SILVERSTONE, Great Britain -- Honda is confident in the performance and reliability of its most recent engine update after completing two days of testing at Silverstone this week.
The Japanese manufacturer introduced an updated intake system at the British Grand Prix and after two days of solid testing on Tuesday and Wednesday it validated the step forward saw over the weekend.
"Similar to yesterday, everything went smoothly for the final day of running, and we were able to complete all aspects of our test programme," Satoshi Nakamura, Honda's principal engineer said. "The functionality and reliability of the newly upgraded ICE intake system was further confirmed, and we were able to check for any potential shortcomings at the Hungaroring. We were also able to work on good data set-up for Hungary.
"This data will now be analysed on the dyno in both Milton Keynes and Sakura before the next race weekend. "Both our drivers have done a good job over these past few days, driving solidly and giving precise, detailed feedback for us to work with, so thank you to Fernando and Stoffel. Last but not least, the team has done an incredible job during these gruelling back-to-back races and test conditions."
Vandoorne said Wednesday's test day had also helped on the aero side.
"We've had quite a successful day - a lot of aero stuff to do this morning and then after that I got some good runs in. We've been testing various new systems we've got on the car. It's the final day of in-season testing so there's always a lot on the programme to complete - not just aero and set-up but also power unit-related work.
"We weren't too rain-affected and made the most of the dry conditions today. The car felt positive and I could push straight away, which is always a nice feeling after a few months out of the cockpit. We pressed on with a lot of development to try and resolve some of the issues we had during the British Grand Prix weekend, which wasn't always easy as the wind changes a lot here as the day goes on and it makes quite a big difference to car balance.
"Luckily, we had a lot of tyres left because of all the rain yesterday, so in between set-up changes we tried to get as many laps in as possible, and I'm pleased with how today has gone."