Jaguar goes back to race basics with new Cosworth V10 engine

Jaguar's R4 car for this year's Formula One championship is more of a conventional racer, less adventurous than last year's R3 design.

"We learned an awful lot of lessons last season from the R3," said Dave Pitchforth, managing director, Jaguar Racing, at the launch in Europe.

"Even though we began the season with a less than satisfactory race car, we actually finished the season with a sound platform that has benefited some areas on R4.

"With that in mind, we have not taken a radical approach to R4. Some would say that we have gone back to basics but overall, we have opted for a conventional, low risk and robust design with the aim being to show lineage to the successful modifications to the R3 and best engineering practice.

"We focused on absolutely everything to ensure that we contest the season with a race car that is capable of being competitive and finishing races reliably.

"For this season, we have targeted maximum and continuous aerodynamic downforce development and efficiency while maintaining the balance capability of the package.

" It is fair to say that we didn't extract the maximum from the Michelin rubber last year and given the competitive edge that tyres have to offer in this business, we have worked very closely with Michelin to better understand the issues we needed to address on R4."

The Jaguar R4 gets a new Cosworth CR-5 V10 engine. It is the first time Cosworth has raced with a 90-degree engine layout and the key benefit as opposed to a 72-degree engine is improving the centre of gravity.

Nick Hayes, managing director at Cosworth Racing, said: "Every time we design a new engine, we look very hard at the V angle because, by and large, the wider you make the V angle, the lower you make the centre of gravity; and the lower you make the centre of gravity, the better you make the car's dynamics.

Hayes said the new engine was the highest-revving Cosworth had ever built. " High rpm is a good thing for the simple reason that it gives you more bangs per minute, which in turn provides more top-end power.

"But, again, it's a question of compromise because sky-high rpm figures can have a detrimental effect on reliability. There are mechanical limits. As I say, it's a compromise."