- McLaren
McLaren getting more from Honda PU - Button
Jenson Button was in an optimistic mood following Friday practice in Malaysia after seeing McLaren make a step forward from its dismal Australian Grand Prix pace.
McLaren is still a long way off the front of the grid in terms of raw pace as it adapts to life with new engine partner Honda but found itself not far behind the Force Indias in FP2. Button says there has been a clear step forward with Honda's power unit in the two weeks since Melbourne.
"We're getting definitely a lot more out of the engine here, which is good you know," Button said. "It's not like we have new parts, it's just maximising what we have. We've definitely made some improvements. Good job by everyone for that but it's still a long way to go but in terms of power and consistency of the power, it's working quite well.
In Australia, Button said McLaren needed to make gains in reliability and performance and the Brit thinks there has been a step forward on both fronts.
"So far both. We've both been running smoothly today with both cars, which is good. In terms of pace, the power unit … we're maximising a lot more now in terms of the PU itself but also the MGU-K and other areas. It's basically getting more out of the current engine than what we had in the first race. It's just through experience of running the whole race in Melbourne so that's all good.
"Temperatures seem to be OK. We have some new parts, both cars are quite different today. Hopefully, we can put everything together tomorrow and find a little bit more pace. There's progress but still a long way to go."
During FP1 Button was complaining about understeer in the MP4-30 but he says his dissatisfaction was due to the tricky Sepang conditions rather than an underlying problem with the car.
"I think everyone is finding it very difficult here with the heat and also the wind. A lot of people are making mistakes. It's really tricky to find a set-up around here that works. The feeling is not as good, but in terms of our overall pace it's a lot better on one lap but also on long runs. It's a step forward and that's the thing, you can't always go by feel because sometimes the circuit is in bad condition.
"The car does not feel good but I think that's the same for everyone. There's very low grip out there. I'm guessing other cars are feeling much worse than they were in Australia… I can't speak for them."
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