Benetton keeps faith with radical Renaults

The Enstone team had planned to use the hybrid B200B chassis fitted with the new engine at Valencia last week. But technical problems with its 111-degree V10 motor, which is much wider-angled than its Formula 1 rivals, caused drivers Giancarlo Fisichella and new recruit Jenson Button to revert to last year's Supertec-powered B200s.

"It was a question of a hiccup rather than a failure," said technical director Mike Gascoyne. "The engines had to be sent back to France and will be used in the B200B at this week's two-day test at Silverstone instead."

The reason Renault has gone for such a wide-angle V10 is to lower the centre of gravity of the unit, but many believe this comes at a cost of reliability. Honda's Takefumi Hosaka, who admitted his design team were interested in such an engine in the future, commented: "The vibration levels and the packaging that goes with a wide angle engine makes it incredibly difficult."

Benetton also seems set to buck the trend of a single airbox over the driver's head and use two air intakes on the sidepods too. Button believes that the team can take a step forward from last season thanks to the technical know-how in its ranks.

"We've got Mike Gascoyne from Jordan and the new Renault engines - it's a great package," said Jenson. "As we go through the season, I think we can show that."

The Renault-owned outfit, run by Flavio Briatore, is one of the final teams scheduled to launch its cars, with the B201 breaking cover in Venice on February 6.