‘Minor but frustrating’ problems cost Virgin Racing vital running on the penultimate day of pre-season testing, a big blow for the team who have much preparation to do before the opening race of the season in Bahrain.
Timo Glock, on his final day in the car before the season starts, could only complete 32 laps in the VR-01.
Nick Wirth, technical director for the team, explained the catalogue of problems they faced on Day 3. “A couple of assembly issues affected our programme today. The gearbox problem delayed our start and by the time we were ready to run, the rain came along. We used the changeable conditions up to lunchtime working through a programme of control system preparation for Bahrain and we were looking forward to a more productive afternoon. However, lunchtime checks revealed a cut fuel system seal, which meant we had to pull the engine off to replace it. We used the remaining time this afternoon to complete a few more interesting tests with Timo.
Wirth concluded his analysis with an astrology metaphor. “We're hoping that our planets will align tomorrow to allow us a smooth final day of testing before we head into our debut Grand Prix in Bahrain in two weeks' time.”
