The first pictures of the new Toro Rosso STR12 for 2017 have been revealed.
Technical director James Key said the car, which has been presented in a new livery, has an aggressive development schedule ahead of it.
“With driver continuity and a power unit which made a major step forward last year and which should be developing strongly this year, it just leaves the chassis as an unknown quantity,” said Key.
“We always set ourselves ambitious targets and this year, we are taking a more long-term view over the 20 races, with a long list of planned in-season developments. I suspect it will be a very busy year with plenty of performance still to be found.”
Team principal Franz Tost said the Toro Rosso squad has “worked extremely hard to ensure we have a very competitive season”.
“Our chassis is mated to what is possibly the most competitive engine we have had so far in the hybrid era, as we return to Renault power once more.”
Red Bull’s junior team heads into the new season with one of the most experienced driver pairings it as ever had.
“Daniil Kvyat will be in his fourth year as a Formula One driver and Carlos Sainz will now tackle his third season with us,” said Tost.
“They are a very talented pairing and they have worked very hard over the winter to be ready for the additional physical challenges involved in driving these new and faster cars. The crew that will look after the cars at the track is also very well prepared and generally, throughout the company we have the stability and strength in depth to tackle this season, when the pace of car development will be much faster than over the past couple of years.”
“Finally, we really like the first major livery change of our twelve years on the F1 grid and this new look is reflected in our pit garage, which has also been updated to make life easier while working around these much larger cars.”
Previous Toro Rosso F1 cars
- Toro Rosso STR11 (2016) pictures
- Toro Rosso STR10 (2015) pictures
- Toro Rosso STR9 (2014) pictures
- Toro Rosso STR8 (2013) pictures
- Toro Rosso STR7 (2012) pictures
- More Toro Rosso F1 cars
This article will be updated
HUHHII (@huhhii)
26th February 2017, 16:53
Hmm… Not sure what to make of that livery.
just.daz (@nemo87)
26th February 2017, 16:55
Literally looks like a can of redbull
Zim
26th February 2017, 17:01
Absolutely.
IJW (@)
26th February 2017, 17:00
The shade of blue reminds me of a tin of Cadbury’s Drinking Chocolate.
PT (@pt)
26th February 2017, 17:29
Love it!
Shimks (@shimks)
26th February 2017, 17:49
Me too!
regs (@regs)
26th February 2017, 17:33
Probably Acronis colors.
TomD11 (@tomd11)
27th February 2017, 1:04
Wispa, anyone?
JCost (@jcost)
26th February 2017, 18:01
I like it. Looks like a Red Bull can but it’s good and not looking so much like RBR is good too, gives STR more personality.
Andy (@andybantam)
26th February 2017, 16:53
Lovely!
John H (@john-h)
26th February 2017, 20:22
Indeed.
Nigel (@f1-yankee)
26th February 2017, 16:53
Driving a Red Bull can!
jimmi cynic
26th February 2017, 20:10
Red Bull Delivery Van can. At least TR has the courage to use the billboard for its primary commercial purpose.
To my jaded eye, the overall the package is much prettier than the RBR mothership’s oh-so-not-prettiest car. And hopefully more competitive. A Sainz/Mad Max redux would be fun to watch.
Andre (@lheela)
26th February 2017, 16:53
Wow! So we got RBR with matte and Toro Rosso with a blue chrome livery? That’s pretty neat.
Dom (@3dom)
26th February 2017, 17:28
Agree @lheela. Think the car looks a beaut, the shape of the car is lovely and the shiny livery enhances it
Nice nose, similar to the Mercedes
JCost (@jcost)
26th February 2017, 18:05
they should get new overalls for their drivers though, something matching their new colors
Dom (@3dom)
26th February 2017, 21:35
Didn’t notice the overalls until you said that @jcost. Think it’s coz I was drooling over the car ;-)
sam3110 (@sam3110)
26th February 2017, 16:53
Ooooh Shiny
sam3110 (@sam3110)
26th February 2017, 16:55
No thumb nose and the sidepods look miniscule
IJW (@)
26th February 2017, 17:01
Maybe the sidepods are why they suffered that engine failure already?
JeffreyJ
26th February 2017, 19:45
No that was a software problem with the ERS according to F1today.net and since Renault were not at Barcelona yet they couldnt fox it and were done for the day
WheelToWheel (@lolzerbob)
26th February 2017, 16:55
Interesting….. I was hoping for a turquoise livery though
Andre (@lheela)
26th February 2017, 16:56
Looks like F1 safed the prettiest car for last. The nose, the fin, the livery, it’s just beautiful!
Micheal (@shakengandulf)
27th February 2017, 1:26
+1 love it.
Travis Daye (@travis-daye)
26th February 2017, 16:57
Best looking car for a second year running!
sam3110 (@sam3110)
26th February 2017, 16:57
Might be the camera angle but it doesn’t look that long here either
Nigel (@f1-yankee)
26th February 2017, 17:31
It looks short in the studio shot as well, looks great.
just.daz (@nemo87)
26th February 2017, 16:58
Mercedes nose and air box inlet.. great looking car and quite different from their ‘superior’ team. Should be interesting seeing how different they are on track!
Hugh (@hugh11)
26th February 2017, 16:58
Oh my god that is beautiful
Fudge Kobayashi (@)
26th February 2017, 21:53
+1 this and Mercedes are what I wanted / expected from 2017. I hope they go well!
Robbie (@robbie)
26th February 2017, 16:58
Me likey.
hunocsi (@hunocsi)
26th February 2017, 16:59
Is that first chrome F1 livery? Can’t recall any. Looks fun.
just.daz (@nemo87)
26th February 2017, 17:00
McLaren have chrome’d up previous liveries
hunocsi (@hunocsi)
26th February 2017, 17:10
Jeesh, of course *hides away in shame*
Micheal (@shakengandulf)
27th February 2017, 1:27
Only the wole car was chrome hahaha :)
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
26th February 2017, 17:00
I adore it, but mainly because the field has no blue cars. It’s basically a 2006 Red Bull. Was expecting something more original
sam3110 (@sam3110)
26th February 2017, 17:01
Apart from the blue sauber and the matte blue RBR?!
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
26th February 2017, 17:03
Blue and white Sauber, and the matte Red Bull doesn’t look blue at all. And I mean blue blue, like not dark blue
sam3110 (@sam3110)
26th February 2017, 17:07
The Sauber is way more blue than this, this is dark blue veering towards indigo/purple tones
sam3110 (@sam3110)
26th February 2017, 17:00
I’m guessing the contract with the guy to used to paint the Bull has run out? I like the fact it’s more different from the Red Bull, no yellow whatsoever, and the philosophy seems very different too
Gary
26th February 2017, 17:01
If simple is fast, then this wins.
Zim
26th February 2017, 17:03
I can’t see how to open this to get the juice out.
JeffreyJ
26th February 2017, 19:47
You have to activa the DRS to do that ;-)
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
26th February 2017, 17:03
Lovely! At last a cool looking aggressive livery. Also a nice goodbye to the old one which had expired long long ago.
LosD (@losd)
26th February 2017, 17:05
What is THAT? o_O
petebaldwin (@)
26th February 2017, 17:05
WOAH. Love it! Well done Toro Rosso!!
Dmitry (@albedo)
26th February 2017, 17:06
Other teams use thumb noses to feed more air to the diffuser, am I right? But why would you opt for a nose like that? Do they deliver more air to the diffuser in some other way?
Sravan Krishnan (@sravan-pe)
26th February 2017, 17:06
That’s a cute one!
Simeon Simeonoff (@simeonoff)
26th February 2017, 17:06
I love it!
Gabriel (@rethla)
26th February 2017, 17:09
Looks great. They should make the suspensionrods in silver!
Gabriel (@rethla)
26th February 2017, 17:09
I like a car that doesnt got alot of blackspots everywhere.
Damon (@damon)
26th February 2017, 17:09
I like it. The very front of the cart – the nose cone and the front wing – might be the best of all cars.
Markp
26th February 2017, 17:24
Agree. For me this is the best looking by a mile. Says everything about looks though as this will likely come no where near winning any titles.
Broke84 (@broke84)
26th February 2017, 17:13
So many people aren’t happy with the liveries, it’s a real shame I like what the redbull and Torro rosso’s do with theirs, subtle changes but still totally in-keeping with the brand, in 10 years you may look at the blue of the sauber and forget it was a sauber, but redbull and ferrari and Mercedes, you know it’s them. My favourite car along with the Mercedes for me. Ferrari looks bad-ass except for the stepped nose and I rather like the Sauber too.
Barney
26th February 2017, 17:14
At last no ugly nose
Jeanrien (@jeanrien)
26th February 2017, 17:15
Looks very neat, clean and refreshing. Nice to see and let’s hope that it would be as good as last year’s car at the beginning of the season, they did a tremendous job.
Joao (@johnmilk)
26th February 2017, 17:15
Every other team. Take note, this is how you do it
Might not be the fastest but is already winning
Uzair Syed (@ultimateuzair)
26th February 2017, 17:19
Wow, that is a superb looking car! Finally a good Toro Rosso livery! :)
Schudha
26th February 2017, 17:21
Looks the prettiest because it isn’t as high as the merc just in front of the cockpit and the nose is right
Andrej (@andrej)
26th February 2017, 17:30
The only thing I noticed (also on the Red Bull car). What is the silver rod at the rear supsension?
Sepehr87
26th February 2017, 17:31
What if every other team have this type of nose.
James Brickles (@brickles)
26th February 2017, 17:32
I wasn’t expecting that at all! Very nice, I like it!
montreal95 (@montreal95)
26th February 2017, 17:32
call I can say is WOW! Can’t stop looking at this car! They’ve even managed to make the sharkfin look pretty somehow! From the tip of the nose to the rear wing, and the beautiful shade of blue, this car is perfect! Didn’t think there would be any car more beautiful than the Merc but I’m happy to be wrong
Dom (@3dom)
26th February 2017, 17:33
Absolutely lovely. Beautiful contours, enhanced by shiny blue, chrome and red.
Dom (@3dom)
26th February 2017, 17:33
Lovely nose too
Dom (@3dom)
26th February 2017, 17:35
I hope it’s fast so that we get to see loads of it
Willem Cecchi (@)
26th February 2017, 17:35
Red Bull Cola is the worst thing I have tasted in my life.
Mangy Black Sheep (@mangyblacksheep)
26th February 2017, 17:36
Prettiest car on the grid, hands down.
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
26th February 2017, 17:37
I’ll be honest, drivers aside, I’d love this being faster than the RB13
regs (@regs)
26th February 2017, 17:37
Nose cone isn’t as good as Mercedes, but still OK.
Pinak Ghosh (@pinakghosh)
26th February 2017, 17:42
Sometimes simple is best. Torro Rosso has ditched the thumb nose and come up with an overall clean car with a likeable livery. Let’s hope Renault give them a decent engine and the overall package is reliable.
BNKracing (@bnkracing)
26th February 2017, 17:54
At first it looked a bit lazy of a livery but it’s grown on me already. If they made Optimus Prime from the transformers movies into a F1 car this is what he would look like!
Mark Thomson (@melthom)
26th February 2017, 17:58
It’s odd, but when they have great shaped cars to work with they go that extra mile to make it great looking with a completely renewed livery. Last year it looked like most teams had given up the looks although they have to attract sponsors. Only problem is that there are no real individual form factors to distinguish the cars from each other. It’s almost only the liveries that are setting them apart.
Roth Man (@rdotquestionmark)
26th February 2017, 18:02
That’s a stunner! Saved the best to last.
Strontium (@strontium)
26th February 2017, 18:51
Very very nice, certainly one of my favourites for 2017 and definitely the best livery change / modification.
Well done to them. Now Toro Rosso and Res Bull have identities completely of their own, while still being Red Bull. I like it a lot
WilliamB (@william-brierty)
26th February 2017, 18:56
Love it, best of the lot…
Josh (@canadianjosh)
26th February 2017, 18:59
Best looking field of cars since I’ve tuned into F1.
luigismen (@luigismen)
26th February 2017, 19:09
Definitively best looking car on the grid this year.
I don’t know why so many people criticize this years liveries, I think Mercedes did a nice thing continuing whit the scheme, Ferrari is like always, Red Bull and Williams have the same nice livery as last year, Hass did a little upgrade, Renault also, Sauber livery is definitely better than last year and the McLaren is not so bad, maybe they could have done a better usage of the orange, but an upgrade from 2016 by far. The only disappointment is the Force India, didn’t like it last year, same for this year and horrible usage of the silver on the shark fin.
Fudge Kobayashi (@)
26th February 2017, 22:03
They criticise them because the plethora of amateur fan made liveries out there blows most teams official efforts out of the water! They just aren’t imaginative, I mean how hard is it to matt black out a thumb nose or shark fin to achieve a cleaner look? And the McLaren is just so half hearted with the vast swathes of black. Williams have made their shark fin look worst of all in my opinion, we wanted more prominent martini stripes sure but not on a billboard shaped rectangular appendage that doesn’t flow with the lines of the car. Check out Tim Holmes on twitter or a google image search for some fantastic liveries.
electrolite (@electrolite)
26th February 2017, 19:50
Be still, my beating heart!!
Racecar is racecar backwards
26th February 2017, 20:11
Best looking car this year.
Racecar is racecar backwards
26th February 2017, 20:20
Finally a nice rounded nose to match those coke-bottle rears. Nice livery and sharkfin. Love the sidepods. Definitely the shortest wheelbase, looks perfectly in proportion. I love it. Best looking car in a long time. Lets hope it’s fast.
sward (@)
26th February 2017, 21:49
Maybe jumping the gun before we see what it does, however, if Red Bull isn’t grooming him to be Newey’s heir, someone needs to pay James Key a boatload of money NOW.
Michael (@cavman99)
26th February 2017, 22:45
Agreed! He’s made some dynamite cars with half the budget!!!
Jon (@johns23)
26th February 2017, 22:25
YES! Torro Rosso! Bravo! Very similar to Mercedes and i hope it pays dividends for them. Look at this car and the Mclaren together. What a load of rubbish the Mclaren is
sato113 (@sato113)
26th February 2017, 22:50
love it!
I wonder why teams run first run laps on full wet tyres even when the track is dry?
Forrest
27th February 2017, 4:12
Easily the best looking car this season in my opinion. It is also obvious that James Key and the engineers at Mercedes are thinking along similar lines, when it comes to car design. I won’t be surprised if STR manages to podium multiple times this season.
barkun (@barkun)
27th February 2017, 6:37
that livery, especially the one on track, reminds me of the 1994 Jordan (which is not such a bad thing).