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Williams have announced they are extending their partnership with paint supplier PPG who have been supplying paint for Williams race cars since 2003.

When you look at a Formula One car the paint job is one of the first things you notice and getting it right can turn an average looking car into a piece of art.  But it’s not just about making a car look good.

While McLaren recently highlighted their paint partner AkzoNobel’s advances in reducing the time required to paint a new part, Williams claim that PPG have developed a paint that can give important weight savings that will translate to faster lap times on the track.

According to the Williams press release:

Every weight saving on our race cars makes a real and direct contribution to lap time and paint finishes are part of this consideration. PPG have consistently helped us maintain our finish standards while reducing the weight demand. This winter we have worked in tandem on another progression in the painting of the FW31 race cars which has enabled us to use less primer and no lacquer coat, providing another significant step forward. We value their important contribution and this new and extended agreement is both commercially and competitively welcome.

I have no doubt that, after losing the sponsorhip of Baugur, Lenovo and Petrobras, the agreement is commercially welcome but can a significant weight saving really be made from paint?

There is a (probably apocryphal) story that this is how the 1934 Mercedes Silver Arrows racing cars got their colour.  Before the introduction of sponsorship, racing cars had always been painted in the traditional colour for their country; Britain was British Racing Green, France was French Blue and Italy was, of course, Rosso Corsa.  German cars were painted White.  From 1934 onwards a maximum weight limit of 750kg was introduced and Mercedes-Benz found that their W25 weighed 751kg.  After puzzling over what they could do to lose weight, racing manager Alfred Neubauer came up with the idea of scraping off all the paint to leave the silver aluminium exposed.  This supposedly saved the 1kg required and the Silver Arrows were born.

Williams have ruled out using KERS at the first race of the season in Melbourne at the end of March and as the Malaysian Grand Prix is the following weekend it is unlikely they will run the system there, either.

KERS devices store energy created under braking which can then be converted into power at the touch of a button, giving a boost of up to 80hp.  Williams have chosen to go down a different route with their KERS development; while most teams have opted for an electronic device, Williams are using a kinetic version that uses a flywheel instead of storing electrical energy in batteries.

A Williams spokesman said:

We’re clear that we’re not going to be using it in Australia but not clear when we will use it.

Integrating KERS into an F1 car raises a number of complications.  Electrical devices generate significant heat which must be dissipated somehow, a problem made harder by the new aero rules banning ‘gills’ in the bodywork. Williams’s kinetic device shouldn’t have the same heat problems as the electrical devices but it still has what is probably the biggest drawback to using KERS: weight.

To get the most out of the slick tyres being introduced in 2009 an F1 car’s weight needs to be shifted forward.  A KERS device takes up weight that could be used for ballast to better balance the car.  It also shifts the car’s centre of gravity higher and it’s location may compromise the fuel tank capacity.

So what have the teams said of their KERS development?

Williams

Williams haven’t even run KERS in testing.  Kazuki Nakajima:

To be honest, so far, I have never run a car with KERS.  We once had KERS on the car but we didn’t use it – I never pushed that button.

Toyota

The only other team, apart from Williams, to definitely rule it out.  At the launch of the TF109, Toyota announced they would start the season without KERS.

McLaren

Heikki Kovalainen seems pretty confident in his McLaren:

KERS has been running pretty well – it’s been running at full-power without any errors so that’s quite encouraging.

Ferrari

Despite being one of the most vocal critics of KERS, Ferrari’s testing seemed to be going well.  At Mugello Kimi Raikkonen had positive results saying:

The system works well like every other new component.

However on Tuesday Kimi  spent more than three hours in the pits because of a problem with the cooling circuit.

BMW

KERS’s biggest supporter, BMW’s Mario Theissen, is not sure whether it will be ready for the first race:

I am sure we will be ready at some point; I don’t know if we will be ready for Melbourne

Renault

Fernando Alonso seems to think Renault will use KERS in Melbourne:

Our system is truly competitive, it is working well with no problems.  I think we will start the championship with it and without many concerns, but we have to test it first.

Red Bull

Red Bull have the same KERS system as Renault but team principal Christian Horner won’t say when they will use it:

We have to wait and see if it proves its worth in testing and then decide whether or not we run it at the first race in Melbourne.

The others

While the Force India and Toro Rosso cars are yet to be revealed it is expected they will incorporate their respective partners’ devices; McLaren for Force India and Ferrari for Toro Rosso.

So will any teams use KERS in Melbourne?  While no-one wants to commit to it publicly, I reckon we will see at least one team ready to push the K button at the first race.  Yes, there is a weight trade-off and cooling and reliability could be a problem  but I think that extra 80hp could really provide an advantage even if it is only used off the line and into the first corner.

Image: Williams F1

Williams and Renault have unveiled their 2009 contenders at Portimao in Portugal today. While the Williams FW31 is painted in winter test livery, the Renault R29 is sporting a new paintjob and prominent Total branding with the front and rear wing end-plates.

Both cars show the new wide front wing and tall rear wing prescribed by the new 2009 regulations but as with the previous 2009 car launches each have their own unique approach. The Renault’s rear is quite different from any of the other 2009 cars and they have kept the ‘shark fin’ from last year.

The Williams’s front wing looks more sculpted than the Renault. Williams have also chosen to go down a different route with their KERS development. While most teams have opted for an electronic device, Williams are using a kinetic version.