The 23-year-old ace got behind the wheel of the team’s 2008 challenger a day after new team-mate Heikki Kovalainen and test driver Pedro de la Rosa had given the two chassis their track debuts.

He says he had been desperate to drive it after seeing it for the first time at the team’s launch on Monday and that his first impressions were good.

"It was fantastic to get my hands on the MP4-23 this morning in Jerez,” he told McLaren’s official website.

“I saw the completed car for the first time on Monday at the team's launch in Stuttgart and I have been pretty impatient since then!

“My first run was at 09:10 and my first impressions are good.

“You can't really read all that much into a car after so few laps, but the feeling is positive.

Hamilton had completed 34 laps by 1pm, with a best time of 1m19.132s.

Hamilton and Kovalainen will conclude McLaren's private three-day test at the circuit on Friday before other rivals join it in Spain next week.

“We had to see where my presence would be most useful.

“I will be dealing with the development of the car within the Gestione Sportiva [Ferrari's motorsport division].

“We haven’t yet scheduled the dates when I will drive the car first-hand; nothing is decided.

“We will take a view on that depending on the situation: If the team need me to drive I'd be happy to, but not too often.”

Schumacher’s next appearance on a test track will come in Ferrari’s new F2008 car, which Kimi Raikkonen drove for the first time on Monday.

The legend says first impressions of the challenger have been good, but that it is far too early to come to any firm conclusions about its relative competitiveness.

“The car is promising, but it is not yet in its definitive configuration,” he said.

“In order to give a reliable assessment we must see what the competition has done.”