Toro Rosso launches its "first" F1 car: the 2010 STR5

Big deal, you say? Another F1 car, you say? Well it's a big deal in Faenza, where Scuderia Toro Rosso is based. That's because, in accordance with new regulations, this is the first car designed and built entirely in house since Red Bull acquired the team in 2005.

The STR5, then, might as well be called the STR1, because its predecessors were all designed by its sister team Red Bull Racing. Now STR's on its own, and this is the sword it will wield for the 2010 Formula One World Championship. Like other teams, Toro Rosso designed its car around the double diffuser which it adopted after a clarification to the rules mid-season last year. Also like its competitors, the STR5 abandons the KERS regenerative braking system, but takes on a bigger fuel tank in light of the new ban on mid-race refueling.

Although Volkswagen has joined STR as a nominal sponsor, "the other Scuderia" sticks with Ferrari power for 2010. With Toyota and BMW gone, the entire grid is being powered by only four engine suppliers: Ferrari, Mercedes, Renault and Cosworth. The STR5 will be piloted once again by Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari, who – due to the mid-season test ban – is now in Valenica where the car was launched, undertaking his first F1 test session despite having raced last season. Click on the thumbnails below to jump to the mega-gallery of high-resolution images.

[Source: Scuderia Toro Rosso]