McLaren Racing Director Eric Boullier says the team has addressed all of the reliability issues that plagued its pre-season programme.
McLaren suffered a variety of setbacks during the eight days of running at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with the MCL33 the least reliable of the 10 cars present.
McLaren’s MCL33 was halted by a couple of electrical shutdowns, a hydraulic issue, an oil leak and a turbo failure during the second test, though key figures repeatedly insisted that the setbacks were minor.
It came a week after its running in the first test was compromised by a wheel nut failure and an exhaust clip problem.
Boullier has confirmed that the problems have now all been addressed ahead of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.
“We didn’t have the reliability we had hoped for in winter testing, but all the issues we faced have since been addressed back at the factory,” he said.
“There’s a huge amount of work going on behind the scenes to ensure we leave no stone unturned in our quest to extract the maximum pace we can from our new package from the first race.
“We’re not expecting miracles to be worked overnight – far from it – but what we do know is that we’ll give it our all this weekend.”
This weekend marks McLaren’s first Grand Prix with Renault power, having been supplied by Honda from 2015-17, with the team refreshed by its change of engine partner.
Previewing the upcoming event, Fernando Alonso said: “Our car showed a lot of potential in winter testing and, although we know we still have a lot to work on, we’ve already learned a lot about the package and how all the new elements to this year’s car work together.
“Australia is its first real test, and we need to work hard all weekend to bring all the ingredients together.
“Nobody can ever predict how other teams will perform at the first race of the season and that all contributes to the excitement.
“Melbourne is a great track and, after what feels like a long winter, I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can do.”
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