>\n
“This is the package we will bring to Australia,” technical director Mark Smith is quoted by Brazil’s Totalrace.<\/p>\n
Van der Garde was happy with his first day of work on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
“It feels different (compared to the 2012 car),” said the 27-year-old, who last year completed the championship as Caterham’s Friday practice driver.<\/p>\n
“The front feels good, gives me a good feeling.\u00a0 But so far the back is not to my liking.<\/p>\n
“I have nothing to complain about.\u00a0 We knew in advance that our expectations are not too high and we would not suddenly be right in the middle of the pack.”<\/p>\n
But Caterham has not sent out the best message of financial health by ousting its highly rated salaried driver Heikki Kovalainen.<\/p>\n
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner told Finland’s MTV3: “Kovalainen deserves to be in formula one in his own right.<\/p>\n
“It’s a shame that the financial situation is requiring teams to have drivers with a budget, but unfortunately that’s the way formula one has been for at least 30 years.”<\/p>\n
However, Caterham team boss Cyril Abiteboul insisted: “Our team is in a healthy position.<\/p>\n
“We are still a small team,” he is quoted by Blick newspaper, “but our goal is to be the most efficient team in formula one.”<\/p>\n
According to one publication, the CT03 is not lacking in innovation, with one aspect of its exhaust solution already raising eyebrows.<\/p>\n
“There is one feature of the Caterham’s exhaust that I don’t think will be there when we get to Melbourne,” Lotus’ James Allison said.<\/p>\n
Racecar Engineering magazine said the feature in doubt is a ‘flow-conditioner’ in the exhaust channel, which may fall foul of technical regulation 5.8.4.<\/p>\n
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