Toro Rosso revealed their 2014 challenger - the STR9 - in the Jerez pit-lane on Monday

Toro Rosso revealed their 2014 challenger - the STR9 - in the Jerez pit-lane on Monday evening ahead of the first pre-season test.

This season sees a complete revamp of F1's technical regulations meaning the teams couldn't just produce an evolution of their 2013 cars and Chief Designer Luca Furbatto says Toro Rosso have been working on their new car for around 18 months. "It has been a fantastic challenge but very hard work," Furbatto said. "Pretty much all the systems on the car are brand-new and that's certainly a concern from a reliability point of view as the season progresses, because we won't have known reference points from the past few years. "Everyone in Faenza and Bicester has worked very hard and we have invested in different technologies and simulations in order to be as best-prepared as possible. We started STR9 in the summer of 2012, initially just purely on the simulation side. When James Key arrived in late 2012, he focused mainly on the 2014 car in terms of planning, simulation targets and internal resourcing whilst we were still designing the STR8. To his credit we were able to perform the first STR9 wind tunnel test shortly before Christmas 2012, much earlier than previous Toro Rosso projects. "The biggest change to the regulations involves switching from a normally aspirated 2.4 litre V8 to a 1.6 V6 turbocharged engine, which is only one component of what is now referred to as the power unit, or power plant. "The new power unit consists of an engine which is turbo-charged, a new and much powerful version of the Energy Recovery System, operating as an electric motor/generator connected to the crankshaft (MGU-K), and another electric motor/generator connected to the turbo (MGU-H), running at a much higher speed. "The combination of these two energy recovery systems is the hybrid part of the new power unit package, the 'green' effect of the next generation of Formula 1 cars. The engine, although it's smaller and more compact, requires a fairly complicated energy management with all those motors and controllers working at the same time and exchanging energies between a battery pack and the two electric motors." Toro Rosso switch from Ferrari to Renault power this season - a partnership that excites Team Principal Franz Tost who is hoping the team can move up the grid in 2014. "The new rules have required a completely new design philosophy, starting with a clean sheet of paper," the Austrian said. "Having invested in new staff and facilities over the past few years, we have been able to tackle the task of designing and building the STR9 with a group of engineers and designers that have been working on the project since Day 1, under the leadership of James Key. That stability has been of great benefit, while in other areas we hope that changes we have introduced will also bring a step up in performance. "Not only do we have a new engine configuration with the move to a 1.6 litre turbocharged V6 coupled to two energy recovery systems, here at Toro Rosso we also have a new engine supplier in the shape of Renault. The French company's credentials are impeccable, having won the World Championship titles for the past four years and we have already established an excellent working relationship with its engineers, since our partnership was announced at the 2013 Monaco Grand Prix. "Joining forces with Renault also means that, within the framework of the Sporting Regulations, we can once again enjoy synergies on the technical front with our colleagues at Red Bull Technology. "With all these changes, some that affect everyone, others that are specific to Toro Rosso, it is really difficult to set targets or make predictions. However, it is clear we have to improve our performance and make a step forward." The Sky Sports F1 Online team will be providing live commentary of all three winter tests, starting in Jerez on Tuesday January 28, with live updates from trackside also on Sky Sports News.