Power Ranking the 2015 Formula 1 Liveries
If we're being honest, the 2015 Formula One grid doesn't contain the most spectacular liveries.
Variety and creativity are in short supply, with a host of teams basing their colour schemes around grey and all but two outfits featuring at least a speck of red on their cars.
Liveries, throughout the history of F1, have defined a team's identity and in some cases can define entire eras—think the iconic Canon-sponsored Williams cars and the Marlboro McLarens of yesteryear—but only a couple of the modern paint jobs will live long in the memory.
From Force India's quirky new look to Mercedes' latest silver arrow, here's our ranking of every livery in this year's field.
10. Manor Marussia
1 of 10
In this modern era of PR, it is delightful, charming even, to see a Formula One car entirely devoid of sponsorship logos.
The championship-winning Brawn GP car of 2009 was adored for that very reason, but there's a very different feeling when you look at the 2015 Manor Marussia car, which acts as a permanent reminder of the sport's biggest danger.
That the livery hasn't changed much since Marussia entered administration toward the end of 2014—white has replaced black on the sidepods—makes it even more obvious that this is a team that have been stripped to the bare bone.
Although, given the last six months Manor have had, painting the car a different colour would have ranked low on the list of priorities, it's a shame the team didn't mark their new start with a brand new look.
Matching the blue-and-red appearance of the team's Twitter account or offering a nod to team principal John Booth's Yorkshire roots would arguably have been better options than persisting with the same, eerie colours and all their bad memories.
9. Force India
2 of 10
Force India's 2014 livery was a refreshing change, as the team injected a dash of black to their usual mish-mash of orange, white and green.
It sounded ghastly, but the end result worked extremely well, giving Force India a bold new look as the Silverstone-based outfit enjoyed their best season to date.
A second major overhaul in as many seasons was unnecessary and, in truth, wasn't worth the hassle of a so-called "livery launch" in Mexico in January.
With white replaced by silver, and orange and green reduced to mere streamlining roles, the team's nod to India and, indeed, their identity has been lost.
The Force India no longer looks like a Force India but a tribute to the West-sponsored McLarens of years gone by. It now looks like any other car in the field, which can only be a disappointment for a team that, up until now, had done things differently in the livery department.
8. Lotus
3 of 10
When you think of Lotus, which livery comes to mind?
The green and yellow of Jim Clark's era? The Jochen Rindt-Gold Leaf combination? Or the black and gold that Ayrton Senna made famous in the mid-1980s?
For many of us, the latter is the Lotus colour, but since 2011 the modern Lotus outfit have traded black and gold for black and beige. A sponsor-pleasing move? Potentially, but it does go some way to spoiling the concept of honouring the classic Lotus team.
The double-stripes adorning the monocoque and sidepods seem a little busy, while the blocks of red on the front and rear wings, as well as the wing mirrors, remain unsightly.
The 2015 car's roll-hoop also appears bare compared to those of Lotus' 2013 and '14 machines—as a direct result of both the absence of red and a loss of sponsors—although we'll probably get used to that.
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7. Red Bull
4 of 10
The pre-season "CamoBull" was fun while it lasted, but you can't beat the traditional Red Bull Racing livery.
The colour scheme of this year's RB11, much like its performance thus far, is nowhere near as good as its predecessors.
The differences, admittedly, are relatively minor, but they are noticeable enough to mark the livery down here.
While the shade of purple on the sidepods—a presence on the Red Bulls since 2013—would previously blend seamlessly into the main body of the car, the addition of a cut-off line for 2015 separates the Infiniti purple from Red Bull's navy blue, creating a disjointed effect when the car is viewed side-on.
And just what is that gigantic, slanted Red Bull logo on the monocoque all about?
Is it an open invitation for a new sponsor to come aboard? Or does someone at the team actually think that looks acceptable?
Red Bull are usually trendsetters, but their new livery leaves a lot to be desired.
6. Toro Rosso
5 of 10
As Red Bull Racing's B-team, Scuderia Toro Rosso are probably accustomed to being overlooked, but the four-time world champions' errors with their own livery see the junior outfit triumph here with a simple yet effective colour scheme.
STR have always gone for a darker tint of blue than RBR, while the raspberry-coloured Red Bull that adorns the engine cover is the single most impressive decal on the grid. The logos on the sidepods, meanwhile, act as a throwback to the pre-2013 Red Bulls.
The bright red and dark gold around the nose contrast nicely—Lotus could learn a thing or two—and, crucially, are not overdone.
All of this comes together to form a sensible, modest-looking car.
5. Ferrari
6 of 10
Whisper it gently, but do we take Ferrari for granted?
Every year when launch season comes around, there is virtually no excitement ahead of the unveiling of the new Ferrari, because we simply know it's going to be red, and we know it will feature some white here and maybe some black there.
The key to a pretty Ferrari, then, lies in the small details, and there has been one welcome improvement between the 2015 car and last season's winless F14-T.
The SF15-T has addressed the one major flaw of the 2014 design, which featured far too much black paint in the exhaust region, with red now far more prominent toward the rear of the car.
There is an argument that Ferrari should revert to the colours of 2007 and '08, when the traditional red colour was occasionally replaced by a darker, metallic shade.
But a Ferrari, ultimately, is what it is.
Unless you're a hardcore member of the tifosi, it'll never be your favourite livery; but equally, it'll never be anywhere near the bottom.
4. Sauber
7 of 10
After producing one of the worst liveries of 2014—the grey, white and red mess deserved to be associated with the team's worst-ever season—Sauber have come up with one of the best for 2015.
And for that we have Felipe Nasr to thank, with the Brazilian's personal sponsorship seeing the C34 painted almost identically to his former GP2 car.
When it first took to the track in testing at Jerez, the new Sauber was relatively bland.
However, a number of minor alterations—flashes of yellow on the wing mirrors and nose, as well as the addition of white driver numbers on the monocoque—have transformed the car to the point where it is reminiscent of the iconic six-wheeled Tyrrell and Ronnie Peterson's March.
The black and white shades on the front and rear wings seem a little out of place, not helped by the red Silanna logos, but the Sauber is a huge improvement on last year.
3. McLaren
8 of 10
Sure, the MP4-30 bears no resemblance to the cars of Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost in McLaren's glory days. But why would anyone want it to when the team are currently trailing at the rear of the field?
Many were left disappointed when McLaren's 2015 car was unveiled without the iconic red-and-white paint job of the 1980s and '90s, but that shouldn't detract from the fact that the first Honda-powered car remains an attractive one.
While the team's 2014 car was as bland as could be, the MP4-30 has returned some personality to McLaren's machines, with the bright red trim, which runs from the tip of the nose all the way to the rear, key to the transformation.
Not only has the introduction of red added some much-needed definition to the car, but it has done wonders for the shades of chrome and black that were present in 2014, creating a much better contrast as McLaren retain the mean and moody look.
It isn't the sentimental choice, but the MP4-30 livery is extremely stylish.
The front and rear wings could be livened up a little, though.
2. Mercedes
9 of 10
Like McLaren, Mercedes' livery is mostly based on the contrast between black and silver, but the reigning world champions have managed to produce a slightly more attractive final product.
Between 2010 and 2012, the Silver Arrows' idea of silver was, well, grey. Since a shinier tinge was introduced for 2013, however, the Mercedes livery has come on in leaps and bounds.
While the black surrounding the engine cover and cockpit area was segregated from the silver in 2014, it now, with the help of what appears to be a deeper shade of silver, blends much better.
The presence of Petronas turquoise on the sidepods and wings, as strange as it may seem, complements the darker colours, with its metallic hue emphasising the car's gleam.
Mercedes' W06 might not have the best livery on the grid, but it is arguably the most photogenic, as shots such as this prove.
1. Williams
10 of 10
Williams' Martini livery isn't just the finest in the 2015 field—it is the best colour scheme of the modern era.
Those red, navy and light blue stripes against the ice-white body make up one of the most iconic sights in motorsport, ensuring the cars of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas stand out from the crowd.
The dark front and rear wings, only the latter of which feature Martini branding, offer a nice contrast to the rest of the car.
While there remains a slight feeling the team haven't quite made the most of the Martini sponsorship—the stripes continue to streak from the engine cover, around the cockpit and all the way down to the front wing pillars—the understated approach works brilliantly.
And in many ways, it is very Williams: pleasant, subtle and extremely likable.
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