Both Toro Rosso drivers, Pierre Gasly and Brendon Hartley, are set to use the second of their allocated MGU-H and turbochargers in Bahrain as Honda bring modifications.
After expectations were raised of the reliability of the Japanese manufacturer’s engine in testing, Australia proved a tough pill to swallow as the performance remained lacking and Gasly as forced to retire with an MGU-H failure.
Upon further inspection back at the factory, the Frenchman will also require his second Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) this weekend, as Honda technical director Toyoharu Tanabe explained.
“During the race in Australia, we had an issue with the MGU-H and turbocharger on Pierre’s car, this had the knock-on effect of also damaging the ICE,” he said. “The MGU-H and turbo have both been modified, in light of what we learned in the first race.
“We have decided, as a precautionary measure, to also change the MGU-H and turbocharger on Brendon’s car.”
Also Read:
The bigger issue now facing the junior Red Bull team, however, is with just three of the main engine components available for the entire season, to be already using a second will raise concerns that penalties could start earlier than hoped.
“Replacing components for the second race is obviously a difficult decision and not ideal,” Tanabe continued. “[Especially] given that the number of power units and ancillary components is now limited to just three per season.
“However we believe this is the right way forward and we will continue our development in order to ensure the same issue does not reoccur,” he added.