After Mercedes GP has been praised for having the fastest car in straight line from all 2011 competitors, now German magazine Auto Motor und Sport ranked all the squads in terms of car reliability.
On top of that list emerged Ferrari, whose 150th Italia completed approximately 5,200 km (more than 3,200 miles) in the 11 days of testing so far, 800 km more than nearest competitors and, according to many, main rivals for the season to come Red Bull Racing.
The signals from both teams in recent days have been nothing short of optimistic, all employees (drivers and team managers) praising their testing schedule so far.
Mercedes GP, a team that began the 2011 testing campaign with limited mileage due to reliability issues in Valencia, is ranked 3rd in that classification, only 100 km behind Red Bull, while followed by Sauber-Ferrari and Williams F1 Team.
Renault's innovative R31 racer has only managed to complete 3,700 km (around 2,300 miles) so far in testing, ranking 6th in reliability, but newly-signed Nick Heidfeld insists he is more than happy with how the car behaves, especially in regards to the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS).
“It's better than with BMW, particularly with regard to the impact during braking,” said Heidfeld, who used to drive a KERS-powered car for BMW a couple of seasons back.
Scuderia Toro Rosso overtook McLaren Mercedes for 7th place in this unofficial classification, while Virgin Racing is enjoying a decent 9th place ahead of Force India. The last two positions belong to Team Lotus and Hispania Racing F1 Team, a squad that is still to test its 2011-spec car this winter.
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