Renault defends its engine

Renault, which will continue to power the single-seaters Red Bull in 2010, can be satisfied with the behavior of its thrusters at the end of the season. After the breakages suffered Sebastian Vettel during the European Grand Prix, Red Bull was worried about the reliability of its blocks, even hesitating to join forces with Mercedes from the 2010 season.

But, thanks to adequate management and ultimately unfailing reliability, the Renault engines proved efficient until the end of the season. Sebastian Vettel did not need a ninth engine (each car can only use eight different engines throughout the season) and Red Bull-Renault won the last three Grands Prix of the year.

« It wasn't easy, however tempers Fabrice Lom, Renault engineer seconded to the Red Bull team, in the Renault podcast F1 team. Sebastian's engine situation was complicated. Managing to not use a ninth engine and ending up with a victory is a great reward. It's also a nice snub to the German journalists who said that we had ruined Sebastian's championship. »

Indeed, after the engine failures suffered by Sebastian Vettel during the European Grand Prix, the overseas press strongly criticized the French manufacturer, affirming that the lack of reliability of the Renault propellers had weighed down Sebastian Vettel in his career. conquest of the world title.

The performance of Sebastian Vettel and, above all, Mark Webber, during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, also delighted Fabrice Lom. Webber, lacking tire grip, had to attack constantly to avoid giving up his second place. “ Mark managed to resist Jenson's return, we made the Renault (engine) speak. Compared to Mercedes, and this was very clearly seen, there is not the gap that was announced by our German journalist friends. »

The end of Mark Webber's race pushes Fabrice Lom to think that the Renault engine has proven itself, since the Australian used the propeller all the way to the finish line to preserve his position. “ After the last pit stop, we generally try to save the engine by shifting gears to lower speeds. But there, with Jenson behind, we saved nothing. The engine was at its maximum performance, as in qualifying. »

If Fabrice Lom affirms that “ the Renault engine is very reliable », Consumption is also the strong point of the French propeller. “ These are things that make you happy, confirms Lom. When we see that our partner Red Bull is planning a stop for Hamilton and that dear Hamilton stops, like in Japan, two laps earlier than expected, that always feels good. The consumption of our engine allows us to gain from one to three tenths in each qualifying session. » A statistic which should lead Red Bull to confirm Renault as the engine supplier for its cars in 2010, the team having decided to continue this fruitful collaboration.