RENAULT driver Vitaly Petrov was delighted after completing his first testing session in the new Lotus R31 car this week – although admitted he was hampered by a few technical problems.

The Enstone-based team got their first chance to examine their new-look Formula 1 car, and Petrov was impressed for the short time he was in the car.

“It’s great to come back for the new season and try the R31 for the first time,” he said.

“It was not the perfect day because we had some mechanical problems and we lost a little bit of time, so we did not do many laps.

“But we did manage to check a lot of systems on the car, which was important for us and it looks like everything is working well.”

Teammate Robert Kubica says he cannot wait to get going either.

“After a long winter break you always feel ready to jump back in the car,” he said.

“I’m really looking forward to this season. As well as my car having new colours, there are some big changes to the regulations.

“So there are a lot of new things to get used to before the first race, but we will do our best to be as ready as we can for the start of the season.

“At the moment, it’s difficult to know just how competitive our package will be, but the engineers have decided to go for an innovative design, which is good.

“Also, we had a strong season last year and we hope to move forward and be closer to the front.

“That means we will have to race against teams like Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull, and we know this will not be easy, but we will be working hard to make sure we can be part of that fight.”