Barcelona Testing – Red Bull are due to share more parts with their junior team Toro Rosso in 2018.
Red Bull currently have listed parts that they share with Toro Rosso, which is set to expand next year to cut costs and improve performance.
“This was the plan, that we will be more synergies between the teams,” said Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost.
“This will continue because we have already the gearbox internals and the hydraulics system and other parts from Red Bull. But I think for next year we will increase this number.
“There are two major topics as to why. First of all to improve the performance, second is to save costs, because it’s not necessary that we fabricate the same parts and design them if we can buy them from Red Bull.”
Tost also commented that they would be receiving treatment akin to a factory team from their engine supplier Renault; the same as Red Bull and their manufacturer team:
“The contract says that we get the same hard and software, and this is what we expect because we pay a lot of money and we expect a good service.”
Toro Rosso has been attempting to achieve a more independent status in recent years, but technical director James Key does not see this move damaging that title.
“STR is very much its own team, and probably bigger than people think,” he said.
“Clearly if you’re an owner of two F1 teams, as Red Bull are, and support both of those teams incredibly well you also want to find a synergy between those teams where you can.
“So it doesn’t make sense for certain items, particularly the less performant items, to do that twice. You may as well try and do it once where it’s an unlisted part. It makes sense to add our resources together and come up with a solution for that.
“Equally it’s important that neither team is compromised by that too because the listed parts tend to be the biggest performance differentiators and you have a philosophy and a lot of momentum behind certain direction.
“If you’ve got something which isn’t compatible, it’s tricky. So I think we’re it’s got some form of aero relationship, you have to be careful because you can put listed parts on which can have an implication on aero.
“Whereas if it’s something in the gearbox for example, which is far easier to deal with, then it’s easier to do. So I think it’s a mix and match to get the best solution possible.
Tost added, however, that he still prefers the plan Toro Rosso used when they first entered Formula One in 2006, which was to buy the vast majority of parts from Red Bull.
“Maybe in some years we were a little bit too successful because then they decided to change the regulation and they came up with the listed parts,” he said.
“Generally speaking, the original version was quite successful from the sporting side and from the commercial side as well.
“There is still the listed parts which we respect, it means from the aerodynamic side we may have to develop everything by ourselves but, once more, I always liked this original philosophy which Red Bull had with Toro Rosso.”
