Marussia to use Williams KERS in 2013 F1 season
Marussia will use the Williams Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) when it adds the device to its car for the first time in 2013
The decision was revealed by Marussia consultant Pat Symonds in a interview released by the team, in which Symonds also confirmed that Marussia would continue with Cosworth engines for a fourth season.
"Yes we will be using KERS next year," said Symonds.
"We plan to adopt the system that has been developed by Williams, which was used by them with the Cosworth engine last year and is currently with their Renault-engine car. Our 2013 unit is a development of this.
"We've been very impressed with the engineering, the efficiency and the weight. Williams are also a pleasure to work with both technically and commercially."
Marussia is one of only two teams in the 2012 Formula 1 field not using KERS, along with HRT.
Although other former Cosworth users such as Williams and Caterham have moved away from the unit in favour of Renault power in recent years, Symonds said he still thought Marussia could make progress with the British firm's V8s.
"We are happy with the work we are doing with them and I think that we are working together to try and improve the areas that we are able to under the regulations," he said.
"We are concentrating on improving the driveability of the engine and enhancing its performance as a unit with the car."
Marussia brought the first windtunnel-derived developments to its car this season after previously relying on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for its design process. Symonds said although the transition had been tough, he was now confident Marussia was edging forwards.
"We can certainly say that the start of the season was very difficult for us and from that we have experienced a lot of new heights - getting our windtunnel programme working, delivering performance to the car in a cost-effective way, improving our procedures," he said.
"It is important to remember that we're a very new team, and therefore there is an awful lot to be addressed.
"But I think rather than a single highlight there is just a continual improvement - a slow march forward towards the leaders and our direct competitors. Those are the things that give us some confidence in where we are heading."
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