HRT will miss Saturday test in Barcelona

2011 F1 testing

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HRT F111, Barcelona, 2011

HRT will not participate in the test session in Barcelona on Saturday having failed to get the parts they need to the track.

The team said their dampers had been impounded by customs in Spain.

Team principal Colin Kolles said: “Unfortunately we could not get the dampers out of customs.

“The result of this is that we can’t run tomorrow.

“This is life and we will work to overcome the problem”.

HRT will therefore miss the last opportunity to run their new car in pre-season testing.

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    Keith Collantine
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    98 comments on “HRT will miss Saturday test in Barcelona”

    1. Ouch! that’s gotta hurt! So.. similar to last year, the first test of the car on track will be at the first race of the season….

      ..hopefully, they’re design is good enough to put them further up the grid.

      1. ( yes, I did say further up the grid.. although I meant ‘closer to pack’ ) I will be amazed if they manage to not be on the back 2 rows of the grid this season.

        1. richevans123
          12th March 2011, 0:01

          Or beat the 107% rule more worryingly!!

          1. Why are the dampers in customs?

            Isn’t HRT are Spanish team and the testing in Barcelona (a city in spain)?

            Spain isn’t exactly the largest country, so why ship them, simply drive if they are so important… or is it wait…

            JUST ANOTHER EXCUSE?>….

            1. The dampers must come from overseas.

              Obvious answer is obvious.

            2. Way to go! Be cynical on the small guy. We don’t know anything other than this statement, so what can you make a judgement on?

              You think that HRT will manufacture every single item in the factory? Dampers, screws, washers, wheels, tyres, oil, petrol, carbon fibre, electronics, ECU, batteries, cables, engine, tubes, sensors, alternative composite materials?

              Tell me from your vast knowledge of HRT’s manufacturing process and supply chain, and/or F1 in general, exactly what comes from where, and how it gets delivered..

              From my point of view, I think you’ve jumped on HRT in the absence of enough knowledge on the fact to make a balanced opinion.

            3. People have been implying that they had to be shipped in from Bahrain after the cancellation of the testing there…

            4. As Kolles said he only got 2 hrs of sleep before flying to barcelona for yesterdays presentation, I guess everything is just thight schedule.

              Most of the car is being built in Germany and Austria. Who knows, the dampers might be coming from Japan, China or India customer made.
              Anyway with the washed out track today, was there so much to gain from running? Even instalation laps look pretty far off right now.

    2. This is getting more and more ridiculous. Driving the dampers down would probably have got them to the track sooner :(

      1. SeattleChris
        12th March 2011, 1:14

        What a sketchy team. Why can’t they just admit they don’t have a freakin car ready to run yet.

        Instead they clearly lied and built up a body with which to show off instead. It would have been a better PR move to just say there were “unforeseen delays” in the production of “x” part and due to this the team cannot build the car quick enough.

        Anyone who believes they genuinely couldn’t make the race due to “customs” should re-read everything that was said leading up to last year. What a bunch of sucks.

      2. Aren’t they meant to be a Spanish team? Isn’t Barcelona in Spain? Why are they trying import these things are the very last minute? How come the dampers are being shipped separately from the rest of the car?

      3. Maybe Hispania group have a bit of a bad name in the Spanish tax department?

        As today is going to be a washout on track, it might not matter too much in the end. You do wonder, why Kolles did not pack them into the hand luggage.

    3. Impounded in customs and yet Hispania are based in Spain so there is no need to involve customs. Something seems fishy to me

      1. The team is registered in Spain and competes under a licence issued by the Spanish motorsports federation. However, the car – or at least the offending parts – was not built in Spain. I suspect it was built in England, or at Colin Kolles’ base of operations in Germany. Or even Bahrain; the team was expecting to unveil the F111 at the final test in Bahrain and may have sent parts there in advance, but then the uprising began and the test was re-scheduled, so Hispania had to recall the parts. The short version is that they had to be brought into the country for the test. Just because you live in a country, it doesn’t mean you are exempt from customs. There’s nothing suspect about it.

        1. You know for a fact that the parts were not built in Spain? Why would the parts STILL be in Bahrain? It was cancelled weeks ago. It’s fishy because how often do we hear that a F1 team can’t run because customs have impounded bits of their car? It’s suspicious that the only time it’s happened that I can remember is to the team that are struggling for cash, initially release a computer model of their car, and release their actual car, minus suspension parts on the 2nd to last day of a test

          1. You know for a fact that the parts were not built in Spain?

            Yes, I do. How do I know this? Because if the pasrts were built in Spain, they would not need to go through Spanish customs.

            Why would the parts STILL be in Bahrain? It was cancelled weeks ago.

            The political situation did not stop with the race being cancelled. The protests kept going on for some time – I see everybody stopped caring about it once a decision was made about the race – and so the parts may have been stuck there for some time until it was safe to get them out. Or maybe Hispania figured they wouldn’t need them until the Barcelona test and saw no reason to ship them back to Europe until they were needed.

            It’s suspicious that the only time it’s happened that I can remember is to the team that are struggling for cash, initially release a computer model of their car, and release their actual car, minus suspension parts on the 2nd to last day of a test

            How is it suspicious? Do you think Hispania somehow staged the launch of their car and then created an excuse not to run it when their entire goal this off-season has been to get to a test and put in some running? Why on earth would they do that? How could they possibly benefit from that unless their car is powered by embarrassment?

            Hispania’s suspension parts are caught up in customs because they had to be flown in from somewhere else. It is not uncommon for a customs department to hold things for some time while they are being processed. Particularly if they need to be quarantined or checked. Suspension parts for a Formula 1 car are not something that goes through customs every day; it’s likely the Spanish authorities would want to verify them before approving them. Given the sheer volume of travellers going through an international airport every day – all of whom usually have to get their baggage inspected by customs – it’s no surprise that Hispania have been delayed. All they are guilty of is poor planning (though based on what they have said over the past few days, the parts were shipped to Barcelona the moment they were ready to be). But I already know there is no conspiracy to avoid testing simply because such a conspiracy does not make sense.

            1. Kolles said that the dampers where coming from America. I have no idea why exactly.

              Personally i think that the car was never meant to run and that’s just an excuse. The new car isn’t ready yet to start rolling and they found an excuse to get away with it and at least present the car as to not cast more doubts on whether they have a car by waiting until Australia.

            2. Kolles said that the dampers where coming from America. I have no idea why exactly.

              America, then. The work was probably subcontracted out to someone who could do it better than Hispania.

              Personally i think that the car was never meant to run and that’s just an excuse.

              That makes no sense. It contradicts everything else that has been seen and heard from the team.

            3. I’m with Solo. So the car was complete and ready to run except there were no dampers. Right. Pretty suspicious to me also. If the dampers were coming from the States they were probably from Penske, but still this sounds like a preplanned escuse.

            4. Ok, so who here believes the media wouldn’t have found out about it if HRT were lying and the parts weren’t actually stuck in customs?

              Please. The media would be all over it. They would have found out.

              How people can simultaneously claim that HRT aren’t organised enough to build an F1 car on time, but are organised enough to orchestrate a successful conspiracy good enough to fool the collective investigative power of the F1 media amazes me!

            5. I agree with DVC.

              This isn’t the first time a part hasn’t been used because a team had issues with customs.

            6. P. Monkey has a point guys..No fishy about it. You people have fish in your brain. lol

            7. DVC, it might not be a conspiracy, but seriously if you’re rocking up to the final pre-season test never having run your car, and it’s missing key parts (we’re not talking experimental alternative wings or whatever), you really got to wonder whether the team is all that organised.

              I would have thought you’d would install things like dampers onto the car back in the factory. Maybe also have the subcontractor build the parts nice and early, and have them sitting around the workshop until they are to be installed. When other teams ship parts out at the last minute it’s usually “nice to have” parts, rather than “our car won’t run if we don’t have this” part.

            8. When other teams ship parts out at the last minute it’s usually “nice to have” parts, rather than “our car won’t run if we don’t have this” part.

              Like Team Lotus who had to miss running in earlier tests while they flew out the power steering – that’s a “nice to have” right?

              Seriously guys, even McLaren have been effected by parts getting stuck in customs before now. Stop reading too much into this. Usually when you hear the sound of hoofs…it’s not a zebra…

            9. Like Team Lotus who had to miss running in earlier tests while they flew out the power steering – that’s a “nice to have” right?

              Yeah but the difference is Lotus didn’t actually leave it to the very last test to get their car to the track. When a team only manages to send their car to the very last test, on the last two days of that test, and the car is missing parts that prevents them from doing any running you really have to wonder what is going on.

        2. I agree with you PM… the stars must be aligned or something ;)

        3. The chassis was apparently built by a german racing composits company, the wings prob. at Kolles place.

          Who knows where those dampers and suspension parts come from. Might have been from China, India or Japan.
          Or as you suggest being sent back from Bahrain.
          And running today was possibly not worth the effort anyhow, given its more rainy than in Korea last GP at the track today.

          1. Or America. Does it really matter, parts not there, customs suck.
            Sure, HRTs or Hispanias financial troubles might have made customs stricter, but it can just as well be pure bad luck.

            And as what PM writes on Bahrain is perfectly true. The protests and their handling by the government just got a bit more civilized, they are not nearly over. Your bad for losing interest in the country.

      2. What mcmercslr said pretty much sums up the idiocy of most so called F1 fans. Do yourself a favour and go back to circlejerking over fake Team Lotus and whatever other typical crap gets eaten up by the usual suspects

    4. This was predictable. The car seems to be a better design compared to last year, so I reckon they could at least be racing against Virgin this year.

      1. all I can say is that I agree. It was so predictable and once again highlights the ineptitude of the team.

        Regardless of where the parts came from, they should have foreseen issues in customs. Made allowances for it, launched it earlier to make sure for example. They didn’t though and once again their latest car hasn’t turned a wheel by the first race. Its borderline dangerous and massively unprofessional.

    5. HRT are becoming a bit of a joke aren’t they.

      Where are the dampers coming from? They’re a Spanish team, testing in Spain…..

      1. …who bought their dampers from an American company.

        Now I know a lot of people struggle with placing some of the lesser known countries on the global map, so I’ll help you out here – American isn’t in Spain.

      2. Red Bull does not mke its car in Austria, I don’t believe Mercedes make their car in Germany or Renault in France. ‘Honda’ was never made in Japan etc. And even if a car is built in the same country as its racing liscence, at least one of the thousands of parts will have been outsourced to a foreign company, becuse that company will either be cheaper or simply better than the local alternative.

    6. i thought HRT were based in spain??? why would they need to fly in parts?

      1. Depends, they may have outsourced development to somewhere else. i.e. Dallara is an Italian company.

        1. They’re not using Dallara this year, they split with them last year. I think the new car has been built in Germany, although to be honest it’s really not clear where their factory is.

    7. Kolles: He’s Really Tits-up.

    8. kolles said the dampers came from america. probably PENSKE.

      but this is supposed to be first race weekend and not having dampers seems pretty strange… i think they never planned to run anyway.

      if they put the car on a test rig (as most teams do) with what dampers they put it ??

      1. totally agree

        this was a stunt!

        1. Or they were planned to go to Bahrain, but then that cancellation screwed it all up. I’d imagine an autocratic centralised nation like Bahrain would have pulled a few quick strings and got the parts in the country in no time.

      2. but this is supposed to be first race weekend and not having dampers seems pretty strange…

        Or possibly they arranged for the dampers for the race weekend to go to where the race was going to be and only then worried about having a set to test the car…

        1. They might have used the extra time to redesign them after first experiences from Pirelli tyres in testing.

    9. Likely a precautionary measure given the parts might have been exposed to Yamamotos stomach bug back in Singapore.

      1. hahaahhaha!

      2. See, and people are wondering why there are those of us who are not inclined to give HRT the benefit of the doubt.

        1. Im all for more cars on the grid and for them to still be in existance surpasses everyones expectations but damn F1 teams can be patronising to us at times.

    10. Must have come from outside the EU as you don’t have to get customs involved for items sent within the EU.

      They’ll get their parts eventually. Along with a big fee from customs no doubt.

    11. What a bunch of hogwash.
      They’re one-shot parts for a race car to be run on a track in the custom official’s country that brings in millions of dollars. It’s not a freight-load of bogus parts that are going to be sold in a black market in Madrid.
      By the way, where is Bernie Ecclestone’s influence in all of this? Or does he just shoot off his mouth about the new teams not being competitive and ignore the fact that they can’t even get parts to the track. The man is an ass.

      1. Nobody has any influence over beurocrats. Logic and common sense don’t apply to customs. If customs in Spain is anything like customs in my country, they won’t care whose stuff it is, they will take their sweet time and probably demand the payment of a needlessly large fee and that several forms be filled in in triplicate.

        1. Agree, they might just get more tight on things when you push them!

    12. God this team is a joke.

      They should go do Formula Ford or something :/

      1. Formula Ford is a respectable series, let’s not damage their reputation!

      2. I guess the couple of seasons Ferrari didn’t bring their new car out until race 4, they were embarrassing the series too then.

        1. Not really embarrassing when their old car was still competing with the top teams.

    13. Its cool to be positive for an underdog team

      but this is just not good enough

      The dampers are not stuck in customs, they just brought a rolling chassis from the u-stow-it garage Jose’s mum rents out for him.

      the team does not have a working car.. simple!

      Yes i am one of the haters who prophesied they would not make it to any of the tests and they didnt..

      Shame Hispania Shame

      1. People keep saying this is all a conspiracy, but I just don’t see it?

        Where is the evidence?

    14. agree, this team has no place in F1. The sport is meant to be the pinnacle yet substandard teams like HRT are allowed in

      1. Disagree. IMO a sport can’t be the pinnacle if they don’t give everyone the chance to compete, either directly through pre-qualifying or progression through lower formulae.

        LeMans is now the pinnacle of motorsport. Genuine development takes place in that series, the cars are less restricted, they don’t have artificial aids to improve overtaking, the races test the equipment more being longer, and anyone can have a go not just the established franchises.

    15. This is the latest in a long line of bull#### from this team. Fair enough that they are tight on cash but the team seems to be run as disorganized and badly as is humanly possible.

      1. don’t be so swift to say that…

        they cant yet be even compared to the elite F1 turds of history like Andrea Moda and Life

        1. @snowman:I really appreciate how they work and trying hard even if the are short in budget.. So keep that bull**** to your body.

        2. Or even Arrows right at the end. Deliberate DNQs are as low as an F1 team can stoop. HRT haven’t done anything nearly as horrible.

          1. I’m being harsh on HRT but like nearly every news release now from them makes it look they are being run by a bunch of clowns. How are they going to attract sponsor’s with these kind of headlines. Now they are going to Melbourne with no testing. Will be amazed if they make the 107% rule. Would like to see them succeed but they need to make some core changes to way the team is run and stop being such an embarrassment to F1.

    16. If this were any other team who got caught up at customs, none of you would be questioning them in the slightest. You would be completely accepting that parts got held up because customs hadn’t checked them through (and in the case of McLaren, more than one person would claim it was a conspiracy to deprive Lewis Hamilton of track time). But because Hispania are a small team who have struggled and made strange decisions in the past, suddenly it’s a big conspiracy to get out of running in the test sessions.

      They might be the minnows of the grid, and they might be battling for survival on a good day, but Hispania deserve your respect. Nobody expected them to make it to Bahrain in 2010, and yet they did. Not only that, but the managed to see out the season, at finish higher than twelfth and last place in the final Constructors’ points standings. And now they have managed to produce a car all on their own on a shoestring budget, and present it in time for a pre-season test. But despite defying the odds on a daily basis, one little hiccough along the way – and a much smaller one than the upsets they usually have to deal with – and suddenly they’re a bunch of frauds aiming to decieve everyone into thinking they’re a professional racing outfit.

      Shame on you.

      1. You would be completely accepting that parts got held up because customs hadn’t checked them through (and in the case of McLaren, more than one person would claim it was a conspiracy to deprive Lewis Hamilton of track time).

        Have to admit that part is so true.

      2. wow…. when did you pop a Valium, normally i look forward to you cynical comments

        shame on you prisoner monkeys….. shame

        1. I just don’t buy into the notion that this is all a big conspiracy for publicity, simply because having the parts on the car and running during testing would produce more publicity than this.

        2. Wow, dud…. If you’re gonna accuse someone of being a druggie, at least get your references correct. “Valium” is a “downer” that generally mellows a person out. The sense that I got from your reply would imply use of “crank” or methamphetamine use.
          Either way, the monkey man was spot on.

          1. i have got my references correct

            look back at previous comments by this user sharp, stern, aggressive and factual

            prisoner monkeys i always like your comments but this is pass the peace pipe stuff

            stick to your technical graft and smash a line of crank :p

            ice blue i didn’t accuse, just proposed a question which was answered

            “I just don’t buy into the notion that this is all a big conspiracy for publicity, simply because having the parts on the car and running during testing would produce more publicity than this.”

      3. why shame? I think what I think…

        and I think this isn’t true… how many times have we heard lies in F1?

        this could well be one.

        I seriously think they have not finished the car yet, but they shipped it all the way to Barcelona to show the car and try to get some headlines.

        I’d do it if I was battling for survival.

    17. Key operational staff:

      Dr. Manfredi Ravetto, Director Business Affairs

      Boris Bermes, Chief of Operations

      Toni Cuquerella, Chief of Racing and Testing

      Heike Feldkamp, Team Management Coordinator

      what are these bananas doing?

    18. This has GOT to be the most ulucky team in history!

    19. sorry… but I don’t buy this.

      I bet the car wasn’t ready and they shipped it anyway to some sort of official launch, hoping all the cameras at Barcelona caught them. They did it, now they are packing again, because the car isn’t completed.

      Considering the lack of sponsors and the horrid “This could be you” logos, it’s obvious they are desesperate for sponsors.

      I don’t belive this story.

    20. Give them a break. They have the smallest budget and all they are trying to do is survive. I have no idea why everyone is so hostile towards them.

      Chances are they dont have enough cash to have the stuff delivered as quick as the other teams do. So they tried to get the stuff there using a cheaper method.

      1. pinnacle of Motorsport does not go with:

        small budget
        trying to survive
        not enough cash
        cheaper method
        constant mistakes
        poor results
        no developments
        pay driver budget

        etc.

        thats why

        pro drive, lola the teams that where knocked back are supposed to be here not HRT

        1. Those said teams were knocked out because they were even less financially sound.

          You are a very sour person if you hate a team for the above reasons. Look back to the past, prior to 1990, and take a look at how small the budgets were back then. There is always going to be a weakest team who is trying to stay afloat.

      2. I would be happy to give them a break, wish them well, hope they make the 107% rule, and have a good season. But I won’t if they lie to me, and I think the damper excuse is a lie. If they had just come out and said “money is tight and we haven’t finished the car” I would have a lot more respect for them.

    21. Yeah, this is getting beyond a joke.

      Their car launch digital, presumably because they had not finished the actual car, and therefore had nothing to launch. Now, they turn up in Spain and pull of the covers knowing full well they can’t turn a wheel.

      Reading between the lines… This car is not finished. Its not ready to race, so the team are making up some excuse as to why they can’t run it.

      I have serious doubts that the F111 will pass the 107% rule.

      1. When last years car did that and this years car is quicker, while the others have slowed a bit for losing the downforce from their DDDiffusors how would they be further back this year?

        The car certainly will not be slower than last year, as they have better rear end an actually got some aero development on that car for the first time over the winter

    22. James Williams
      12th March 2011, 1:21

      As I said, HRT bring nothing to F1 and are utter failures. What would they have done if Bahrain still went ahead eh?

      Hopeless Racing Team deserve to be kicked out, they really do. They are an embarrassment to the sport.

      1. They can’t be kicked out for being slow. Only two teams have ever been banned from competing: Andrea Moda and USF1. They were banned for bringing the sport into disrepute; Andrea Moda because their team principal was arrested for fraud, and USF1 because they failed to make the grid having spent the better part of a year wasting everyone’s time.

        Hispania, on the other hand, have not brought the sport into disrepute. They simply have no budget and no pace, but they have every right to compete. There was a time twenty years ago when teams like HRT were a common sight on the grid. I think the fact that they’ve made it this far is admirable.

        1. The New Hope
          12th March 2011, 2:46

          They have a “right” to compete? Since when did F1 racing become a question of rights? What is this “right” based on? If there car isn’t fast enough, or if they do not have enough money, they won’t race at all…”rights” or not. I wish them well, because I like lots of cars on the grid and I like Tonio, but lets not get ridiculous.

          1. What is this “right” based on?

            Maybe the grid slot they were given by the FIA prior to 2010?

          2. If there car isn’t fast enough, or if they do not have enough money, they won’t race at all…”rights” or not.

            They have a car. They have shown they can see out a full season. Their budget might be less than what Ferrari spend on a single driver, but what have they done to deseve being kicked out of the sport other than languish a few seconds behind everyone else? Go back twenty five years to the Age of Senna, and teams that were in worse condition than Hispania were commonplace. They all lived and died on their own, so why should Hispania suddenly be barred from competing?

    23. So just like 2010 they won’t be running at all before the season starts off? What type of sandbagging is that? Will they get any private test?

    24. Why didn’t they have dampers already fitted to the car, or with the rest of their parts that have supposedly been shipped out to the circuit without delay. Even if they don’t have the dampers they intend to race, surely it’s possible for them to do installation runs to make sure the systems are working and the car doesn’t suddenly explode.

      I’m not suggesting that it’s a conspiracy by HRT to save face, but surely the inability to deal with logistics like every other team is troubling.

      1. The dampers were supplied by someone in America. It’s likely that Hispania knew the dates they were going to be testing in Barcelona, and so arranged to have the parts shipped out to the city in advance so that they could meet them there. However, it appears that someone – everyone, really – forgot to factor in the customs office, which could hold their parts.

        1. Or maybe they wanted to improve something last moment and the parts got shipped in the nick of time.
          Customs can be a nuisance for anyone. I think there has been a fair share of parts not arriving in time for testing or a race due to customs with most teams.

    25. Anyone really surprised?

    26. Damper parts can be used to smuggle drugs as have been done by a race team owner in the late 80’s or early 90’s.
      This is not the first time customs have delayed F1 car parts. Even FOM have customs issues.

      F1 is of no value to the Customs.

    27. Poor HRT. You would think that now they have to just do low-fuel runs all the time, it’s going to be very important for them to get through into the race (although I heard somewhere the 107% rules doesn’t apply to the first race?). And then just pound in every mile they can get in free practice (McLaren should do this too).

    28. Oh dear! I know that parts need to go through customs irrespective of their country of origin…bit this is still a little ironic!

    29. I am a HRT fan i admire then for surviving. But to me something doesnt add up – all seems a bit suspect to me.
      I hope i’m wrong!
      I’m going to use this excuse next time I sell something on ebay that doesnt arrive – I shall just say stuck in customs bear with me :)

    30. HRT has an agreement in place for their engines. And they have contracted Williams for tne gearboxes. As we all know, Frank Williams isn’t neccessarily charitable when it comes to other F1 teams so it is expected that HRT have already made some down payment.
      Only someone stupid will spend money, they don’t have, on something they won’t use.

    31. I’m being harsh on HRT but like nearly every news release now from them makes it look they are being run by a bunch of clowns. How are they going to attract sponsor’s with these kind of headlines. Now they are going to Melbourne with no testing. Will be amazed if they make the 107% rule. Would like to see them succeed but they need to make some core changes to way the team is run and stop being such an embarrassment to F1.

    32. After the food poisoning comment from last year, I always take what this team says with a pinch of salt. McLaren have parts coming and going from customs constantly throughout the test and these have usually been fitted and running the same day. Suddenly Hispania can’t get some needed parts past customs in over 24 hours? Something doesn’t add up.

      The car however requires some explanation to some people that may not know. While they have revised sidepods, floor and wings, the front suspension and tub is from the last years Dallara-made F110, the rear suspension and gearbox is from the Williams FW32, coupled onto the old tub. It really is something that’s been slapped together from different teams.

      Personally I feel sorry for the drivers, I wouldn’t want to go anywhere near the thing.

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