Were you surprised by the lack of reliability issues in Melbourne?
Honestly, I did not expect to see any teams with engine reliability issues in
Australia and it was clear that engine reliability was impressive throughout
the grid. Even last year, most teams were confident with their engine life
over one race weekend, so I do not think anyone envisaged any dramas in Melbourne.

Is the new engine regulation strict enough in your point of view?
There is still a grey area in the 2005 engine regulations, whereby a driver
can come into the pits before the end of the race, effectively retiring a
problem-free car, and then be permitted to change the engine for the
next race.

What is Toyota's opinion on such loopholes?
Toyota is against the existence of such loopholes in technical regulations.
Toyota fully accepted the spirit and intention of the new two race, one
engine regulation. We gave the chance for the team to run in all four
free practice sessions in Australia, not only because it is important to
learn the car's behaviour at the track, but also because our participation
 in all sessions over the weekend is part of the F1 show. Even though our
drivers did not score any points in the race, we decided to pass the
chequered flag out of respect for the spirit of the new rules. This obviously
increases the chance of having an engine failure in Malaysia, but this is
what we understand by the concept of racing.

Is this why Ralf Schumacher's engine was not changed after qualifying 
in Australia?
Yes - Ralf's qualifying was massively negated by the bad weather and
left him near the back of the grid. It would have been easier to change
the engine in those conditions with a comparatively minimal penalty, but to
do this, especially in the first race, is not acceptable in our opinion. During
the course of the season, we may change an engine if there are doubts or
issues technically, but we should avoid it wherever possibly as part of the
gentleman's agreement that was accepted before the season started.

Ralf and Jarno completed a lot of laps in Melbourne – what is the current mileage of their respective RVX-05 engines?
In Australia, I think we were the team who completed most kilometres
over the weekend – at least us and Jordan probably! Ralf has around
570km on his RVX-05 already, whilst Jarno has about 670km.

How is the working relationship with Jordan?
I think everything ran extremely smoothly between Jordan and Toyota in
Australia. Jordan appear to be pleased with the contribution that we have
made to their team, but we are also particularly pleased with how the
operated. They have three inexperienced drivers and this can increase
the misuse of the engine, but we are happy with the job they did and we
are looking forward to seeing them improve. Luckily, we are next door to
them in the paddock, so our working relationship is very close. It can be
more stressful for me as Technical Director Engine, though, because I now
have four babies to look after during the weekend.

How will performance of the engine be affected as it is the second race weekend?
Typically the performance of an engine increases a bit after the first
200-300 kilometres. The performance level gets higher compared to
the first laps. When speaking about performance of the engine, we also
speak about the stability of the performance. We want to have an engine
that is still stable in terms of its power even after 1200km. This is the
parameter we work to and how we develop our engines. Towards the
end of the engine life, there will be a decrease of performance, but our
job is to limit this drop off.

Aside from the rules, what is the biggest pressure exerted on the engine in Malaysia?
Quite simply, the heat. Everyone remarks that Malaysia is hot, but it is the
biggest problem we will face because it affects all aspects of the team from
the car to the driver, even to the mechanics working in the garage. Malaysia
is the first really hot race of the season, perhaps even the hottest so the
internal working conditions of the engine could be critical. The Sepang
InternationalCircuit has two very long straights, so maximum speed is as important
as downforce. But the heat is again the defining issue. We are able to replicate the Malaysian heat in our transient dyno in Cologne, so we have worked hard to make sure the engine has been run in even hotter conditions to those we expect to see
this weekend, just to cover all eventualities.

What precautions do you take for Malaysia in terms of cooling?
The aerodynamics department has to work a lot in advance of the race to
open up the car at the rear to allow more airflow to the radiators. Our aero
team have brought some extremely efficient solutions for engine cooling, so
I do not think we will encounter any significant problems.

Finally, what are your personal goals for Malaysia?
If we can finish the Malaysian GP with a combined engine distance over
two races of nearly 1400km with no problems, I will be a very proud and
happy man. If we add some championship points to that, I'll be ecstatic.