BMW completes successful Jerez test

BMW was at Jerez this week on the first on-track test since the end of the DTM season, six weeks ago in Hockenheim. The Bavarian manufacturer completed extensive work in preparation for 2015 with some of its regular drivers, as well as trying some new talents at the Spanish track.

BMW brought to Spain four units of the BMW M4 DTM and six of his 2014 DTM drivers: Marco Wittmann was joined by Augusto Farfus, Maxime Martin, Bruno Spengler, Antonio Félix Da Costa and Timo Glock.

In the wake of the coming changes to the racing weekend format, which will include two races per event in 2015, BMW took advantage of the good weather conditions to practice new procedures and strategies in preparation for the coming season. A number of solutions were tested, seeking efficiency and reliability over pure performance.

BMW also offered the opportunity to experience a DTM car for the first time to seven young drivers, as part of the typical evaluation work carried out during winter testing. Britons Tom Blomqvist, Jack Harvey, Alex Lynn and Sam Bird were at the wheel, also joined by Robin Frijns, RichieStanaway and Lucas Luhr.

After three days of intensive work, 1,735 laps were completed, with a grand total of 7,683 kilometres run by the four BMW M4 DTMs.

Marco Wittmann, who has been collecting honours and accolades ever since Hockenheim, was happy to be back at the office: “It was nice to get back in the car after over six weeks. We completed a lot of laps, in order to test a few details and gather data. We were quick, although lap times do not play a major role during testing. Your job is more to try out different things. Our programme worked well.”

Timo Glock looked on the days at Jerez on a positive note, after completing a positive test: “We had a tight schedule, but did a very good job of getting through all the points we wanted to work on. It was great fun and I completed a lot of laps. I now hope that Christmas and the winter break will fly by, so we can get back in the car soon and continue our work out on the track.”

The DTM rookies were impressed by the downforce and general performance of the BMW M4 DTM, which some of them didn’t expect from a ‘car with a roof’.

Former Formula Renault 3.5 champion Robin Frijns was delighted with the experience: “I was surprised how direct the BMW M4 DTM is. It is really sharp, just like a single-seater. It is like a Formula car with a roof on.”

GP3’s Jack Harvey was blown away by the speed of the Bavarian contender: “It was absolutely unbelievable. I have never driven a car with a roof before so this was a new experience for me and I really loved it. It is very different to what I did in the past but something I could get used to, for sure. I have never driven with carbon brakes before, and the braking efficiency was much more than I had expected.”

Experienced formulae driver Sam Bird, fresh from his first victory in Formula E, was equally impressed: “I really enjoyed working with BMW. The people were great and the car is extremely impressive. You have to adapt to the car, as it requires a particular driving style. You need to be spot on. The downforce and the braking efficiency are very impressive.”

The teams will now proceed to data analysis and workshop duties, with on track testing resuming in 2015.