Reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton admitted he was amazed by the amount of mileage the Mercedes team covered with their new car - the Mercedes W06 - during the four day Formula 1 preseason test at Jerez, in southern Spain.
Speaking to media at the end of the final day, Hamilton said, "It's been pretty amazing this week to see how reliable the car has been and how much mileage we've covered. The team here at the track and back at the factories is so enthusiastic and energized which is great to see."
The team completed 516 laps, a total of 2284 km, of the Circuito de Jerez during the course of the four day test, and on the final day alone combined with the other Mercedes powered teams - Williams and Lotus - they managed a total of 1076 km, suggesting that the current version of their V6 turbo power unit is increasingly bullet proof and a lid being kept on the outright pace.
"It's been really positive from that perspective and every day here the car has got better as we learn more about it. Everyone will keep bringing upgrades through pre-season, so the cars will develop and they will improve and that then carries on through the first race," predicted Hamilton.
Last year the W05 powered Hamilton to 11 victories, and was substantially better piece of kit than anything their rivals were able to muster, but Hamilton would not be drawn into making detailed comparisons, "I can't really say much about the performance of the car yet but it doesn't feel any worse than last year's, which is a good sign."
"We all loved the experience of last year and everyone wants to do it again. This is where you prove out the car - looking for as many laps as you can, not searching for fast times," added the double F1 world champion.
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