Problem solved on the Lotus E20 which gains 1 kilo

It only took Romain Grosjean and his Lotus E20 a few laps at Barcelona to jam the fine English machinery that had made a strong impression on its rivals during the first private tests at Jerez: “We arrived in Barcelona with an all-new chassis, the E20-02,” says James Allison, technical director at Lotus, on the team’s official website. “We completed installation laps on Tuesday morning, then Romain [Grosjean] left the garage for his first stint of the day. As soon as he hit the brakes before the first corner on his first flying lap, he felt that something was not right. He told us over the radio that he was ending his stint and returning to the pits. We immediately saw that we had an issue with the attachment of the rear arm of the front suspension triangle.”

Initially, the British team had decided to send the incriminated chassis back to the Enstone factory, hoping to rely on the E20-01 chassis, used in Jerez, to participate in the continuation of the Barcelona tests: « We used the E20-02 chassis for the first time, and our initial reaction was to consider the possibility of a manufacturing issue affecting only this chassis. […] Before sending the E20-01 chassis [to Barcelona], we initiated an investigation program in Enstone to ensure there was no risk of the issue reoccurring. Unfortunately, these investigations concluded that there was a possibility the same problem could recur. We then reluctantly decided to cancel the tests and make the necessary changes to both our chassis before returning to the track. These were intense days [at the factory] but I must say everyone fulfilled their task remarkably. On the first day, I clearly explained to all the Enstone staff what was happening. Everyone understood that the situation was unfortunate but under control. We designed the new components, manufactured them, and assembled them on the chassis. We then satisfactorily completed all the necessary tests, and the chassis was sent to Spain. »

Following the modifications made to the rear arm attachments of the front suspension triangle, Kimi Räikkönen and Romain Grosjean might find the Lotus E20 slightly heavier than at Jerez, although James Allison puts it in perspective: “We’re only talking about approximately one kilogram, which is manageable. It won’t have any significant impact on the car’s handling or performance,” assures the technical director of the English team, adding that the modified Lotus E20 will not need to undergo the FIA crash tests again.

In Barcelona, the Lotus team will have the Lotus E20-01 chassis on the track and the E20-02 chassis as a backup, while the design of the E20-03 chassis is already underway in Enstone. After missing four days of testing, Romain Grosjean—on track Thursday and Friday—and Kimi Räikkönen—driving the Lotus E20 for the last two days—will have their work cut out for them at the Catalunya circuit. However, once again, James Allison remains positive: « Of course, missing four days of testing isn’t ideal. We need to be out on the track at this time of the year, like most teams. That said, there are reasons to remain optimistic. First of all, we completed many laps without issues in Jerez and gained a good understanding of the car. Some minor problems we identified in Jerez also needed solving, and the new elements weren’t available last week. On Thursday, the car will run with all the necessary new elements. We are eager to get back on track » concludes James Allison.