London, England - Driver Giedo van der Garde will be Caterham's reserve for the 2012 season, the Malaysian-owned Formula 1 team announced.
Van der Garde, 26, will take part in pre-season testing and a number of free practice sessions once the championship starts in Australia on March 18.
Team principal Tony Fernandes: "He is a very exciting prospect that we have been monitoring since the early days of our team."
Caterham, whose race drivers are Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen, competed as Team Lotus in 2011 and Lotus Racing in their debut season.
Van der Garde finished fifth overall in the GP2 series in 2011 but has been knocking on the door of Formula 1 for some years with little success.
He was named as both Super Aguri and Spyker tester in 2007, triggering a legal tussle for his services, and was also a Renault development driver.
Van der Garde, 26, will take part in pre-season testing and a number of free practice sessions once the championship starts in Australia on March 18.
Team principal Tony Fernandes: "He is a very exciting prospect that we have been monitoring since the early days of our team."
Caterham, whose race drivers are Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen, competed as Team Lotus in 2011 and Lotus Racing in their debut season.
Van der Garde finished fifth overall in the GP2 series in 2011 but has been knocking on the door of Formula 1 for some years with little success.
He was named as both Super Aguri and Spyker tester in 2007, triggering a legal tussle for his services, and was also a Renault development driver.