2016 Formula One cars launched: car and test analysis

#1 Scuderia Ferrari - SF16-H

Ferrari has seen drastic changes to the livery, now similar to its 1970s colour scheme

The stables of the Prancing Horse revealed the new SF16-H (the H is for hybrid) in Maranello last week in a session with team principal Maurizio Arrivabene, drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen, and each of the car’s engineers.

Ferrari have gone back to basics with the 2016 livery, which is significantly different from that on the SF15-T. At first glance, they appear to have gone back to the colours they used in the mid 1970s – and then in the 1990s, with the car most reminiscent of the F312T, notably driven in 1975 by Niki Lauda, who would win that year’s championship.

The car is slimmer than the SF15, most notably in the rear. It has a similar nose to the shortened one Williams are using on their car, with all others preferring to use a longer, more tapered nose instead.

Most significantly, chief designers Simone Resta and James Allison have introduced ‘nostrils’ that allow for more dynamic air flow in the car, which engineers and Arrivabene have both said will run on a new improved chassis and engine.

Mercedes engineers have also mentioned that Ferrari will be a potential threat in the 2016 season, and pre-season testing will show what speeds are like.

As of the first day of testing, it is Sebastian Vettel who, with 36 laps in, has set the fastest time ahead of Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton.