Schuey talks up new Ferrari challenger

Schumacher spoke about the new car, which will be launched at the new road car production plant at Ferrari's Maranello factory on February 6, during the Scuderia's winter retreat at Madonna di Campiglio.

"It will be a completely new car, even if the changes aren't radical," said Schumacher. "It is definitely an evolution of last year's car and not a totally new project. Sometimes you have to start with a clean sheet of paper. However, this time, taking into account our experience from last year, we have just combined it with some new ideas.

"The aerodynamics will definitely be different. We have a new gearbox and some other new parts. That's why I reckon it's a completely new car."

The biggest innovation on the new Ferrari is expected to be a clutchless gearbox, although its birth hasn't been an easy one.

"When we first tried the new gearbox after the winter break, we had a few problems, because it is a completely new solution," said Schumacher. "It's good to see that now we can do a lot of laps and the last few tests were very important."

Schumacher has said he thinks the new car will be used from the start of the season.

"Our programme is based on running the new car right from the first race," he said. "It's true we have the possibility of using last year's car if we need to, but I don't think that will be the case. In any case, I am confident that we will be in Melbourne with the new car."