Force India upbeat about 2009 F1 Car: The VJM02

The Force India Formula One team are confident that their new 2009 car will be more competitive than last year’s vehicle.

In November 2008, it was announced that Force India had agreed a deal with both McLaren and Mercedes, which will see them replace the Ferrari engines with a complete drivetrain package from this season. The partnership is reported to last for five years.

Vijay Mallya, co-owner and team principal stated on Monday that "The new car, VJM02, is under construction. It will have a McLaren gearbox and Mercedes engine, which is a big change from VJM01.

"We are going to unveil it at Jerez in early March."

In line with the new 2009 regulations, as set out by the FIA, Formula One’s governing body, Force India will make use of KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System). It has been designed by their new partners, McLaren and Mercedes, the same system that defending World Champion Lewis Hamilton will have in his car.

In-season testing is also banned this season, meaning that the team will have to complete all testing before the opening race in Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix on March 29th.

"We will have six days to test, which I think is enough," Mallya explained.

"Besides, the facilities at our Silverstone factory is up to the mark and I think we would be ready for the first race."

The team is definitely optimistic about their chances this season.

In 2008, the Northamptonshire-based team failed to score a single point and between Sutil and Fisichella, there was a total of eighteen retirements – half of all the races. Fisichella scored the team’s best result, a tenth-place finish in the 2008 Spanish Grand Prix. The porr results were mainly due to reliability issues.

The new deal with McLaren and Mercedes should give hope to the team of receiving a package that will deliver consistent and competetive results.

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