The all-conquering German outfit go into battle in 2016 with the W07 hybrid which will have its first public run-out at pre-season testing in Barcelona on Monday.

Lewis Hamilton takes the wheel with the Briton targeting a third stright world title and a fourth overall.

“While the car may look very similar to its predecessor from the outside…underneath there are quite a lot of mini revolutions that make up an overall evolution for the new season,” technical director Paddy Lowe said.

He added: “Our priority has been to identify the areas we were weakest and improve them.

“There were a lot of things that needed improving for 2016.”

With the technical landscape more or less unchanged for the upcoming season Hamilton and teammate Nico Rosberg will line up at Melbourne for the opening race on March 20 hot favourites once again to keep Ferrari and company at bay throughout the 21-race season.