Zoom More to come in winter testing

Formula One faces numerous changes in 2009: the return of slick tyres and the introduction of the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) are just two of the measures set to influence events in motorsport's elite class.

Among the BMW Sauber F1 Team engineers, preparations for the coming season are already at full speed. The team from Munich and Hinwil must be ready for a multitude of crucial new rule changes which will come into place in 2009.

Next year, all teams will return to the profile-free slick tyres. The larger contact area of these tyres allow for higher speeds through corners; this is a welcome change for the drivers, who have been underway on grooved tyres since 1998.

BMW Sauber driver Nick Heidfeld is also looking ahead to other changes in 2009: "It will be a great challenge, not only because of the slicks, but also KERS and the restricted aerodynamics."

"We need to be prepared for that," he underlines. "I'm looking forward to it, as I think this should theoretically work in my favour. "

The team has already tested on slicks this season, but more work needs to be done over the coming months in order to gain better knowledge of their behaviour in conjunction with the whole package.

"It goes without saying that we are already talking to the engineers about next year," adds Heidfeld. "However, for the moment it is all just speculation."

Until the first tests begin with the BMW Sauber F1.09 early next year, the team engineers are primarily relying on simulations.

Two high-performance instruments, in the form of the team's supercomputer and the wind tunnel in Hinwil, are at their disposal to aid them in their basic research.

D.B. © CAPSIS International