It was a very challenging day the McLaren-Honda team on day one of the in-season test in Bahrain on Tuesday.
In charge of their 2017 contender was none other than test and development driver Oliver Turvey – a regular in the McLaren-Honda simulator – and it was his first time on track behind the wheel of the MCL32.
However, shortly after he completed his install lap, the engineers detected a water leak in the ERS system, which prompted a full PU change to further investigate the issue. The Woking based squad worked tirelessly through the day to ready the car for a return to the track, and Oliver stepped back into the cockpit for a second installation lap shortly after 5 pm.
The team managed two timed runs before the chequered flag fell, and Oliver crossed the line having completed just 17 laps.
Despite the lack of mileage covered during today's running, the team was able to collect some useful aero and PU data which will be analysed to help shape the programme for the final day of testing here on Wednesday local time when regular driver Stoffel Vandoorne takes over the driving duties.
“After Oliver completed his installation run this morning, we discovered a water leak in the ERS which required a full PU change. We suspect the issue is related to those we encountered over the race weekend in Bahrain, but the circumstances were slightly different, so until the Honda engineers have done a full investigation we cannot be sure,” said Eric Boullier. ““I'd like to praise the guys and girls in the garage, who worked really hard once again to change the PU so we could return to the track – a tough job made tougher after a long couple of weeks away from home.”
“Once the car was back up and running, I'm pleased that Oliver – in his first outing in the MCL32 – was able to put in some laps. It's great to see him out here in Bahrain and we're very appreciative of his support. The team will be working hard overnight as usual to ready the chassis and PU for testing tomorrow, when I hope we can have a more productive day of running than we managed today.”
