Formula 1

Oil strategy key to Ferrari reliability

The Ferrari F2005 will contest this year's Formula One World Championship with a completely new portfolio of engine oils. Just as with tyres or chassis components, Ferrari will have a suite of oils from which to choose during the race weekend this ...

Edited: Feb 26, 2005, 2:02 PM

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The Ferrari F2005 will contest this year's Formula One World Championship with a completely new portfolio of engine oils. Just as with tyres or chassis components, Ferrari will have a suite of oils from which to choose during the race weekend this year.

Designed to accommodate the new one-engine-per-two-race rule, Ferrari will have the option of switching between at least three different oils during the race weekend.

"Knowing which oil will best suit a certain track only comes with experience," explains Mike Copson, Shell's Formula One Technical Manager, "and by supplying a suite of oils to the race team, we can run the car with differing levels of protection and power throughout the weekend."

"At the end of an engine's life, testing has shown that engine wear in 2005 will be similar to last year, but clearly during its life, the stresses on the unit will be increased as it will be under duress for longer periods of time."

"With a portfolio of lubricants we will be able to offer the engine increased protection during practice sessions before we switch to a more viscous, power-liberating blend for the race."

"A key factor for success in 2005 will be knowing exactly how hard to push the engines," explains Ferrari's Technical Director, Ross Brawn. "We expect drivers to concentrate mainly on tyre life during the race, but we will be monitoring engine wear very closely from the garage too."

"Having developed a portfolio of oils with Shell, we should be able to push the engines harder for longer without compromising track time or engine wear during practice sessions."

The liberty the lubricant portfolio afford the team is expected to pay dividends straight away as Ferrari will use the new selection in the F2004M immediately at the Australian meeting in March.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION
The oil development programme continues apace and more iterations are expected later in the season to compliment the existing selection.

FUEL
Ferrari will start the new Formula One season with the same well proven and extremely successful Shell V-Power fuel with which it finished last year. A new batch of the Shell V-Power ULG59 has been prepared with a revised additive package that has been altered to compliment the new oil's protective qualities.

"We have now had three seasons without an engine or gearbox related failure, but reliability is absolutely key in 2005, so we have taken a cautious approach to the first developments of the year as the new rules are a step into the unknown for all of Formula 1."

"Shell has been extremely busy working closely with the team to ensure that the all important additive package within the fuel has been further optimised to cope with the rigours of the extended race mileage that we will see in 2005" said Mike Copson.

-shell-

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