Jaguar Launch 'Less Adventurous' R4

The Jaguar Racing team this morning unveiled their 2003 challenger, the new Cosworth-powered R4.

The team had originally set a date of January 13 for the launch but shelved that after Niki Lauda was replaced as Jaguar Racing head last month. Instead, the Ford-owned squad opted for a virtual launch over the Internet.

Jaguar, who finished in a disappointing seventh place in last year's Constructors' Championship, said that the new R4 is a less adventurous design than last year's model, which struggled with aerodynamic problems during most of the season.

The R4 project was led by managing director Dave Pitchforth and designed by head of aerodynamics Ben Agathangelou, Rob Taylor (Head of Vehicle Design) and Mark Gillan (Head of Vehicle Performance).

"We learned an awful lot of lessons last season from the R3 and even though we began the season with a less than satisfactory race car, we actually finished the season with a sound platform that has benefited some areas on R4," explains Pitchforth.

"With that in mind, we have not taken a radical approach to R4. Some would say that we have gone back to basics but overall, we have opted for a conventional, low risk and robust design with the aim being to show lineage to the successful modifications to the R3 and best engineering practice.

"We focused on absolutely everything to ensure that we contest the season with a race car that is capable of being competitive and finishing races reliably. It sounds obvious, I know, but that's not how Jaguar Racing began last season and by the time we had worked out the problems with R3, most of the season had passed us by."

The R4 will use the new Cosworth CR-5 V10 engine. Cosworth will race with a 90-degree engine layout and the team hope to benefit from it as opposed to a 72-degree engine, with a higher centre of gravity.

Cosworth will also supply engines to the Minardi and Jordan teams this year, with the Ford badge for the latter.

"The reason we've gone to 90 degrees for 2003 is in the interests of improving the centre of gravity (C of G) â€" and I have to say we've achieved a very significant step for 2003 in terms of lowering the C of G," explained Cosworth's managing director Nick Hayes.

"And not all of that improvement has come about via the wider V angle, either. Rob White [chief engineer, Cosworth Racing] and his team have done a fabulous job â€" a lot of good, clever design â€" in repositioning various items in order to help lower the C of G, to be honest.

"But that's normal; every time we design a new engine, we look very hard at the V angle â€" because, by and large, the wider you make the V angle, the lower you make the centre of gravity; and the lower you make the centre of gravity, the better you make the car's dynamics."

The R4 was already tested last Friday at Ford's facility in Lommel, Belgium and will today run for the first time on a Grand Prix circuit at the Circuit de Catalunya. Jaguar have changed their driver line-up for 2003, with Australian Mark Webber and Brazilian Antonio Pizzonia replacing Eddie Irvine and Pedro de la Rosa.