According to a BBC report, Jaguar has suffered a major blow in its preparation for the new Formula One season by discovering that the new ‘R3’ car has a serious design flaw. Jaguar has suspended pre-season testing to investigate a serious problem with the car’s front wing.

The design flaw means that insufficient downforce is being generated, significantly impairing the car’s aerodynamics.

The BBC report quotes a Jaguar spokesman as saying that Jaguar has spent this week comparing the new R3 car with last year’s R2 model in straightline tests in Lurcy-Levis in France in an attempt to understand the problem.

The report concludes that the setback will do little to reduce the pressure on Jaguar racing, amid speculation that parent company Ford may be running out of patience with the team’s lack of success.