The Caterham Thread

pi314159 · Post by **pi314159** » 01 May 2013, 15:27

We have one for Marussia and we had one for HRT, but there wasn't a Caterham thread yet, so I'm opening one with this picture of the revised Caterham CT03:

The stepped nose has been covered with a panel.

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 01 May 2013, 17:16

They picked a good day to test! Where on earth is that since the UK has been bathed in sunshine for the past week or so?

Post by **Ataxia** » 01 May 2013, 17:18

AndreaModa wrote:They picked a good day to test! Where on earth is that since the UK has been bathed in sunshine for the past week or so?

I believe it's Magny-Cours. We've swapped weather with the French, apparently.

pi314159 · Post by **pi314159** » 01 May 2013, 17:30

Ataxia wrote:
AndreaModa wrote:They picked a good day to test! Where on earth is that since the UK has been bathed in sunshine for the past week or so?

I believe it's Magny-Cours. We've swapped weather with the French, apparently.

It is Magny-Cours. And they're going to do a straight-line test at Idiada before the Spanish GP.

andrew2209 · Post by **andrew2209** » 01 May 2013, 18:21

I'm assuming the picture is an example of what the new Caterham will look like...surrounded by men pushing it away from the track.

Post by **mario** » 01 May 2013, 18:22

pi314159 wrote:
Ataxia wrote:
AndreaModa wrote:They picked a good day to test! Where on earth is that since the UK has been bathed in sunshine for the past week or so?

I believe it's Magny-Cours. We've swapped weather with the French, apparently.

It is Magny-Cours. And they're going to do a straight-line test at Idiada before the Spanish GP.

Makes you wonder why they bothered with Magny Cours in the first place though.

Surely, given that the cars would probably have been returned to base for a quick inspection for wear and tear, it'd have been a lot easier to have booked somewhere in the UK rather than going all the way to a circuit that, traditionally at least, has been criticised for being hard to access (even if the road network is apparently a lot better than it used to be in that region). Alternatively, if you wanted to do a straight line test at Idiada instead given its proximity to the Circuit de Catalunya, why would you then sacrifice testing time at Magny Cours that might prove to be useful later in the season?

As for the updates, well, I'd kind of expected more from the team than just an updated nose cone - to be fair, though, that mechanic on the near side of the car is hiding most of the rear bodywork, so it's possible that there are more changes than meets the eye at the moment.

BabyG · Post by **BabyG** » 01 May 2013, 19:27

It might just be the light, but that new nose has a little bit of the B194 about it?

Divina_Galica · Post by **Divina_Galica** » 01 May 2013, 19:51

andrew2209 wrote:I'm assuming the picture is an example of what the new Caterham will look like...surrounded by men pushing it away from the track.

...excellent!

DG

go_Rubens · Post by **go_Rubens** » 01 May 2013, 21:43

BabyG wrote:It might just be the light, but that new nose has a little bit of the B194 about it?

I kind of think that, too. Interesting, isn't it?

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 01 May 2013, 23:52

pi314159 wrote:
Ataxia wrote:
AndreaModa wrote:They picked a good day to test! Where on earth is that since the UK has been bathed in sunshine for the past week or so?

I believe it's Magny-Cours. We've swapped weather with the French, apparently.

It is Magny-Cours. And they're going to do a straight-line test at Idiada before the Spanish GP.

Isn't mid-season testing banned?

Also, it makes you wonder if the updates will do any good...

pi314159 · Post by **pi314159** » 02 May 2013, 05:03

JeremyMcClean wrote:
Isn't mid-season testing banned?

Also, it makes you wonder if the updates will do any good...

Mid season testing is banned. But there is still the possibility of filming days, with a maximum of 100km.

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 02 May 2013, 06:42

pi314159 wrote:

Theres something about this image thats both amusing and inspiring.

Post by **mario** » 02 May 2013, 07:28

go_Rubens wrote:
BabyG wrote:It might just be the light, but that new nose has a little bit of the B194 about it?

I kind of think that, too. Interesting, isn't it?

Thinking about it, I'd say it was a little closer to the B195 (the B195 had a slight kink in the shape of the nose that the b194 didn't) - you're right that it does seem somewhat reminiscent of the Benetton's of the mid 1990's in style.

pi314159 wrote:
JeremyMcClean wrote:
Isn't mid-season testing banned?

Also, it makes you wonder if the updates will do any good...

Mid season testing is banned. But there is still the possibility of filming days, with a maximum of 100km.

From what I can recall, asides from the 100km of mileage allowed to film the cars for promotional purposes, which must take place with a special set of tyres that Pirelli produces for that purpose only (to avoid teams abusing that to get extra tyre testing), the teams are also allowed to either carry out a handful of straight line constant speed aero tests or a limited amount of additional wind tunnel tests. From what I can recall, it is either four days of constant speed straight line tests or one day of the equivalent running time in a full scale wind tunnel (which Lotus went for last year when they traded in their straight line tests for a wind tunnel test at the Windshear facility).
Equally, although the in season Young Driver Tests are, strictly speaking, supposed to only be about evaluating the potential of up and coming drivers, some teams have used it as an opportunity to test new parts on the cars too. It's not quite an official test session, but the teams do eke out a little more testing mileage in those circumstances than they'd normally be allowed to do.

madmark1974 · Post by **madmark1974** » 10 May 2013, 10:46

Here's what Caterham were doing at Magny Cours :

http://youtu.be/z8k3Q-ptHLg

Published on 9 May 2013

Caterham F1 Team takes you behind the scenes at the filming day we ran on May 1st at Magny-Cours, France.
Access all areas with Charles Pic and Giedo van der Garde and, for the first time in 2013, see our definitive current season car on track.

Onxy Wrecked · Post by **Onxy Wrecked** » 11 May 2013, 19:33

Now van der Garde has a Sauber behind him. I guess van der Garde is a great qualifier and that's about it.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 11 May 2013, 19:38

Onxy Wrecked wrote:Now van der Garde has a Sauber behind him. I guess van der Garde is a great qualifier and that's about it.

Good to see Caterham's update from Bahrain seems to be working - but what is Charles Pic doing?!

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 12 May 2013, 08:18

Well, for those of you that may be wondering why Tony Fernandes isn't in Barcelona this weekend, he's with Beardy Branson down in Perth as Richard finally makes good on losing his bet back in 2010.

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 12 May 2013, 14:38

Im sure no Marussia fans would dare set foot in here but in case they do Charles Pic says "IN YOUR FACE!"

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 13 May 2013, 08:30

A 10 grand fine aint nuthin when the boy Pic is heading up the grid!
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/107388

Jocke1 · Post by **Jocke1** » 13 May 2013, 20:40

Giedo van der Garde keeps rollin

http://youtu.be/NeIVTuQ39Do

In only his fifth race, the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix on 12 may 2013,
the (super)man lovingly referred to as 'GVDG', Giedo van der Garde, forever put himself into the stuff of legends along with Gilles Villeneuve's battle with Rene Arnoux at Dijon-Prenois in 1979, Jean Alesi forgetting Michael Schumachers name during a press conference, Ayrton Senna's six wins at Monaco and Nick Heidfeld finishing 16th at the 2000 Spanish Grand Prix.

The 28-year old, Rhenen (Utrecht, Netherlands) native, retired on lap 21 driving with only 3 wheels on his Caterham CT03, Pirelli shod, Renault RS27-2013 V8 2.4 powered race car, after having had the most impressive qualifying performance of any driver since Johnny Herbert at the Canadian Grand Prix in 1997.
Giedo was racing in 13th at one point before his retirement.

But he had time to show the world his strength, grit and determination to get back to the pits at whatever cost. Attributes only World Champions of the past possessed. Look for Giedo to become F1 WDC (World Drivers Champion) in the very near future.

Here's the low-down on what happened from the (super)man himself:

"It's obviously such a shame that my race ended like it did today, but sometimes these things happen. I'd had a great start and was fighting with Button and both Williams cars through the first couple of stints The car felt great, really good and I was definitely having the best of the season so far. When I came in for my second stop I could feel that there was a problem with the left rear as soon as I rejoined the track. At some point the wheel came off so I tried to make it back to the garage to see if I could continue, but once the team had taken a close look it was clear I had to retire the car. As I say, it's a shame but it's another lesson for me and the team. Sometimes you don't have the luck, but we have a lot of positives to take from this weekend. The updates on the car are working well, and we have more to come. Our race pace is really good, strong enough to fight with a few cars ahead and my quali performance was easily my best this year. Next up we go to Monaco, a track I know well and one where I was on the podium twice last year in GP2, and in Formula Renault 3.5, so another qualifying performance like I had in Spain, and a race like I had until retiring today, and I think we can do well."

keep rollin', Giedo. We are watching. We are on your wagon.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 13 May 2013, 20:54

van der Garde for the win, as soon as Canada. Get ready.

Yannick · Post by **Yannick** » 13 May 2013, 23:09

Richard "Virgin" Branson has now finally worked as a stewardess for Tony "Air Asia/Caterham" Fernandes after the former had lost a bet to the latter a few years ago. http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/05/12 ... be-flight/

If you click the link, the photo of Branson in drag looks rather a lot like electronic musician Aphex Twin.

Nessafox · Post by **Nessafox** » 13 May 2013, 23:42

Yannick wrote:...
If you click the link, the photo of Branson in drag looks rather a lot like electronic musician Aphex Twin.

This is actually even more creepy. :shock:

Post by **Ataxia** » 13 May 2013, 23:49

This wrote:
Yannick wrote:...
If you click the link, the photo of Branson in drag looks rather a lot like electronic musician Aphex Twin.

This is actually even more creepy.

Wow, that's quite a similarity! :lol:

Post by **Londoner** » 14 May 2013, 00:21

Ataxia wrote:
This wrote:
Yannick wrote:...
If you click the link, the photo of Branson in drag looks rather a lot like electronic musician Aphex Twin.

This is actually even more creepy.

Wow, that's quite a similarity!

Good lord, I've now goi to try and sleep with the horrific mental image of the Windowlicker video in my head. :shock:

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 14 May 2013, 06:35

Yannick wrote:If you click the link, the photo of Branson in drag looks rather a lot like electronic musician Aphex Twin.

I think Aphex Twin has a better rack tho'

F1 Adam · Post by **F1 Adam** » 17 May 2013, 15:08

I'm getting a tour round the Caterham factory tomorrow afternoon (it's all part of being a journalist

).

Hopefully I'll get some good pics and I'll put a few up.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 17 May 2013, 15:14

F1 Adam wrote:I'm getting a tour round the Caterham factory tomorrow afternoon (it's all part of being a journalist ).

Hopefully I'll get some good pics and I'll put a few up.

See if there's any evidence that this year's car is only a Seven with some bits of plywood tacked on top.

F1 Adam · Post by **F1 Adam** » 18 May 2013, 18:49

I got a few pictures. The tour itself was only half an hour, but I did get in free

Main entrance in Leafield

The 2011 car

The 2010 car

I'm not sure if I was allowed to take a picture of this, but there you go anyway!

Great big car oven

I don't know if it's crash damage or just unfinished.

Didn't get many pictures, but it was interesting nonetheless. I went there before when Super Aguri had just gone out of business, and they were auctioning off all their stuff. Sadly some Germans ended up buying everything that time, but it's always good to have a nosy round.

Backmarker · Post by **Backmarker** » 18 May 2013, 19:40

F1 Adam wrote:Didn't get many pictures, but it was interesting nonetheless. I went there before when Super Aguri had just gone out of business, and they were auctioning off all their stuff. Sadly some Germans ended up buying everything that time, but it's always good to have a nosy round.

Those Germans were Franz Hilmer and Formtech, who applied to compete in F1 for 2010, and is now competing in GP2!

LionZoo · Post by **LionZoo** » 18 May 2013, 20:50

Backmarker wrote:
F1 Adam wrote:Didn't get many pictures, but it was interesting nonetheless. I went there before when Super Aguri had just gone out of business, and they were auctioning off all their stuff. Sadly some Germans ended up buying everything that time, but it's always good to have a nosy round.

Those Germans were Franz Hilmer and Formtech, who applied to compete in F1 for 2010, and is now competing in GP2!

So Super Aguri got relegated?

Onxy Wrecked · Post by **Onxy Wrecked** » 18 May 2013, 21:11

LionZoo wrote:
Backmarker wrote:
F1 Adam wrote:Didn't get many pictures, but it was interesting nonetheless. I went there before when Super Aguri had just gone out of business, and they were auctioning off all their stuff. Sadly some Germans ended up buying everything that time, but it's always good to have a nosy round.

Those Germans were Franz Hilmer and Formtech, who applied to compete in F1 for 2010, and is now competing in GP2!

So Super Aguri got relegated?

Yes...

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 20 May 2013, 12:52

F1 Adam wrote:I'm getting a tour round the Caterham factory tomorrow afternoon (it's all part of being a journalist ).

Hopefully I'll get some good pics and I'll put a few up.

They were great pics.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 24 May 2013, 19:18

Here's an extract of the long interview that Tony Fernandes did with Autosport. He reckons the team spent too long last year trying to get a blown diffuser to work, and they're still paying for it now.

Jocke1 · Post by **Jocke1** » 21 Aug 2013, 20:14

Giedo van der Garde, Caterham
2012 Qualifying - n/a, 2012 Race - n/a
“I’ve had a pretty busy August break, spending some time down in Valencia with my physio to keep up the training programme, and then off to Italy for a few days of holiday completely away from motor racing, but now it’s back to work at Spa.
Honestly, I’ve been excited about racing in F1 at Spa ever since the start of the season, actually probably for all my life! As there isn’t a Dutch Grand Prix these days the Belgian GP is the closest I have to a home race and I know there’s going to be a lot of orange flags around the track, and a lot of support for me and the team all weekend. I know we’re not going to be in a position to fight at the front of the grid, but we’ll still be pushing as hard as possible to beat our nearest rivals, and after the last race in Hungary I’m confident we can start the second half of the season in a positive way and put on a good show for all the fans who’ll make the trip to Spa. I can’t wait!”

Jocke1 · Post by **Jocke1** » 24 Aug 2013, 16:40

Giedo is a monster!
Belgian GP - Know Your Track
http://youtu.be/KbaziZRJljU

Qualifying - selected team and driver quotes

Caterham
Giedo van der Garde (14th, Q2 - 1m 52.036s)
“What a fantastic day! I’m so pleased for the whole team that we made our second appearance of the year in Q2, that we finished clear of the Marussias and start the race from 14th. It was a pretty brave call to be the first to go out on slicks and for the first lap it looked like it might not pay off, but then on the final lap of Q1 I had it all hooked up just right and finished the session the highest we’ve ever been in Q1. I have to say I didn’t really believe it when my engineer Juan told me where we were – I was just at the top of Eau Rouge on the cool down lap and he said I was in P3! That was such a good feeling, for me, the team and everyone who’s supported me. In Q2 we knew that if it stayed dry we’d be aiming for 14th and we went out on a set of mediums knowing we had to keep pushing as the track got better and better. I think there was maybe a little more laptime if we’d maybe started the run a bit later, but, realistically, not enough to go into Q3 so finishing 14th, over 0.5 seconds clear of our nearest rival was the target and we achieved it by good work from everyone. Saturday had started well after the guys did a good job on Friday night, making a number of changes to the car that meant I started Saturday with much better balance and with the oversteer we’d had on Friday gone. FP3 was a good session for me and we made further improvements on both runs on the hard tyres and on the mediums which were working pretty well on the performance run, but we knew there was still more to come in quali. We couldn’t have dreamt it would come together well enough for Q1 to end with me in P3, but we took full advantage of the conditions today and 14th is a just reward for being brave and taking our chance.”

Jocke1 · Post by **Jocke1** » 30 Aug 2013, 16:33

Rookie diary - Caterham’s Giedo van der Garde 30 Aug 2013
http://www.formula1.com/news/features/2013/8/14922.html

He may be 21st in the driver standings, but after a career-best qualifying with Caterham at last weekend’s 2013 Formula 1 Shell Belgian Grand Prix, Giedo van der Garde’s stock is definitely on the rise. In the latest instalment of our series charting the personal and professional progress of this year’s F1 newcomers, Van der Garde reflects on what has been an eventful - and enjoyable - first half to his debut season…

“The last race in Hungary before the break was definitely my strongest of the season so far and it’s exactly how I wanted to go into the August break. I’ve been really clear all year - the first few races were a chance for me to learn as much as I could about the step up to F1, and, once I’d started to find my way in the sport, then I could start to show what I could do. Beating my team mate and the guys we’re fighting was the main goal, and having achieved that in Hungary I am happy with the direction I am going in.

“In the break I did some serious hot-weather training and for that I went down to Spain with my physio. Then I headed off to Italy for a few days with my girlfriend for a short break on the coast. It was great, really good, but then I wanted to get back to work. And the first race of the second half of the year - Spa - was immediately a quite big sensation: qualifying 14th was awesome - starting next to Sergio Perez in the McLaren! And even if it was not exactly hot, I could feel the higher level of my fitness.

“Going back to the summer reflections, the other thing I’m happy about is that I’m basically having a really good year both in and out of the car. Sure there have been some tough times, but I’ve used those to learn and improve. What I’ve never done is let anything get me down - I’m the same positive guy I’ve always been, and I think the team likes that, likes having someone driving who’s enjoying every lap. We keep growing together and it’s great to see what things like getting into Q2 for the second time after Monaco do for the whole team. That’s a great feeling and I’m sure there will be more of that this year. (laughs)

“The three highlights of 2013 so far are obviously Monaco, Spa quali and the Hungarian race. In Monaco and Spa everything just went right, and the relationship I have with the engineers meant that they trusted my instincts when asking for certain things like going out on slicks when it was still damp in Monaco. That’s a good feeling for a driver, knowing that the guys with all the data have the faith in their driver to back his call, and we delivered together. Hungary was different as that was the first race where I felt like I could push from lights out to the flag. The car felt great all afternoon and we made the right calls at the right times in the pits. Spa qualifying was one spot better even than Monaco, so after the Hungarian race it is a pretty good indication that the car, the team and me are on the rise.

“On the flip side, the race in Canada was tough. I made a mistake there that I apologized for immediately and I’ve made sure that I used what happened there positively so I can keep improving. We know what we need to do to make the car quicker and everyone’s doing what they can within the budget and resource restraints we have, but drivers always want more - more power, more grip. But, as I’ve said before, we’re very realistic about where we are now and where the team’s going in the future. This team is still halfway through its fourth season, and to just be in F1 is a big achievement in itself. For those reasons I don’t envy the other drivers (just their downforce) and I and the team use it as motivation to keep fighting, this year and for years to come.

“I knew very clearly where we’d be racing when I came into F1, so my current position is kind of where we thought we’d be. The main thing is to finish ahead of the team closest to us and we have eight races left to get back ahead of them. Last year the team did that with only a few laps left of the season, so let’s see where we are after Brazil. Right now I know I have what it takes to be an F1 driver because that’s exactly what I am! (laughs) I’m sure big egos work for some drivers, for others it’s maybe something else that helps drive them. For me, sure I have a healthy ego, but I also know that if you put good things out into the world, you’ll get good things back. That’s really important to me and I hope it’s what makes me the guy I am.

“I’ve been around the paddock for a long time, and I’ve raced a lot of the guys now in F1, and in the other series around F1 as well, so I have quite a few friends around the place. Being one of only 22 F1 drivers is really special, something I’ve dreamt about forever. It’s not just being one of 22, it’s also being one of only a few Dutch drivers ever to have raced in F1. Yes, at this time we’re not racing for podiums or, realistically, points, but I saw at a demo event we did in Rotterdam at the end of the August break what it means to the Dutch fans to have a local boy to cheer for. That was a special feeling - pretty humbling to be honest. Now I just have to keep learning, keep improving and take my chances when they come.”

Jocke1 · Post by **Jocke1** » 07 Sep 2013, 10:35

Giedo van der Garde, Caterham
“Our last European race of the season is Monza, another classic Grand Prix venue and a track where I’ve won in both Formula Renault 3.5 and in GP2. After the last couple of races I’ll go to Monza feeling positive about the next race and the rest of the season. The whole team had a lot of praise for what we did in Spa, particularly taking advantage of the conditions on Saturday, and it’s good to see people understanding that what we’re doing now is exactly what we said we would do this year - learn, improve and deliver the results we want. Fourteenth in Hungary and both qualifying and the race in Spa show how the package is coming on and it’s a good feeling for me and the whole team.

“Moving on to Monza - it’s a track that could suit us in the fight with our nearest competitors. It’s often hot and it’s the quickest track of the year, one where we run very low-downforce settings and that should suit our car. Last year the team was pretty competitive and we’ll aim to make sure we are again. If it’s not hot and we have anything like the conditions we did in Spa then we’ve shown we can take advantage of unpredictable weather, and even though another P3 in Q1 might be unlikely, we still know we can be bold and aggressive when there’s a chance to surprise a few people. Maybe our next chance will be Monza - if not I’m sure there will be other races this year when we can show what we can do.”

Shizuka · Post by **Shizuka** » 07 Sep 2013, 12:53

He outqualified Pic, so he's starting to get the better of him, I think.

Alextrax52 · Post by **Alextrax52** » 07 Sep 2013, 15:26

Shizuka wrote:He outqualified Pic, so he's starting to get the better of him, I think.

Van der Garde was 2 seconds off Vettel in Q1 wasn't he?