Renault on engine: 'If you don't attack you're dead'

Renault wants to make a gain of 0.3s with its new power unit compared to its performance at the end of last season, but admits reliability is its priority.

"What I know is that we started from scratch completely, which is quite brave because we had a good product last year," Abiteboul said. "It was decent what we had done – more than decent actually, I think we were the best in terms of reliability. And yet we have decided to start from scratch again, but in Formula 1, clearly, if you don't attack you're dead.

"We saw that if we want to be serious about our ambition to catch up and overtake the best in class, which is Mercedes, we had to envisage a completely different philosophy, which is what we have done this year.

"So the first thing to get right is reliability – that's what will have to come first. In terms of performance gain we are targeting 0.3s between how we started the season and how we finished last season – I am just talking about engine to engine, nothing related to the rest of the car – and we hope to make more or less an equivalent step over the course of the season."

Expanding on the new power unit, Abiteboul says the ambitious development targets during the season are a result of Renault not wanting to sacrifice reliability for performance over the winter.

"We think between 0.3s and 0.4s is what we want to achieve over the course of the development, but all of that will only be possible if we have the reliability. Because if you don't have the reliability then it really screws your engine introduction plan and what you were supposed to bring for engine No.2 or engine No.3 will not be available because you have to fix your engine issues."

Red Bull and Toro Rosso will also run the Renault power unit this season, although the Red Bull engine will be rebranded as a Tag Heuer. Toro Rosso has yet to announce a sponsorship deal for its power unit.