On 4 February 2012, it was announced that Van der Garde would be Reserve Driver for Caterham F1 for the 2012 Formula One season.
Van der Garde's first Friday practice session came at the 2012 Chinese Grand Prix; he went on to complete 6 Friday practice sessions throughout the 2012 season.

On 1 February 2013, Van der Garde's management announced that he would drive for Caterham as their second driver for the 2013 Formula One season, next to Charles Pic.
Van der Garde finished his first Formula One race with an 18th place at the 2013 Australian Grand Prix.

At the 2013 Monaco Grand Prix, Van der Garde achieved Caterham's highest ever qualifying place with a P15, this was also the first time that a Caterham made it to Q2 in the 2013 season.
Van der Garde equalled his career best 15th during the race despite an early collision with Williams F1 driver Pastor Maldonado.
He later improved on this performance by finishing 14th during the 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix, ahead of his teammate Pic as well as Marussia drivers Jules Bianchi and Max Chilton.

He then bested his previous best qualifying position at the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix by qualifying 14th after electing to go on slicks on a continuously drying track, having finished the Q1 session in 3rd place after adopting a similar strategy.
But despite a good start that saw him remain in touch with the more established teams for the first few laps, he was unable to improve upon his grid position and finished 16th, a lap down on the leaders.
On 4 February 2012, it was announced that Van der Garde would be Reserve Driver for Caterham F1 for the 2012 Formula One season. Van der Garde's first Friday practice session came at the 2012 Chinese Grand Prix; he went on to complete 6 Friday practice sessions throughout the 2012 season.
On 1 February 2013, Van der Garde's management announced that he would drive for Caterham as their second driver for the 2013 Formula One season, next to Charles Pic. Van der Garde finished his first Formula One race with an 18th place at the 2013 Australian Grand Prix.
At the 2013 Monaco Grand Prix, Van der Garde achieved Caterham's highest ever qualifying place with a P15, this was also the first time that a Caterham made it to Q2 in the 2013 season. Van der Garde equalled his career best 15th during the race despite an early collision with Williams F1 driver Pastor Maldonado. He later improved on this performance by finishing 14th during the 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix, ahead of his teammate Pic as well as Marussia drivers Jules Bianchi and Max Chilton.
He then bested his previous best qualifying position at the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix by qualifying 14th after electing to go on slicks on a continuously drying track, having finished the Q1 session in 3rd place after adopting a similar strategy. But despite a good start that saw him remain in touch with the more established teams for the first few laps, he was unable to improve upon his grid position and finished 16th, a lap down on the leaders.
Giedo van der Garde