Webber’s Poor Start due to McLaren ECU Problem

McLaren have apologised to Red Bull and their driver Mark Webber after the Aussie’s ECU unit suffered a software problem, causing problems for both team and driver at the start.

(c) Sky Sports F1

Webber’s start from the front row was poor and he soon dropped back. This was due to a telemetry blackout on the formation lap due to the failed ECU software, which meant he was unable to find the correct clutch point and optimise his tyre and brake temperatures.

A statement from McLaren Electronics said “The electronics units themselves ran without incident in Melbourne, but there was a software-related issue that meant that Mark Webber’s Red Bull Racing car’s garage data system had to be re-started during the formation lap.

“That disrupted his preparations for the start of the race, for which Mark and team has our apology. We are working together with them to prevent any recurrence.”

The new units were introduced this season and are supplied by McLaren Electronics Systems. The statement continued, saying “There is a new standard ECU (Engine Control Unit) in 2013 that featured on all Formula 1 cars that took part in the recent Australian Grand Prix.

“It will power the 2.4-litre V8 engines this season and the new 1.6-litre V6 turbocharged parallel hybrid engines in 2014 and beyond.”

The ECU is a hugely complicated piece of tech, “It is a very complex piece of equipment that controls the power train and DRS, and acts as a car’s primary data system.”

After the race team boss Christian Horner said “We lost all telemetry on the formation lap… that meant he (Webber) was blind for the start and that ECU issue shut the KERS down as well, so by the time we reset the whole system he’d lost ground at the start.

It’s something they need to get on top of because there have been a lot of issues during testing.”

McLaren hope to prevent any other software issues like the one suffered by Webber in Australia.