Kamui Kobayashi believes that Sauber are heading in the "right direction" after a productive opening test at Jerez last week.
The Japanese driver spent two days in the new C31 at the Spanish track, completing 106 laps on Tuesday and an additional 76 on the Friday.
This was after being hampered on his final day's testing, where he lost an hour's practice due to a hydraulic leak.
But despite that issue, Kobayashi reckoned Sauber had made a solid start to their 2012 pre-season programme.
"If I look at the whole picture I am happy with the first test," the 25-year-old told Sky Sports. "For sure we have found the right direction to go in.
"The car didn't surprise us with any big issues, which allowed us to work on improvements straight away."
Koybayashi, who made his Formula One debut for Toyota in 2009 before joining Sauber in 2010, also thanked his mechanics for their contribution over the four days of testing after they were able to get him back on to the track after the hydraulics problem.
"In the end I did 76 laps which isn't too bad," he added. "We have some ideas of what our next steps will be and I'm very much looking forward to the Barcelona tests."