Interview with BMW's Mario Thiessen

On track, he has had to cope with the delight of seeing his team's new F1.06 challenge for points in the first two races of the season, but also the heartbreak of seeing spectacular engine failures in Bahrain and Malaysia.

BMW have also found themselves involved in the recent flexi-wing controversy in F1, with the FIA requesting that changes be made to the team's rear wing in time for the Australian Grand Prix.

Despite having a few things on his agenda, autosport.com caught up with Theissen in Melbourne to gauge progress inside the team and the Grand Prix Manufacturers' Association.

Q: How surprised are you by the pace of the BMW-Sauber F1.06 this year. In Malaysia, for example, Nick Heidfeld was comfortably in the top five before his engine blew-up?

Mario Theissen: "I am satisfied with the pace off the car. We look at it from the perspective of gap and laptime from the quickest car to us.

"Last year, the Sauber was 1.5 seconds per lap behind, and we have cut this gap in half. That was the target for the first season, and we have achieved that in the first two races, which is very satisfying.

"The team are still getting together and you feel that the situation is not totally consistent yet. In Bahrain, for instance, we were okay in qualifying but the race pace was a bit worse - not too much, but a bit worse. In Malaysia it was the other way around."

Q: Have your targets for this season been slightly revised then after the progress you have made?

Theissen: "Well, the numbers on the cars are 16 and 17, so that is where we are starting from. The challenge obviously is now to get into the third stage of qualifying, which means top ten.

"If you look at Malaysia qualifying, we had less than two tenths of a second between P7 and P14 on the grid, so all the teams are so close together that it will be mixed up again and again throughout the season.

"No one can be sure to be among the top ten, a minor mistake will push you eight places back. The target has remained the same - we have to fight for the top ten and then see what we can do in the race.

"The challenge now is with a still rather small team to go through the season at the same development pace as the big teams. We have to do the races, and we have to develop the car at the same time as we design next year's car with a few more than 300 people. That will be quite a challenge."

Q: How much of a concern is it that you have suffered two engine failures in the first two races?

Theissen: "Apparently, it is a concern. That is clear. It shows that development time for the new V8 was a bit short. We are now dealing with issues that we would normally sort out in December and January - getting reliability and so on.

"If you look at the other manufacturers, this phase of development stretches into the season this year."

Q: Were the problems with Jacques in Bahrain and Nick in Malaysia the result of similar issues?

Theissen: "Yes, both crank train."

Q: Is that easily resolvable, or is it going to take some time?

Theissen: "It took some time to analyse what happened first, because the engines were quite heavily damaged. We have identified the cause now, and we are working on it. We have a modification package here in Melbourne and we are developing it further."

Q: So will your engine programme need to change now that you know what the problem is, or can the engine still run at the same revs as originally intended earlier this season?

Theissen: "We have an interim package here, which includes some measures that we don't want to keep for the rest of the season.

"You have to react immediately and, with the lead-time for changing parts with the two-race engine rule, you cannot react immediately so you have to take some other measures. That is all I can say on that."

Q: Will the permanent fix be ready for Imola, or will it be after that?

Theissen: "Imola or Europe. It depends on when the next engine spec is due."

Q: Did it surprise you in Malaysia that BMW got involved in the whole flexi-wing saga?

Theissen: "I don't think that we were really involved in it. Certainly we signed the note on the Ferrari front wing.

"The issue about our rear wing was really minor; it was an informal request from the FIA technical delegate to change a minor detail, which we immediately did. It did not affect the performance of the car, and it is nothing to really think about."

Q: Do you think now that Ferrari, McLaren and BMW have made modifications to their wings that the issue is closed?

Theissen: "I don't know. I don't even know what the issue was with the other teams. I can only say that it is not unusual that the FIA requests a change before it is formally taken down.

"This was just an informal request and that is natural, because the regulations can never be framed in a way that everything is explicitly expressed in a way that you exclude all possibilities.

"The engineers are keen to find those areas where they can gain an advantage and the way the FIA deals with it is to say that, 'this is something we don't think is in the intention of the rules, so please change it.'"

Q: On the Friday after Malaysia there was a meeting in Maranello with Renault, Cosworth, Ferrari and the FIA to discuss the engine freeze, which has now been increased to five years. What is BMW's feeling about the direction this is heading in?

Theissen: "I think it needs further discussions. We are really committed to cutting costs, and certainly the engine is the biggest cost factor in Formula One.

"We can certainly talk about reducing development costs, but before we do that we should talk about reducing the number of engines we need in a season. If you look at the budget of an engine manufacturer, then 50 percent is R&D, and 50 percent is parts costs for production of the engines.

"So if you cut the number of engines produced, then you cut costs, which is the biggest need. That is why I support test restrictions.

"This is why I have always been positive about long-life engines, because it cuts the number of engines for races and tests at the same time. And that should be done first.

"If then we need to cut development costs as well, then we can talk about things like homologated parts, but we have to be careful and get the right balance between cutting edge technology and reasonable expenditure for that."

Q: The manufacturers signed up to the 2008 Formula One entry list this week so they could join discussions to frame the new regulations. Is that a major step towards ending the threat of a breakaway championship?

Theissen: "It is a clear indication from the manufacturers that they do not want to come up with a rival series just for the sake of it.

"We are trying to find common ground with the current commercial rights holder and with the FIA, and you cannot give a stronger commitment than this as a manufacturer, or as five manufacturers, to commit for the next five years."

Q: Will the GPMA stay alive until a final deal is signed, or can we forget about it?

Theissen: "There is no intention to stop an independent GPMA. I don't know how long it will go on, but I think it is useful in helping the manufacturers come to a joint view, a joint position, and also in working with the commercial rights holder and with the FIA.

"It certainly helps that we form a joint position on our side. Naturally, the manufacturers come from different positions so if we agree in giving in here with one manufacturer, the other giving in there, in order to come to a viable compromise that suits everybody, then that helps the discussions."