Secret Red Bull Tests Rumored

[cosworth151]

The German newspaper Bild is reporting the Red Bull has run secret tests in Austria. The tests supposedly took place  indoors at the Austrian company AVL’s rolling road facility in Graz, Austria. The tests may have involved Toro Rosso.

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20140605/f1/140609928#ixzz33mWAZO4q

[Scott]

So what.  Didn't do them much good.  I'm all for testing, so I hope they don't bother penalizing them, but no doubt they will be brought before the World Council of Lawyers to beg their case....

[Jericoke]

I'm not familiar with the rules of F1 testing.

Isn't there a 'mileage' cap?  If they're on a rolling road, then that means the car drove 0 miles  (or 0 km for those of you on metric), which would be within the rules as I understand them.

[Ian]

Even on a rolling road you're clocking up mileage.

[Scott]

But it sounds like it was primarily an engine test for Renault, so kind of on par of when Mercedes tested the Pirellis last year (which unless my memory escapes me, Mercedes was not penalized - even though they knew it was a grey area themselves).

[cosworth151]

I'm sure Mercedes would point out that, since all teams are required to use Pirellis, all teams would benefit from those tests. At best, only the Renault teams would benefit from these.

I know that Merc actually benefited far more than the other teams from the tire tests, but that would be the argument.

[Scott]

I guess what I mean is that an engine test on a rolling road (I don't think they mentioned it was in a wind tunnel, did they?), was a test by the engine manufacturer, and RBR or STR only obliged with a car and driver, much like the Pirelli test.  I would suggest that the Pirelli test is still paying off for Merc and the way they designed their car far more than the engine test paid off for RBR or STR or for that matter, any of the Renault teams. 

But I see what you're saying...and of course the test WAS in Austria, so makes it even more suspicious who instigated it.

[F1fanaticBD]

I am sure there will be some waves in F1 hegemony to address this issue. But I think this may be much more complex than Mercedes' last year test. Because the problem with the test was it used current car, with current drivers, while this test was clearly about Renault and less of Red Bull, because the feedback will be less as it was a rolling test.

[John S]

Red Bull claim, that even if they did, but they're clear they didn't, such testing would be within the regulations and therefore they intimate - 'nothing to see here'.............. Yeah right 

Whilst Red Bull denied any involvement, the team also noted that such testing is permitted under the regulations under certain circumstances. "Red Bull Racing didn't conduct the test laid out in the article," a spokesperson told The F1 Times. "The test mentioned in the article would be permitted by the regulations, but in any case Red Bull Racing didn't do it." In fact, as long as certain parts of the bodywork aren't attached to the car, such as the front-wing and no airflow is passing over the car, the facility can be used outside of the testing restrictions as it doesn't fall into the wind tunnel category according to Appendix 8 of the Sporting Regulations. Therefore, even if Red Bull or sister team Toro Rosso had been using the facility as reported, it would be completely legal.

by TF1T Staff, F1times.co.uk, Thurs 5th June.

 

[Scott]

We didn't do it, but if we had...

I thought since it wasn't a track or wind tunnel test that there might be a loophole, apparently they are claiming that there is.