Although the Sauber C31 is very much an evolutionary follow-up to its predecessor, the Swiss team admits that some more revolutionary parts can be found at the rear end of the car. This follows the outlawing of exhaust-blown diffusers, with Formula 1 teams now pushing to develop new solutions to provide sufficient rear end traction.
“The C31 is revolutionary where we had fresh ideas, particularly at the rear of the car, and it is an evolution where we knew we could carry over certain approaches,” says Chief Design Matt Morris. “We had to improve on the weaknesses we identified on the C30, but at the same time we wanted to maintain its strengths.”
Sauber has opted for a high chassis design once again, although the nose now drops in-line with the changed regulations for 2012. The front suspension has been improved, whereas the rear suspension is now a pull-rod design (suspension arm connecting the top wishbone to the springs/torsion bars at bottom of chassis), which is different to last year.
“The current plan is to launch a fairly basic roll-out version of the car, which was defined quite some time ago,” Morris continues. “We will then be testing development parts during the upcoming weeks with a late upgrade for the first race on 18 March in Australia. Therefore the car will look quite different in Melbourne compared to the roll-out car.”
The car will be tested for the first time on Tuesday, with Kamui Kobayashi driving.
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