page_title: Renault R31
section_title: Design
hierarchical_section_title: Renault R31 / Design
caption_attribution_description: English: Formula One 2011 Rd.2 Malaysian GP: Renault R31's forward exhaust.
context_page_description: The Renault R31 was a Formula One racing car designed by Lotus Renault GP for the 2011 Formula One season. The chassis was designed by James Allison, Naoki Tokunaga, Tim Densham and Dirk de Beer with Rob White leading the engine design. The car's distinctive black and gold livery was designed as a tribute to the Team Lotus cars of the 1980s and the famous John Player Special liveries. Speculation suggested that as the design is reminiscent of a cigarette package, the team would be in violation of strict anti-tobacco laws in Canada and would be unable to use it at the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix. However, senior team personnel dismissed the claims, stating that "another famous team" was racing with colours similar to those of another tobacco brand and had done so in Canada without trouble in previous years. Ultimately, the car raced in Canada with no changes to its livery.
context_section_description: The R31 was unveiled at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, Spain on 31 January 2011, where Vitaly Petrov was first to drive it. Renault had planned to have Robert Kubica as teammate to Petrov, but Kubica got injured while testing a rally car. So, Renault hired Kubica's former BMW Sauber teammate Nick Heidfeld instead. The car attracted attention for a radical exhaust system, with speculation suggesting that it could be routed under the floor to create a "forward blown diffuser" effect after the car was unveiled with no visible exhaust vents, though Renault have not confirmed or denied any technical developments except to state that the car has been the product of a twelve-month development cycle. It has been suggested that several other teams have been quick to adapt to the concept, with talk that the forward blown diffuser will be implemented on several cars for upcoming tests. It has been further implied that the exhaust system offers significant gains, as incorporating them is a complex process, requiring teams to rearrange the internal electronics of the car and undertaking strenuous side-impact tests to get the new parts approved. However, some key personnel from other teams – most notably Mercedes' Ross Brawn – have downplayed the importance of the parts.
  The exhaust system became a major disadvantage as the season unfolded. The car suffered from low downforce on slower circuits, particularly Singapore. The system also made it extremely difficult to develop the car. After the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, designer James Allison admitted the forward exhaust concept rendered the R31 a 'failed experiment':
  "The layout which had promised so much, and which, had it delivered, would have been almost impossible to copy, proved very tricky to develop and had a fundamental weakness in slow corners that has been an albatross around our neck all year.
  Martin Brundle described the forward-facing exhaust as "sounding like a bag of nails." However David Coulthard disproved this theory by buying a bag of nails.
caption: The R31's forward facing exhaust.
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