Heidfeld will run KERS

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Mar 26, 2009 | 10:20 AM

whitlock

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From: ATL

Heidfeld will run KERS

Just saw this on F1 blog, I like how Heidfeld plays it down a notch

BMW will run KERS in Australia but only with one driver. Apparently, the team picked Nick “Beardy McBeard” Heidfeld to run them since he weights a couple Big Macs less than mega tall Robert Kubica.
Team Principal Mario Theissen:

The regulations mean that heavy drivers are disadvantaged.

Heidfeld is also playing down the advantage he may have over his team and the rest of the field.
Heidfeld:

When you have KERS on board, obviously it is very easy to see the difference in speed, but there are also a couple of disadvantages you have with the KERS. The centre or gravity is quite a bit higher and the weight distribution is worse and there is a higher chance of having technical problems - especially early in the season. It is a challenge to have it working perfectly under braking conditions, and set-up is pretty new and unknown. So there are downsides to weigh up against the positives and that is also why Robert isn’t using it and probably all the other teams that are not. It’s not straightforward that if you use KERS you will be quicker.

Mar 26, 2009 | 10:50 AM

Alzilla

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From: Minnesota

I'll be really curious to see Heidfeld's speed compared to Kubica's this weekend. From what I've heard, they've been running similar times in the same cars during the practice sessions so I wonder how KERS will shake things up in the race!

Mar 26, 2009 | 11:32 AM

whitlock

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Any word on who else will be using KERS? Or is BMW one of the few teams ready to try it at this point?

Mar 26, 2009 | 11:51 AM

Alzilla

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I had asked about this earlier. I never heard anything back. Maybe try a Google search?

Mar 26, 2009 | 11:58 AM

Gary (FL)

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Alzilla

I had asked about this earlier. I never heard anything back. Maybe try a Google search?

This was in a thread about a week ago that you posted in?

Renault is the first team to give its Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) the green light to run at the Australian Grand Prix.While most teams are still undecided about whether or not to introduce the technology for the start of the new season, Renault has seen enough of its device to sign it off for use in Melbourne.The move ends fears that no teams would choose to use the technology in Australia, although Renault will still be in the minority of outfits who will have KERS ready for the first race.McLaren, BMW-Sauber and Ferrari have not declared publicly about whether or not they will press their devices into action, while six teams have already confirmed they will not race it in Australia.Williams, Toyota, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Red Bull Racing, Force India and Brawn GP will all head into the Melbourne event without the technology, although most of them are expected to introduce the systems later in the year.Renault admitted early in testing that it was surprised about how well its KERS system was running, having been sceptical about its state of development beforehand.Speaking after the first running of the new R29 in February, technical director Bob Bell said: "The biggest surprise for [us] was perhaps the KERS system as we felt that initially we would have a lot of problems with it and getting the drivers used to it. In reality it has been quite a straightforward transition."

So now we know two are for sure..