Paul di Resta described Wednesday's second day of testing at Jerez as one of his more difficult days in a Formula 1 car despite being pleased with the progress that the team is making with the Force India VJM05.
The Scot took over from reserve driver Jules Bianchi in the afternoon, ending the day sixth fastest after completing 69 laps despite weather conditions making life difficult.
"It was one of the more difficult days in terms of driving I have had in a Formula 1 car," said di Resta. "The wind seemed to get very intense from midday on. But we got through all of our objectives and got a clear direction on a couple of setup things."
Di Resta added that he has no doubts that the car has the potential to achieve Force India's stated aim of improving on last season's sixth place in the constructors' championship. The VJM05 has proved to be reliable and the team has been happy with what it has got out of the car after two days of testing.
"We have got ambitions and as long as it is better than last year, that is the main focus," said di Resta. "That would be fifth as a constructor and that's achievable. But at the same time we are going to have a bit of a job to maintain sixth because we have got some good teams around us.
"Everybody [at Force India] has good momentum at the moment. There's a good vibe about the team and the car seems to be performing. So we are fairly optimistic we can achieve that [aim]."