Aston Martin's AMR26 looks troubled and unrefined in early F1 testing

Aston Martin's new AMR26 has emerged as one of the most difficult cars to drive during Formula 1's pre-season test, with drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll struggling with severe and consistent braking issues. The car appears stiff, unstable, and far from its refined potential, raising questions about its mechanical platform and its new partnership with Honda power units.

Why it matters:

This rocky start is a significant concern for a team that made a bold driver signing in Fernando Alonso and entered a new, high-stakes works partnership with Honda. A fundamental lack of drivability at this stage suggests a long and difficult development path ahead, potentially derailing their ambitions to move up the grid in the short term and casting doubt on the integration of the new power unit.

The details:

• Both Alonso and Stroll have suffered an abnormal concentration of major lock-ups, particularly into the challenging Turn 10, with the issue persisting across multiple days and drivers.
• The problems are not isolated to one area; drivers have experienced both front and rear axle locking, sometimes accompanied by an unusual split-second silence from the engine during rear lock-ups.
• The car's front end appears very stiff and sensitive to bumps, pointing to potential issues with the mechanical set-up and suspension.
• Driver feedback hints at broader problems, with Lance Stroll stating that downshifting's impact on car behavior is "not great at the moment, that's for sure."
• The core challenge is diagnosing the root cause: is it an inherently awkward and heavy mechanical platform, or is it linked to the performance and energy recovery management of the new Honda engine?

What's next:

While Aston Martin is likely not the outright slowest car, it is described as the furthest from being a refined package and from realizing its potential. The team faces a substantial engineering challenge to understand and fix the car's fundamental behavior. With the season opener looming, they are in a race against time to transform a troublesome test car into a competitive race machine, a process that could define their entire 2025 campaign.