Lotus T127 Cosworth

[Pandamasque]

I've read that Petronas are not going to sponsor any teams in 2010.

[Confused_Andy]

I've read that Petronas are not going to sponsor any teams in 2010.

You need to question your sources I think lol.

[WhiteBlue]

Petronas going to Merc makes a lot of sense if you think about it. They were very happy to sponsor BMW and may have pulled out of the sport unless a manufacturer team was available to them. This way Merc need not argue about the Mobile1 sponsorship with McLaren. They simply make a clean new start. I'm curious how the color scheme will look like. Probably the Petronas name will appear in dark grey like all other sponsors.

[wesley123]

peronally i think it will come in teh 'petronas colours', it is afterall their title sponsor...

[scarbs]

There's a picture of it on the brawn teams website.

They are calling it the 'concept' car, remember the all black cars from the B.A.R Honda days?

[axle]

I've read that Petronas are not going to sponsor any teams in 2010.

You need to question your sources I think lol.

At the time of posting he was quite correct - google it. 18th/19th December there were a host of reports about Petronas NOT sponsoring any team...

It seems they had a change of heart over the weekend lol

I assume this means Petronas will lube Merc/Merc engines and Mobil will lube McLaren/Merc ones? Or does sponsorship not necessarily = product use?

[mx_tifoso]

I thought engines (gearbox,diff,etc) were designed with a particular lubricant/fuel in mind.

[ESPImperium]

I thought engines (gearbox,diff,etc) were designed with a particular lubricant/fuel in mind.

You are right. But with Merc going this way, this suggests to me they arnt happy with Mobil1. Maybes with Petronas, they can get them to produce a fuel for the FO108W that gives better fuel ecomomy and a a SYNTYUM lubricant that makes the engine run smoother. As this could be a key, stealth warzone for 2010 with the refuling ban.

I think that Mobil1 will stay with McLaren, Force India will use Petronas i think. Whitch means they may have, from 2010 onward have to carry the Petronas branding and Mercedes badge on their car, like what Renault and Total have with Red Bull.

Personally, i think it should be mandatory for customer teams to carry the logos of their engine supplyer on the nose and engine covers and the fuel/lube suplyer on the nose and lower sidepod area.

One thing i am not sure of yet is who is the fuel and lubricant supplyer for the Cosworth engine yet.

[mx_tifoso]

We're getting a bit off topic but here it goes anyways...

Are Force India primarily dealing with McLaren or Mercedes? That will make all the difference between which lubricant/fuel supplier they choose to use from now on.

The reason I ask is because they are using Mercedes engines but IIRC they were dealing through McLaren right? So there has to be one party with whom they are more affiliated with.

[axle]

Both, it's a technical partnership (whatever that is) with McLaren and an engine deal with Mercedes.

[axle]

I thought engines (gearbox,diff,etc) were designed with a particular lubricant/fuel in mind.

IMO powertrain oils are so widely highly developed nowadays that I would expect 1 teams lubricants to work in another powertrain.

[PlatinumZealot]

Additionally Petronas syntium seemed to work great in the BMW engine in 2008 and 2009. The properties more than likely are so similar between the different oil brands that I think it's just mostly about getting the best sponsorship.

[mx_tifoso]

Thanks for the clarification.

And that just might be the case regarding engine oils, but it would be great to get a legitimate confirmation just for the heck of it, not that it makes a real difference anyhow.

N_smikle beat me to posting, but I agree with sponsorship taking priority over the lubricant/fuel itself.

How about that Lotus car?

[ISLAMATRON]

I thought engines (gearbox,diff,etc) were designed with a particular lubricant/fuel in mind.

Other way around, the engine guys tell the oil guys what they need and the oil guys get to formulating... days on the dyno, then engine tear downs and measurements and the process starts again.

[mx_tifoso]

Well in a way I'm still right. The engines are still designed with a particular oil formulation.

So with that in mind, wouldn't it be difficult for one lubricant to replace another lubricant in the same engine? Like what Petronas is supposed to be doing in the Mercedes.