By alley - Feb 20, 2017, 11:32 AM ET

Sauber must improve in 2017 - Kaltenborn

Sauber team principal Monisha Kaltenborn says it is imperative her team improves in 2017 after struggling to 10th in the constructors' championship last season.

After a year-long battle with Manor, Sauber edged past its rival to 10th place courtesy of a ninth place from Felipe Nasr at the penultimate race of the season in Brazil. Those two points were the only two the team managed to score in 2016, and Kaltenborn wants to see a reaction from Sauber this season after being taken over by Longbow Finance last July.

"We clearly have to improve," Kaltenborn said as

Sauber launched its 2017 car

. "With the Sauber C36-Ferrari we have a solid basis as well as the resources to further develop the Sauber C36-Ferrari through the season. This will be important to establish ourselves in the mid-field.

"Together with Longbow Finance S. A., we have great opportunities to be competitive again and to return to previous successes in Formula 1. We want to position ourselves with a new approach, and we have already taken the first steps in order to build a solid foundation for the future."

Sauber will use last year's Ferrari power unit once again this season, with the team seeing benefits in being able to work with a known quantity from an earlier stage of the car's development. Technical director Jorg Zander says delivering a car that is easy to drive was his priority during the winter.

"We put greater emphasis on aerodynamic stability as opposed to maximizing downforce," Zander said. "Basically, big teams also have an advantage when it comes to major changes in the regulations, but when the cards are reshuffled new opportunities always present themselves as well."

While Zander has been focusing on the car's development so far, he admits pre-season testing will be crucial in understanding a key aspect outside of the teams' hands, with Pirelli introducing wider tires.

"With the tires one might be able to mask deficits and get development concepts to work better," he added.

Renault will be the next team to launch its new car, with its 2017 effort being unveiled in London on Tuesday. Pre-season testing gets underway on Feb. 27 in Barcelona.