Force India Unveil 2018 Livery

(Image credit to: Sahara Force India F1 Team)

    Force India may have left it late to unveil its 2018 Formula 1 car, but fans will have to wait even longer to see the VJM11 that will line up on the grid for the Australian Grand Prix.

    The team has opted to run a ‘launch specification’ at preseason testing, an updated version of the 2017 machine. This will give the aerodynamics team more time to develop the car.

    “Looking at the VJM11, the DNA of the car is still very much that of last year’s car,” said technical director Andrew Green.

    “We took the decision, quite a while ago, that the launch specification of thee 2018 car would be based around our understanding of the 2017 car, but with all the new structures required by the regulations in place.

    It is a starting point, a good reference from which to introduce changes quite quickly; it gives our aerodynamics department more time to develop a car for the first race in Australia, rather than having to release parts early for testing.”

    The car may be an ‘evolution’ of its predecessor, but Force India was forced to redesign the chassis in order to incorporate the halo head protection device, a huge expense to the independent team.

    Though the new chassis passed the crash test  on the first time of asking, the squad is still developing the car to try to neutralize the impact the halo has on the aerodynamics.

    “We have the opportunity to apply some cladding around parts of the structure to try and mitigate the losses, but it’s still a very difficult structure to make aerodynamically neutral,” said Green.

    “At the moment, it has a negative effect, but we are in the process of minimizing its impact and hopefully we will get it down to zero in the near future. It’s one of the challenges we are dealing with at the moment – it is not a massive one but it is something we would rather not have from an aero perspective. It’s the same for everyone, however, and you will not see a final solution until we get to Melbourne.”

    Despite the challenges, Force India is aiming high this season. After two consecutive fourth place finishes in the constructors’ championship, team boss Vijay Mallya is confident the team can continue the strong performances.

    “Everybody keeps telling me that it will be difficult to repeat the double fourth place, but there is no reason why we cannot consolidate our position and improve.

    Yes Formula 1 is a very tough and competitive environment, but we are an established team with continuity in all areas of the company. We don’t take anything for granted but we will be disappointed if we are not fighting for points at every race this year.”

    The team will once again run a pink livery, with sponsor BWT remaining on-board for a second season.

----
Article Written By: Bethonie Waring
No copyright infringement intended
Photo rights belong to Sahara Force India F1 Team
Follow us on Twitter @bethonieboost & @F1Insider78