The year was one of exploration and learning for the team. The car was predictably the slowest during pre-season testing, but a new aerodynamic package was introduced before the first race in Bahrain which brought the team closer to the others. Although the car was on average the slowest, it was not by a big margin, and Sato impressed by racing with faster cars. Ide, however, was out of his depth, and his Super Licence was taken away in part after a spectacular collision with Christijan Albers' Midland at the 2006 San Marino Grand Prix. He was subsequently replaced by Montagny, who was much closer to Sato's pace.