Ferrari should benifit from Maranello overhaul

Ferrari technical director Pat Fry today said that an overhaul at Maranello is targeting more than simply fixing early season problems with the F2012.

In a characteristically honest appraisal of his team’s pace, Fry, speaking in the FIA Friday press conference, said he expected his team to be qualifying between seventh and 11th and that while many of their problems with the current car are now understood, the gap between understanding and rectifying a problem can be a large one. The former McLaren engineer also explained that his new team were less interested in quick fixes than they were in changing the way Maranello functions in the long term.

“It’s not just a case of us trying to build a quicker car, we need to fundamentally be changing the methodologies that we use to select, design and manufacture so that we are competitive long term,” he said. “There’s work on all fronts, not just work going into what we’re taking to Barcelona [where Ferrari are expected to bring a big upgrade], there’s also a huge amount of work in just trying to change the fundamentals of what we do so we can actually take a step forward and be competing with everyone else.”

Fry unsurprisingly identified aerodynamics as the area most in need of attention. “We’ve got some issues there that we’re trying to resolved,” he confirmed. “The areas you need to be working on are everything from the way you run the wind tunnel, the accuracy of your wind tunnel, the simulation that you use to decide what components to take forward, so we’re not leaving any stone unturned. (Sounds like a South African politician.)

“We’re actually trying to review and revise our methodologies through the whole process and that carries on into the design office for trying to get weight out of various parts, make other bits more durable, so there’s work going on absolutely everywhere within the company, on the basic fundamental methodology as well as just trying to upgrade the car.” Ferrari occupied 11th and 12th positions in Prictice 1, and 10th and 17th in Practice 2.  — F1 Media edited by David Blood, SportsCentral