Aston Martin CEO and team principal Andy Cowell believes Formula 1 should focus on promoting the hybrid powertrains it has planned for the next five years rather than rush through a switch to V10 engines.
Over the Chinese Grand Prix weekend, the FIA confirmed it was assessing a switch to V10s as early as 2028 or 2029 after the president of the governing body, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, raised the possibility earlier this year of simplifying F1’s engine formula.
The plan, which would still include the sustainable fuels set to be introduced to F1 next year, is based on a desire to cut costs, but comes after manufacturers have collectively invested hundreds of millions of dollars in developing new hybrid engines for next year.
The planned power units for 2026, which were signed off in 2022, will feature a 50/50 split between electrical power and power from a V6 turbo, resulting a more efficient package than the current turbo-hybrids.
Aston Martin is set to switch to Honda power next year after the increase in electrification under the 2026 regulations was a key factory in convincing the Japanese car giant to remain in F1.
Asked ahead of this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix what he thought of the V10 proposal, Cowell said: “You refer to it as a new V10, I’d refer to it as an old V10.
“I think we’ve got a set of regulations that everybody’s working towards for 2026. I think everybody’s in the tough phase of development, where everybody’s got example power units and transmissions and aero concepts, and that’s always the challenging phase when you’re developing any product, but I think overall we need to push forwards, talk about the positive things in the regulations.
“[We need to] talk about sustainable fuels, talk about the battery being more relevant to other industries, talk about the fact that a 350 kilowatt electric machine is exceptionally efficient. The battery round trip efficiency is efficient.
“The start weight from a fuel perspective is lower, and also talk about the straight-line mode, which is actually a more efficient aerodynamic package, instead of warming the atmosphere up with all the car energy, we’re not going to do that we’re going to save energy with the straight-line mode.
“So I think all the positive aspects about what we’re working towards, we should be talking about that.”
The 2026 hybrid engine regulations are currently scheduled to remain in place for five years through to the end of 2030.
The FIA said in China that any change to that plan, such as introducing V10s in 2028 or 2029, would only be made following consultation among existing power unit manufacturers and teams.
Cowell made clear that he expects the 2026 regulations to remain in place until the end of 2030 and that plans thereafter would be discussed with a long run up to making change.
“Currently it’s agreed that we have these regulations for five years,” Cowell added. “Maybe in a year’s time or 18 months’ time we should start talking about what comes in 2031.
“These powertrains take quite a long time to develop and mature. And so what is it for 2031? What do we think is appropriate for then? And let’s all just put our heads down and work hard with the regulations that we’ve got.”
Asked if Honda’s commitment to F1 has wavered as a result of the talk around V10s in recent weeks, Cowell added: “I think Honda are very committed in terms of what they’re working on. The level of effort that they’re putting in in Sakura is huge.
“For all automotive companies, electrification is a very important aspect of propulsion systems.
“The 2026 regulations with greater propulsion from the MGU and greater energy per lap from the battery makes it more relevant to industries outside of F1.
“Their commitment and dedication to what’s regulated at the moment is very strong.”
Source: espn.com