The VJM07 was overseen by Technical Director Andrew Green, with Simon Phillips as Aerodynamics Director and Akio Haga as Chief Designer. COO Otmar Szafnauer managed the team's operations. The chassis was a carbon fibre composite monocoque fitted with Zylon legality anti-intrusion panels in the side impact zones. Dampers were supplied by Penske, brakes by AP Racing using carbon discs and pads, and the wheels were Motegi Racing forged units.
Power came from the Mercedes PU106A Hybrid, a 1.6-litre 90-degree V6 turbocharged unit limited to 15,000 rpm, running on Petronas fuel. A significant technical change from the previous year's VJM06 was the switch from a McLaren-sourced gearbox to a Mercedes eight-speed sequential semi-automatic transmission, necessitated partly by the tighter packaging required by the new hybrid architecture. The entire chassis was redesigned to comply with the extensively revised technical regulations for 2014. Pirelli supplied tyres in P Zero compound for dry conditions and Cinturato for wet.
A rendered image of the VJM07 was released on Twitter on 23 January 2014, making it the first 2014 Formula One car design to be publicly revealed. Hülkenberg conducted the shakedown at Silverstone the following day, and the car made its public debut at the pre-season test in Jerez.
The base livery retained the Indian flag colours of orange, white, and green that had defined the Force India identity since the team's rebranding, though black occupied a greater proportion of the surface compared with its predecessor. From the Spanish Grand Prix onwards, a sponsorship agreement with the Russian company producing Smirnoff vodka caused black to take over the entire sides of the car.
Hülkenberg returned to Force India having spent the 2013 season at Sauber, while Pérez joined after a difficult year at McLaren. The pairing proved effective in extracting the best from the competitive but resource-limited package.
The most significant result of the season came at the Bahrain Grand Prix, where Pérez finished third — Force India's first podium finish in over four years — and Hülkenberg fifth, a combination that represented the team's greatest points haul from a single race. At the Canadian Grand Prix, Pérez was approaching podium position when he was involved in a heavy crash with Felipe Massa two laps from the finish.
Financial constraints prevented the team from developing the VJM07 at the rate of the front-running constructors, and its relative pace declined in the second half of the year. Force India finished sixth in the Constructors' Championship.
After Force India was unable to complete the VJM08 in time for the first 2015 pre-season test, the VJM07 — repainted in the 2015 livery — was pressed into service at the second Barcelona test. Running the older car allowed the team to gather tyre compound and degradation data ahead of the season without delaying development of the new machine.
The VJM07 succeeded the VJM06 and was followed by the VJM08 for the 2015 season.
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