Is this the end of F1 ????
Why can't they just leave things as they are ???????????
Under a Formula One “survival” plan being drawn up by Bernie Ecclestone, the sport’s commercial rights holder, and Max Mosley, the president of the FIA, the engines would each be designed to last for half the season and would potentially reduce the hugely expensive cost of powering the race cars by up to 90 per cent within two years.
Inquiries by The Times have established that Ecclestone and Mosley are planning draconian reforms that will be imposed on the teams as the sport faces up to its environmental responsibility and the imperative to cut costs.
At present, engine development in Formula One is frozen for five years in a regime that started last year. But they are still units that are designed by each team and they are able to be replaced after every two races, so teams and manufacturers are spending tens of millions of pounds each season on “drive-train costs”, which includes spending on engines and gearboxes.
Under the new proposals there will be one standard engine specification, which each team will be able to build, but it will be identical to those of their rivals. The only difference will be the manufacturer’s name on the block. Teams without manufacturer support will have access to the same engine through an independent contractor.
The proposals represent a huge cultural and philosophical shift for an elitist sport that has always been seen as not only a competition between the best drivers in the world but a battle between some of the best engine and car manufacturers, most of whom have long and proud traditions in motor sport.
Ecclestone, who has never been one to worry about sentimentality, is determined that this reform will be put in place by the beginning of the 2010 season and that it will not fall by the wayside, as many apparently radical proposals in Formula One have done in the past.
“The thing I am most excited about is pushing and pushing and pushing the homologated engine idea,” he said yesterday, during the build-up to this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji. “The new engine will be equalised and there will only be two engine changes a year, so costs are going to dramatically come down, and I mean dramatically.”
I was gonna say that, but didn't want to deviate. MotoGP is super exciting only cos of Rossi. Take him out of the equation and you have more or less F1 kinda results. Stoner on pole and wins by a 20 second margin. Have you seen anyone else coming from 8th or 9th and actually winning against a better machine. Only Rossi and Schumi are capable of doing that :)
He isn't coming to F1, he's signed for Yamaha until 2010!
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3000 QL Points
Way to go Ray!
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Love to watch "The Doctor" race.. He brings caharcter and a bit of excitement to the Moto GP.. I hope he switches to F1.
Formula 1 engine design and requirement is a never ending issue. Many new rules are being introduced. But a weaker team have to find a new funder for every seasons. Pity to the racers since any change in Formula 1 rules, there will be a cost impact; to be absorbed by the Teams, not by F1A.
I will just continue watching Formula 1 and help to support the sport by going to watch the race live at Manama or Abu Dhabi next year.
Although I'm not a huge fan of motorbikes, but whenever I watch the races, I find MotoGP super exciting at times mainly cos of so many overtaking moves and real close races.
I have to agree with Britexpat and even Ferrari President, whats his name, anyway, we now have 3 street circuits! Include Hungary and we have 4 races in a calendar year which are hardly worth watching. The pole sitter ends up winning. We saw that happening in Valencia. Thankfully for the Ferrari goof up at Singapore, last race would've been equally boring as well.
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3000 QL Points
Way to go Ray!
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Brit, I think it's coz one guy has too much control and there is so much money involved, it guarantees the telivision money.
If it had to be exciting, to compete for audiences then maybe things would change, oh well Bernie can't be around for ever
This is the problem. The PC brigade have taken over. F1 cars are probably the safest thing around because of their construction and safety cell.
The crowd wants to see side by side racing and overtaking with some risks.. the current "management" is just trying to sanitize everything.
They claim the courses are designed to make it safer, but it's just boring, touring car racing is far more energetic
I too have problems understanding the new tracks which don't have room for overtaking..
Lots of tech comes out of racing especially the cutting edge stuff, think about disc brakes, ABS, carbon fibre panels. Making everything standard could reduce that, but something should be done, I stopped watching F1 years ago when it became a boring procession around the track, it was better in the days of Mansel and Schuey when they used to fight through the shekanes and corners, it was good then.
You can make reliable engines, it just means reducing that cutting edge technology which makes one engine better than the other.
If you equalise all the engines you could, in principle, all be racing with a Ford Mondeo engine.
Teams then would spend megabucks improving things like aerodyanamics in order to keep ahead.
Whenever you restrict spending in one area it will always move to another area in order for a team to keep that edge.
The only real way to cut the costs is to make everyone drive the same car then, as someone already said, you a version of A1 called F1.
just eat another pie
I'm sure they can make reliable engines. I guess they only blow up while trying to push them to the maximum limits and squeeze every bit out of them.
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3000 QL Points
Way to go Ray!
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If I want that I can watch GP1 or A1 GP (whatever it's called this week) etc.
Sure, let them have their own engines - just make the buggers a little longer lasting.
I wouldn't buy a Civic based on how often their F1 version engine blows up, so I would hardly call that a showcase!
Did you Google it first?
I don't agree!
F1 is pinnacle of motorsport. If you don't have fastest cars and latest technologies in this series then what is the point having one at all. It would probably end up something like A1 GP, Indycar or F300 series.
As it is cost cutting has led to running of F1 cars on V8 engines and so many other restrictions. If teams cannot bear the costs of running in F1, they better go elsewhere cos this series is meant for the best of the lot.
Have a look at the team Minardi, they were surviving for many years on charities of other teams. Thankfull they decided to pull the plug and taken over by Toro Rosso, not surprisingly they've managed to win a GP within 3 years of operation (Monza with Sebastian Vettel).
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3000 QL Points
Way to go Ray!
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You have a valid point, but manufacturers like Ferrari, BMW, Mercedes, Honda showcase their technology and their expertise.
What good will standardization bring ?
... imagine buying a Camry that needed a new engine every week!
If they worked on reliability a bit more it would make for a better driver contest, rather than the team with the best R&D and most money winning all the time.
Competition improves the breed and all that.
Did you Google it first?