Coulthard backs Red Bull search for speed

Coulthard took the team's best finish of the season with a fifth place, despite having to switch off his new seamless shift gearbox early in the race and then losing third gear in the late stages.

Although teammate Mark Webber had to retire from the race with the same differential problem that had sidelined him in qualifying, Coulthard thinks the team should be happy that their RB3 continues to get quicker at each race.

"We are still marginal on reliability, but there is no question that we have taken a massive step forward with performance since the beginning of the year," said Coulthard.

"Although we have got to finish races, and Mark had the same problem again, I would rather be seeing the bang, bang, bang in performance and have to sit and watch the end of the race, than trundle around at the back of the grid with a reliable car."

Coulthard struggled to get the best out of himself and his car in the first two races of the year, but has said that things have come together much better since Bahrain. And he believes there is plenty more improvements in the pipeline for the future.

"I don't think that I could have got any more out of the car than I have in the last two Grands Prix," he said.

"When people sometimes ask, 'why are you racing when you know you cannot win at the moment?' Well, it is all to do with personal goals.

"If you are in one of the two quick cars your goal is to win. If you are not, then your goal is to get the maximum you can out of the package.

"I am happy with the way it is progressing. I stick to my beliefs in what I need for the car and what I believe the direction for the team is. And if they stick to that then I believe we can go forward."