multi21

So if you hadn't heard, Renault and Ferrari found a loophole in the regs to allow them to develop their engines all throughout the 2015 season. Long story short, everyone assumed all engines had to be frozen by the first race in March, but it was never actually written in the rules so Renault and Ferrari argued that they had until the last race if they so desired and the FIA agreed. Mercedes then came out and said that the loophole would not hurt them and allow the other engine makers to close the gap as they can easily get about 50 more HP out of their existing engine.

Then there is Honda which is coming in new to the sport and as of now, will not be allowed the same freedom as the other 3 engine makers.... wonder how this will turn out for Alonso...

This whole thing sounds like a PCA car classification debate/exercise...

McLaren and new engine partner Honda are in talks with the FIA over a ruling that is set to prevent them from updating their engine during the 2015 season, while rival manufacturers can make changes.

It comes after the governing body accepted an argument from team chiefs that a loophole exists in the regulations relating to power unit development.

Manufacturers were expected to homologate their engines by the first round in Australia, but the lack of a specific date has opened the door to in-season upgrades.

However, with Mercedes, Renault and Ferrari having to homologate their power units by February 28 last year, the arriving Honda has been asked to do the same.

A McLaren spokesman explained to GPUpdate.net on Tuesday that the team has already contacted the FIA regarding the matter.

"McLaren-Honda has already been in contact with the FIA with regard to this issue, but we do not wish to say anything further at this time," the spokesman said.

The entire power unit is made up of 66 tokens, individually weighted on a scale of one to three depending on their performance value.

While five of these tokens were completely frozen for 2015, the remaining 61 could be assessed, albeit with changes restricted to 32 items.

The recent engine debate surrounded when these changes had to be made by, but the FIA's clarification means there is no deadline.

PPo

If Honda can't make updates during their first season, Alonso and Jenson are in for a very long and frustrating year... I can see somebody arguing that current engines where frozen for a season, so the Honda should also be frozen, however, that seems unfair to compete at the same level. You can also argue that Honda had all of last year to work on their engine... so who knows what is fair!! I would hate to have to make the call on this one...

Let's just hope we see some competition for the front this year regardless of all this BS...

I think we have come to the point where technology and science have developed a base set of capability far beyond what is feasible for a rule set to embrace safety and cost competitiveness while allowing room for innovation and spirit.

It's similar to how the Higgs boson has left Physics with a few very difficult questions to answer before more progress can really be made.

The solution? We smash F1 cars together at high speed and see if a new rule set emerges.

skl

I try and entertain myself in the offseason listening to old you-tube videos of the V8's and V10's...

PPo

I laughed when I read this because it made me feel better that I am not the only one that does this. I have a few old races on my PVR, (Spa, Interlagos, Canada) and I often just watch a lap or two of the old cars before I go to sleep... I miss the sounds soooo much.

Land Jet

Minor concession in an already ruined race series. Truly sad how far F1 has fallen. RIP.

multi21

Recognition of a problem has been confirmed and a good first step. Perhaps what they are suggesting will work as it relates to HP, fuel flow and load and sound. Will it be too late if they wait until 2017???

Formula 1 could be set for a return to 1000 horsepower turbo cars following meetings about future rules between senior figures in Geneva this week, with the change considered for the 2017 season.

Formula 1 attracted criticism from some quarters in 2014 that the new specification of cars were not challenging enough to drive, with experienced racers commenting that previous generation machinery was tougher to handle.

Such thoughts were accentuated by the promotion of 17-year-old Max Verstappen, who will race for Toro Rosso this season.

During the last meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Qatar, it was deemed that the Formula 1 Strategy Group would begin to look at ways to make the sport more challenging for the drivers, in turn increasing the spectacle for fans.

One proposal was that the current V6 Power Units could be increased to 1000 horsepower, which can be achieved without the introduction of a new system, which would be an added expense at a time where the sport is attempting to cut costs.

It is believed that hitting 1000 horsepower would be achieved through increasing the maximum 100kg fuel load permitted per race and easing the fuel flow rate.

The idea is set to be discussed by Formula 1 technical directors later this month and at the next meeting of the Formula 1 Strategy Group. Making the sound of the power units more aggressive is also set to be discussed – with work continuing to evaluate such a possibility.

It is unlikely that any of the proposed changes will be introduced before the start of the 2017 season.

PPo

When are these jokers going to realize it's the constant rule changes that is making everything so bloody expensive. I bet most people on this board could have guessed that the 1.8L Turbo V6s would suck (or blow) before they even made the rule change...

All this tail chasing is ruining the sport...

Ditch to ditch management...

Larry Herman

F1 hasn't realized, and may never, that the team engineers are much smarter than they are. If they want the best way to achieve a goal, they should be asking the engineers. As far as 1000hp, just remove the fuel regulation and let them rev up to 16K again. They'll also get that shrill sound back.

Astroman

How much more fuel capacity do these cars have? Let's assume that we will never see pit-stop refueling again. Can these cars hold enough fuel to complete a race at a significantly higher fuel flow rate?

multi21

I don't think capacity is an issue as the cars had more fuel on board prior to the 2014 season running V8 engines with a rev cap of 18k. I'm not an engineer so don't know if a 1000 hp v6 turbo with unlimited fuel flow rates would consume more or less than the v8s.

If they need to make bigger tanks, then so be it. The 2014 cars were already heavier due to the new required power units.

I'm starting to believe F1 and to a lesser extent, the FIA realizes that they may be killing the golden goose. They aren't sure just yet so these trial balloons are floated in the air to see how the wind blows but the numbers don't lie in terms of the big deal of worldwide TV audience and to a lesser extent, ticket sales followed by smaller teams folding

FGL28

I think you are mistaken about the Dialects running the FIA. They have no clue that they are killing the golden goose.

ilko

Honda nixed Alonso jumping into a 919 for Le Mans: http://en.espnf1.com/mclaren/motorsp...ry/188915.html

ilko

And the new Force India has been revealed:

ilko

And the new Williams:

ilko

New McLaren...