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Tander's Transition to more grunt a success following V6 Asia Test |
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Sunday, 16 December 2007 |
 Leanne Tander
has successfully made the transition from her 220hp Formula
3 Dallara to a car with nearly double the horsepower following
a strong two-day test in a Formula V6 Asia car in Malaysia last
weekend.
The Fleetcare TanderSport driver and
runner-up in the 2007 Kumho Tyres Australian Formula 3 Championship
completed two full days with Team Meritus and set a best lap less
than one second slower than the pole time set at the most recent
round held at the Sepang (North) circuit.
Tander was faced
with nearly two full days of wet running in the 400hp
Renault-powered car until the track dried late on the second day of
the test.
She completed three sessions in the dry on worn
Tyres before further rain unfortunately ensured that she was unable
to complete a run on new rubber.
The test, with the champion
FV6 Asia team, was an opportunity provided by Team Meritus sponsor
Anthony Blumberg from Opes Prime, now also a major supporter of the
Australian Formula 3 Championship.
One of Leanne’s rivals for
race wins locally this season, Brit James Winslow, won the Asian
championship this season driving an Opes Prime backed car for the
Meritus team.
Formula V6 Asia cars lap at a similar pace to
A1GP cars and feature 3.5 litre V6 engines and weigh 600kg, making
them a significant step forward from the lighter and more nimble F3
cars.
“I really enjoyed the chance to test the Formula V6
Asia car,” Leanne Tander said.
”It was a bit disappointing
that it rained so much because it’s tough to get a good feel for a
new car in the rain. When it did dry at the end of the second day I
was able to push on and I was happy with the times I
set.
”The car was good but certainly felt different to the F3
car,” she explained.
”It’s a lot heavier, a bit softer and
more powerful than what I’m used to. The F3 car is almost
underpowered for the grip that they have, whilst the V6 car was
different as the balance between grip and power is a bit more
even.
”Each time I was in the car I went quicker and found
more confidence in the car and the team seemed happy with the job I
did. I’m pretty happy with the times and I think that if I was
actually racing I would be up at, or close to, the
front.”
Fleetcare TanderSport are currently continuing
preparations for the 2008 Australian Formula 3 Championship where
they will run a multi-car operation in the Australian Drivers
Championship.
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