Renault's Taffin: more power and reliability in store

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Renault Sport F1 believes its power unit is set for an evolution following improvements validated in dyno testing recently.

Recent failures suffered by Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen have apparently addressed by the French manufacturer, with an older specification of parts at the root of the engine's weakness.

"We can affirm that from the Canada to Baku, we touched on the level of reliability that we wanted to have,” Renault’s Remi Taffin told Motorsport.com.

"So anything we want to bring into the game now is what we want to have – and has been 5000km prove.

"Obviously we still have to play with the parts that we introduced earlier in the year, so that is why sometimes we still have a few bits and pieces, glitches and gremlins.

"But that is how we have to work and we have to make sure that we can move on."

Renault could supply a fourth team in 2018 - Abiteboul

Renault plans on introducing its new engine parts either at Silverstone or in Hungary.

"It is all about reliability, which has obviously taken us two months more than we would have liked," added Taffin.

"But at least now we can benefit from that and in Baku we could get more performance out of the engine, which was good for this kind of track."

Taffin also insisted that fuel and lubricant improvements as well as software updates will also contribute to Renault's power unit progress.

"The second part of the season we will be looking to build on the right level of reliability to take the most out of the engine," he added.

"That also means the most out of the power unit, so we can get more electrical energy out of the energy store and so on and so forth.

"We will see if we can bring some of the [update] stuff forward. We will have some new fuel or lubricants which will help and, if we have some new bits and pieces that we have left aside from the start of the season, we will bring them.

"There is still a big focus in trying to follow our road map and make sure that next year’s engine is there. And as it is an engine that is close to this one, it is easier to transfer ideas from one to the other."

Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.