Technical analysis of the Red Bull RB4

Outwardly the car appears unchanged, but Geoff Willis confirmed the car is more complex than the one it precedes, itself a complete change from the previous car. But the car's first appearances are deceptive.

The RB4 is based heavily on Newey's concepts, inspired by McLaren and evolved in the RB3.

At its launch the car sported wings, chimneys and engine cover carried over from the late season version of the RB3. But a revised rear end incorporating a new diffuser, gearbox and suspension are evidence that there is change hidden within the car.

Red Bull haven't confirmed any wheelbase or weight distribution changes, but the monocoque is subtly different, while the rear bulkhead and fuel tank area have also been changed.

The McLaren-like bargeboards, sidepods and coolers are near identical to the outgoing car. Between the bargeboards, in the area between the shadow plate and the monocoque, a long vertical splitter has been added. This may serve to house ballast as well as an aerodynamic function.

A return to sidepod mounted mirrors is an obvious if important change - the team continued to try these mirrors throughout testing last year, despite the drivers preferring to race with more conventionally-placed mirrors.

More important changes start beneath the engine cover. To cope with the new gearbox rules and last year's reliability issues, the gearbox is new.

According to Newey: "I don't think the reliability problems came as a result of chasing performance. They came through detailed design, manufacturing and operations faults. And the reliability systems couldn't cope."

Since late last year the presence of Geoff Willis looking after the engineering of the car, based on Newey's' concepts, has focused the team processes much better at curing reliability issues.

Attached to the gearbox is a new rear suspension. The dampers have been repositioned and their tops are visible through the engine cover, behind the pushrods.

Their placement suggest that either the team have a new way of operating conventional dampers or have adopted Rotary dampers, at a time when other teams (Ferrari, Force India) have discarded them. The lower wishbone has been moved and now intersects the revised diffuser.

It is the diffuser that is the biggest aerodynamic change at this stage of the car's development. The diffuser follows McLaren and Ferrari practice by having an extra channel in a blind spot missed by the bodywork rules.

In Red Bull's case this creates a very wide low channel positioned above the usual side channels. It is this area that intersects with the wishbone placement, potentially the wishbone is acting as the roof of the diffuser to get around the maximum height rules set out in 2006.

From first inspection Red Bull have made some steps with the car, especially if the layout has been altered to improve weight distribution. But compared to the other new cars, it does not appear to have made the same level of changes to improve its pace.

Initial testing and development will prove if the car has made the step required to challenge at the front of the midfield.