Carlos Sainz described his first outing for Williams as "crazy" after experiencing "a different car completely" but is confident he can help the team "fine tune" going into the new F1 season.
Sainz's comments have been revealed in Williams' latest YouTube offering that went behind the scenes of the Spanish driver's first day with the team during last month's post-season test at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Circuit.
After being allowed to take part in the test by Ferrari, Sainz was dressed in plain white overalls, boots and a helmet. There were no identifying features other than the strap on the overalls that bore his name, and his now famous '55' on the helmet.
Sainz was seen in a debrief, and later ironing out the comfort creases of his position inside the cockpit of last year's FW46, before embarking on his maiden lap for the storied team.
Speaking to members of the engineering team after stepping out of the car, one suggested that it, "Feels like the first day at school, no?" to which Sainz replied, "Yeah, a different car completely. It's crazy! Even the throttle pedal. You feel the steering column a bit more."
With further tweaks made before Sainz continued with what was effectively an orienteering day, he was later videoed in further discussions on the finer aspects of the car
"I would like to look into a bit detail with you the front and rear slips of my lap and the wheel separation of the diff, especially when I go back on throttle," remarked Sainz.
It was put to Sainz that it was "an interesting comment". He replied: "I feel like it has a bit of a delay on how quickly it should close."
Reminded the car was based on the feedback of former driver Franco Colaptinto, who has since joined Alpine as a test and reserve driver, Sainz said: “Show me some data when you can and I can tell you whether I think it’s too much or not enough.
“I need to see on the data what I feel on the car because I think if I can see what I feel, I can help you a lot to fine-tune. We’re talking fine-tuning. The last tunes for me were working well."
Paying tribute to Colapinto's set-up, Sainz concluded: “With these tools of Franco [Colapinto], you can brake a bit later. I’m happy.”
You can catch the full video below!
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