McLaren has fired up its new Mercedes System One engine for the primary time.

McLaren and Mercedes have rekindled their former partnership for 2021 and past. McLaren ran Renault engines from 2018 till final yr.

New signing Daniel Ricciardo will be part of Lando Norris in spearheading McLaren’s new period because it seems to be to proceed the upwards trajectory of latest seasons.

On Wednesday, the British workforce fired up the engine for the primary time, one thing which is a key a part of the construct of a brand new automotive.

https://twitter.com/McLarenF1/status/1354466728139481091?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

McLaren CEO Zak Brown and workforce boss Andreas Seidl have been readily available to overseen the engine fire-up, which didn’t reveal something of the workforce’s new automotive design or livery.

The McLaren-Mercedes partnership was purported to happen similtaneously a significant revamp of the game’s aerodynamic guidelines. That rule change has been pushed again to 2022 to avoid wasting on growth prices through the coronavirus pandemic.

Whereas most different groups may have the vast majority of its automotive unchanged this season, McLaren was compelled to spend its developmental tokens final yr on becoming a model new engine reasonably than on 2020 upgrades.

McLaren successfully has a brand new automotive this yr consequently.

“Whereas each different workforce will carry over most of its automotive from final yr into this yr, our swap to the Mercedes energy unit signifies that’s not the case for us,” mentioned McLaren manufacturing director Piers Thynne is quoted as saying by Autosport.

“It is pushed an enormous quantity of change and, basically, we have been constructing a brand new automotive. The variety of new elements on the MCL35M is about the identical as after we constructed the MCL35.

“The again of the chassis and gearbox bell housing across the engine have modified considerably to adapt to the brand new energy unit.

“Altering energy unit drastically alters the structure of the automotive and the way in which every part is packaged, so your entire cooling format and all of the pipework, be that for fluid or air, has modified, together with all electrical harnessing and management containers.

“There are some vital parts of carryover as we enter the price cap.

“The FIA created an inventory of Transitional Carry Over (TCO) parts which can be outdoors of this yr’s price cap. These are elements that can be utilized in 2021 in the event that they have been run on final yr’s automotive.

“We have pushed these TCO laws to absolutely the most to permit us to hold over as a lot as potential, akin to gearbox internals and a few suspension parts, and subsequently not have to make use of a portion of our 2021 finances on their design and manufacturing.”

Pre-season testing will happen in Bahrain between March 12-14. The Bahrain Grand Prix will begin the season on March 28.