F1 Madness

Tag: f1 engine

  • F1 engine token system to be scrapped

    F1 engine token system to be scrapped

    Renault Sport F1’s managing director Cyril Abiteboul says that the controversial Formula One engine token system is set to be scrapped in 2017.

    In return for reducing the cost of power units for customer teams by 2017 the engine manufacturers will be allowed more freedom to develop. Drivers would still be limited as far as the number of engines they may use per season and penalties would be enforced for those who exceed that limit which should keep the amount of updates a team introduces during the course of a season down to a reasonable number.

    Abiteboul hopes that the change will make engine regulations easier for fans to understand also also allow other teams to catch up with Mercedes, ending their absolute dominance on the grid.

    “The token system is being removed,” Abiteboul was quoted as saying.

    “One of the reasons we have all agreed to do this is that we all need the performance of the engine to converge. An F1 that is dictated by the performance of the engine is not good for anyone.

    “You see it is not good for Mercedes, it is not good for Renault, Ferrari – we all have interest to change that. We have decided, also for the public, to stop the public being confused between the penalty system, the token system – we have decided to simply remove the token system.”

    The 2016 F1 season however will still engine see manufacturers restricted to 32 development tokens over the course of this season – the same as for the 2015 season.

  • FIA and F1 engine manufacturers reach agreement on power unit cost cap

    FIA and F1 engine manufacturers reach agreement on power unit cost cap

    Formula One’s governing body, the FIA, is expected to implement new rules at the start of the 2018 season which will regulate the costs of F1 engine supply going forward. This follows an agreement being reached by the current F1 engine manufacturers to reduce the cost of a V6 Hybrid power unit considerably, thereby ensuring that customer teams will not be left without an F1 engine deal.

    consensus was reportedly reached between the FIA and F1 engine manufacturers during a meeting in Geneva on Tuesday. Various proposals guaranteeing cost effective supply for all teams were put forward and all indications are that the cost to customer teams will be significantly reduced.

    F1 engine manufacturers had been put under pressure by the FIA who wrote out a public tender for an alternative engine formula in F1. This pressurised current suppliers to come up with a viable solution to alleviate customer teams who are currently struggling just to keep their heads above water as a result of the extremely high power unit costs. The deal is expected to remain in place until at least 2020.

    McLaren Honda F1 enginePower unit prices are targeted to come in at around £12m. This results in a substantial cost reduction – teams are currently paying up to 50% more than that amount.

    In addition, the number of gearboxes allowed for the season have also been reduced to three, as a part of the cost cutting initiative.

    The changes will need to be formally ratified by the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) after which the power unit discussion should be settled for the near future at least.

  • Sound of Honda’s new 2014 F1 engine

    Sound of Honda’s new 2014 F1 engine

    Listen as Honda fires its new 2014 F1 Engine for the first time.