Eagle eyed viewers noticed on Thursday morning that Lewis Hamilton was moving his steering wheel forwards and back whilst driving round the Circuit de Catalunya, and the legality of the new system was immediately questioned. James Allison, Mercedes' technical director, has defended the system, claiming it is legal.
Hamilton recorded over 100 laps in the morning session as Sergio Perez set the fastest time in his Racing Point, and Allison has been talking to media in Barcelona.
He said in a press conference: “I probably won’t shed a great deal more light than what you saw on the TV. But we have a system in the car, it’s a novel idea. We’ve got a name for it, it’s called DAS. And it just introduces an extra dimension for steering for the driver we’re hopefully will be useful during the year.
“But precisely how we use it, where we use it, that’s something we’ll keep to ourselves.
“This isn’t news to the FIA. It’s something we have been talking to them about for some time. The rules are pretty clear about what’s permitted on steering systems.”
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