Audi Racing Director Allan McNish has detailed the reliability woes that resulted in a disastrous Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix for the German marque.
Audi suffered a variety of mechanical maladies during the F1 Miami GP, including a fire, a disqualification, a gearbox change, a brake fire, and engine‑overheating retirement on the way to the grid.
Both drivers were affected, unable to make any meaningful progress at any point over the weekend.
McNish admitted Audi is still learning about its inaugural engine, but said Audi was not isolated in experiencing reliability issues.
“Well, obviously you don’t want them – that is for sure,” said McNish when asked about the power unit-related woes.
“But if you look, a lot of PU manufacturers are having some issues, it’s not just us. If I look at the start, [Kimi] Antonelli for example, at the last one, and I look at it also here, and if I look at a few other deployment [issues]; I think there are a lot of areas that everybody is trying to manage, control, and also learn about.
“The more learning, and certainly for us, we’re learning about a lot more than some of the others, because they’re already in the system with understanding 75% of it.”
Audi: “We need reliability”
McNish gave an honest assessment on Bortoleto’s disqualification, caused by illegal intake air pressure, stating: “It’s not something that was performance beneficial yesterday for Gabi. However, the penalty is in or out, and that’s the rules.
“However, we do have to improve on that, and it’s a clear focus of where we are. And it’s also a clear learning for the operation as well.”
However, McNish denied that this was a recurring issue. “No, it’s not, but obviously, that’s not what we need.
“We need reliability, and then we can also start developing in other areas as well. We can improve clearly.
“The frustrating part is not having two cars at the start on Saturday, and especially with the performance that underlined part of it, and that’s certainly an area that’s a clear focus number one. We need to work on that.”
Audi is discovering the harsh realities of F1 with its Miami malaise. Time and experience will see better results.
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