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Renault set for 'completely new car' in 2018

Renault F1 is looking to make a bold new start next season, with a completely different car being envisaged by the team.

"We’re making strong progress at Enstone," said technical director Nick Chester. "[The 2018 chassis] is where our focus lies.

"It’s a completely new car despite a relatively low number of regulation changes," he added.

Unlike this season, only minor changes to the aerodynamic rules next year. The biggest alteration that the teams face next season is the introduction of the Halo cockpit protection device.

"We’ve learnt a lot on the aerodynamic package and the balance of a car built to 2017 regulations," Chester said. "The car should represent a strong step forward.

"We’ll be doing some aero runs in practice in Brazil with a variety of aero instrumentation to help prepare the 2018 package," he added.

The focus on next year's car doesn't mean that Renault aren't keen to do their best in the final two races of 2017, starting with next weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix.

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"It’s a track with three interesting and contrasting sectors," Chester said. "The first sector is fairly quick with medium to high speed corners and a short straight which enables DRS overtaking opportunities.

"The middle sector is very twisty, which should play to the strengths of the R.S.17 pretty well.

"The lap is capped-off with a big drag up the hill and the long straight. It’s an interesting layout sat at a relatively high altitude.

"Both drivers should perform well there in the R.S.17," he added.

While Sao Paulo is at a relatively high altitude, it's nothing compared to the challenge of Mexico City.

"Instead of being 25 per cent down on air density as we are in Mexico, we’ll be down only by around 10 per cent," he said. "Which is much, much easier to manage.

"We’re not expecting too many dramas to control temperatures," he noted. "It’s not a full downforce track like Monaco or Hungary, but there are a range of aero set-ups for us to try.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.