Aston Martin’s Mexico City Grand Prix ended after just five laps for both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, with Honda saying stress in the cars’ energy recovery system cooling circuit caused the retirements in the high-altitude conditions.
Honda trackside general manager and chief engineer Shintaro Orihara said the circuit came under stress in particular circumstances, causing the cars to stop. While the system worked during most racing laps, the issue also appeared on Saturday, he said.
The problems followed a difficult weekend for Alonso. A cooling issue involving his MGU-K curtailed his qualifying session after one run in Q1. Before the race, the team changed his MGU-K and replaced several elements on Stroll’s car.
Both drivers had poor starts and were soon told to manage temperatures by lifting off. They were called into the pits at the end of Lap 3 to reduce temperatures, but the measure did not resolve the issue. Alonso was subsequently retired in the pits, while Stroll was told to stop on track. Both were classified with five laps completed.
Alonso said the Mexico circuit presented a major challenge for power units and that the team had not completed enough laps when it mattered, despite running extensively in practice. He also said the issue appeared to affect both cars, suggesting it was shared between them.
Orihara said Honda had prepared for the altitude, including its effects on turbo lag, but identified ERS management and driveability in particular situations as areas that needed improvement. He said the team would take lessons from the race back to the factory.
Aston Martin chief trackside officer Mike Krack said Alonso’s pace in practice was encouraging, but cooling had been a concern throughout the weekend. He also pointed to the combined effects of altitude and temperature on cooling, driveability and grip.
Sources: Formula 1.