Zytek Automotive has been revealed as the company behind the KERS system fitted to the
McLaren Mercedes F1 cars of
Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen.
McLaren's KERS system is widely regarded as the best on the F1 grid this season, and helped Hamilton to secure victory in the Hungarian Grand Prix; the first Grand Prix victory for KERS-equipped car.
Having started from fourth on the grid, the defending F1 champion was able to make the most of his KERS system to make up places at the start – as has become something of a common theme this season – and eventually took the flag for his first win of the 2009 campaign.
Zytek has worked closely with Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines on the system, which allows the MP4-24 to recover energy under braking which can then be used by Hamilton and Kovalainen to receive an extra boost of power.
The success of the KERS system follows on from previous success enjoyed by Zytek in the past, including supplying the first fully electronic engine control system in F1 back in the 1980s.
The company has also enjoyed success in sportscars, with Panoz using a Zytek motor in its hybrid car at the 1998
Le Mans 24 Hours and the Corsa Motorsports team using a hybrid Ginetta-Zytek LMP1 car in this season's American Le Mans Series.
In its first outing as a hybrid, the car finished on the podium at Lime Rock Park.