Haas has launched the automotive which can compete in its first season with out the management of former group boss Guenther Steiner.
Haas’ new automotive, dubbed the VF-24, sees the group lean extra right into a predominantly black look, which has turn into a pattern throughout the F1 grid as groups strip away paint to save lots of weight.
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The main departure from the 2023 mannequin by way of livery is that the nostril of the automotive and the parts across the cockpit at the moment are black, not white, though purple stays on the entrance and rear wing.
The brand new season appears to be like set to be a vital one within the longer way forward for the Haas group, with Steiner, who led the group from its inception, not given a brand new contract by group boss Gene Haas after ending final within the championship.
Steiner and group proprietor Gene Haas basically disagreed on the route of the group — Steiner felt Haas wanted to speculate extra in personnel, gear and amenities to maintain up with the group’s rivals, whereas Haas has felt the group should do extra with the present stage of assets.
Rookie group boss Ayao Komatsu will take the group into the brand new season, with drivers Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg returning for a second season collectively as teammates.
“I am trying ahead to seeing the VF-24 operating and racing — a sentiment I do know I share with our companions and certainly all the group,” Gene Haas, Chairman of MoneyGram Haas F1 Crew, mentioned.
“In Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen, we additionally know we have an amazing pair of drivers behind the wheel, their expertise will show invaluable once more as we develop our program by means of the yr.
“We have used the low season to place the processes in place to be higher and in the end enhance our general efficiency. Quickly we get to see how we’re doing.”
Komatsu mentioned the group ought to go into the brand new yr with low expectations.
“Out of the gates in Bahrain, I nonetheless suppose we’ll be in direction of the again of the grid, if not final,” he mentioned within the press launch unveiling the group’s new automotive for 2024.
Haas waited for a lot of 2023 to ship an enormous automotive improve on the U.S. Grand Prix at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas, however it didn’t yield the advance the group had hoped for.
Komatsu mentioned that improve has delayed the group’s progress coming into the brand new season.
He added: “The rationale our launch-spec automotive just isn’t going to be fast sufficient in Bahrain just isn’t due to the standard of the individuals we now have right here, however it’s as a result of we began late after which we stopped for 2 months to do the Austin improve.
“It actually diverted useful resource, so we misplaced time there, however the group is discovering good positive aspects within the wind tunnel in order that’s constructive and by way of traits, it is getting into the proper route.”
Komatsu then alluded to his disliking of earlier processes on the group and mentioned his Haas would take an all new method to analysing its place popping out of Bahrain’s preseason check, which is held the week earlier than the identical venue hosts the opening race.
“The main focus is to have an excellent check program for Bahrain in order that we come away from the check having high quality information for the group to analyse and perceive which route to develop the automotive. This implies understanding the energy and weak point of the VF-24 precisely, then put a coherent plan collectively to provide updates on the automotive, which hasn’t occurred beforehand.
“Drivers will play a stronger position too. Final yr, by way of subjective suggestions from drivers, their understanding of what the weak point of the automotive was clear, nevertheless, we weren’t then in a position to mirror that in our automotive improvement program.
“With the modifications we made within the group, we purpose to deal with this concern with our drivers extra within the loop of improvement paths in order that nothing will get misplaced. As engineers we now have all the info from many sensors, however the one factor we won’t do is drive the automotive and really feel what is going on on. So, we have to have the ability to perceive and react to drivers’ suggestions higher.”