Sauber unveils 2005 challenger

The C24 features more a more aggressive sidepod design than its predecessor and sees the team to return to using its own gearbox, having used Ferrari's version last year.

Speaking about the new car Massa said: "No other team improved as much during the course of last year as Sauber Petronas did. If we manage to take this momentum with us into the new season, a few people will be in for a surprise.

"Our goal is to further reduce the gap between ourselves and the front runners. Yet to what extent this will impact on the results cannot be predicted at the moment.

"We won't have any indications as to how well the individual teams have managed to adjust to the new regulations until after the season opener at Melbourne."

The new car is a development of last year's C23, with the team's technical director Willy Rampf claiming that the outfit had left no stone unturned in its efforts with the new car.

"Of course, this has made us focus special attention on aerodynamics. Our experience with the C23 had clearly shown the significant influence of the sidepods and the rear bodywork on aerodynamics," said Rampf.

"That's why the continuation of our development was consistently directed towards these areas, in which we have designed the car to be even more compact and harmonious.

"In the course of last year the C23 revealed major development potential, so it was a logical step to base the C24's concept on that of its predecessor. Changes were made wherever we were able to identify opportunities for improvement."