The Silverstone squad has endured a difficult start to the year, with severe high-frequency vibrations from its Honda-powered package causing both performance limitations and physical discomfort for drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.
At their worst, the issues have raised concerns within the team, with Adrian Newey warning early in the season about the risk of “permanent nerve damage”, while Alonso reported losing feeling in his hands and feet during the Chinese Grand Prix.
There were signs of progress at Suzuka, where Aston Martin introduced experimental components during Friday practice aimed at reducing the vibrations being transmitted through the car, with the impact immediate according to Alonso.
“Yesterday, to be honest, the car felt completely normal,” Alonso said after qualifying.
“Nearly no vibrations, so I was very positive.”
However, the improvement proved short-lived, with Alonso reporting the vibrations had returned on Saturday despite no obvious changes from his perspective.
“This morning I jumped in the car and I had the same vibrations as ever,” he explained.
“And we didn’t change anything, so that was a little bit difficult to understand.”
While Alonso believed the car was unchanged, the team had in fact elected to remove the experimental parts after Friday running, opting against racing unproven components due to reliability concerns.
Aston Martin trackside boss Mike Krack confirmed the call was deliberate despite the encouraging early signs.
“We had some countermeasures here and we tested something in the sessions that was a small improvement, but we could not race it,” he said.
“Bringing new parts always brings a risk, so you need to consider that when you make reliability decisions.
“They were new parts, so we decided not to go into the race with them, but I think it shows some promise.”
That decision explains the return of the vibrations on Saturday, though Alonso admitted he did “not really” understand why the behaviour had changed so dramatically across the weekend.
His late arrival to Suzuka following the birth of his first child may have limited his usual preparation, potentially contributing to the confusion around the changes.
Despite the setback, the data gathered has provided optimism.
Honda chief engineer Shintaro Orihara said the team had “obtained useful data to know where we should go to reduce vibrations – not only for the battery system but also for the driver”.
The battery remains at the centre of the issue, with the vibrations affecting both reliability and driver comfort as Aston Martin continues to search for a long-term solution.
Even with that progress, performance remains a major concern.
Aston Martin was among the slowest teams at Suzuka, with both cars struggling at the rear of the field and only marginally competitive with Cadillac.
“It’s a combination of power unit and car,” Stroll said.
“We’re definitely losing huge amounts of time on the straights, but we’re not the grippiest beast in the corners.”
Reliability also continues to be a hurdle. While Stroll retired with a water leak, Alonso at least reached the chequered flag for the first time this season.
“We have many boxes to tick and this was one of them: finishing a race distance,” Alonso said.
“We didn’t manage it in Australia, China or at the tests. So it’s the very first time and hopefully the team has enough data now to understand the car a little bit more and get in a better place for the next one.”
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