Olivier Panis finished seventh quickest, ahead of Rubens Barrichello.

Jacques Villeneuve ended up ninth, ahead of Heinz-Harald Frentzen.

Coulthard took top spot on the time-sheets from the Williams-BMW of Montoya by 0.1 secs.

Montoya looked to have fulfilled expectations that the track would suit his car by going top in the second session. The 26-year-old had been back in ninth spot in opening practice.

Michael Schumacher had to settle for third spot for Ferrari although first day times often prove misleading and his team looked strong in the first session. He was almost 0.4 secs slower than Coulthard.

Brazil's Rubens Barrichello, who had set the pace from Ferrari team-leader Schumacher in the first session, slipped back to eighth place after the break as temperatures rose.

Jenson Button was back in 15th spot in his Renault having spent much of the opening session confined to the team's garage while mechanics worked on his car.

Ireland's Eddie Irvine's fears that he faces another difficult weekend in his Jaguar Racing car look set to be realised after he posted the 17th fastest time of the 22 drivers.

Scottish rookie Allan McnIsh finished his first day on the track in 20th spot but will be hoping to match the pace of his Toyota team-mate Salo when practice resumes tomorrow.