McLaren has faith in nose design

McLaren is adamant that it has not made a mistake with its nose design for 2012 - even though every other team so far has opted for a stepped version with their new Formula 1 cars.

The low-chassis concept that McLaren has pursued in recent years means the British outfit has not needed to feature a stepped nose section like its rivals.

But the fact that the team is alone in going down that route has prompted questions about whether it has done the right thing.

Technical director Paddy Lowe has dismissed concerns though, and said that his outfit evaluated the alternative and decided that the solution it eventually chose was better overall.

"This new rule came along and, like every year, you do revisit this stuff," he said in an exclusive interview with AUTOSPORT. "So we revisited it, did our sums again and decided that we would stick with the philosophy we have got.

"Different teams will come out with different answers to those equations always, because they have different sensitivities. There is no good or bad way - so that rule has not affected us.

"For those teams that went down that [high chassis] trend, which Red Bull Racing started off, pushing particularly the front of the chassis and the nose high, they have continued to pursue that policy. And being the quickest car, it is no surprise that it became fashionable as a direction. A lot of people have migrated in that direction now, although I don't think it was so true last year.

"They, then, are the ones that have been affected by the new rules and have had to drop the nose and introduce a compromise to that concept because you have got a step. Some people have some interesting ideas around the use of that step, and we are looking with interest at all of that stuff."

He added: "My model of it is that it's not a case of us missing some trick. It is not a trick or a loophole that we did not spot. We have always known that you can lift your chassis there, but have chosen to not do it now. We did not do it before either, when there was not nearly the same constraint that you have now. That is the philosophy we have gone with."

*Read the full interview with Paddy Lowe, where he talks about the nose rules, exhaust regulations, McLaren's current testing progress and reveals the truth about last year's testing troubles.