The team continued to be sponsored and supported by Petronas, Intel, Certina, Dell and Credit Suisse.

The FIA implemented a set of rules for the 2008 season that saw all teams use one gearbox for four races and a standard McLaren Electronic Systems ECU that prevents the use of driving aids such as traction control and engine braking.

[11] Technical director Willy Rampf played down rumors of a lack of speed[12] and confirmed that the car would be running in a revised form at the Barcelona test on 1 to 3 February 2008.

At the Bahrain Grand Prix Kubica took pole, just 0.027 seconds ahead of Ferrari driver Felipe Massa.

After the successful start of the 2008 season, the BMW Sauber team enjoyed being a strong performer at the front of the grid.

However, Kubica was to make a great impact at the rain impacted and incident laden Monaco Grand Prix, he equalled Heidfeld's Australian Grand Prix finish of 2nd, just 3 seconds behind Lewis Hamilton, Heidfeld finished 14th 4 laps down with chassis problems.

Heidfeld was released in front of his teammate, but was slow due to fueling levels and was passed by Kubica a lap later.

A "B"-spec version of the F1.08 was used to evaluate 2009 aerodynamics, slick tyres and a prototype Kinetic Energy Recovery System.

[14] The radically different appearance of the hybrid chassis compared to the status quo attracted attention, with BMW Sauber test driver Christian Klien describing it as "the worst [looking] Formula One car I have ever seen".