Last Updated on October 4 2024, 4:35 pm
Formula One has made a big deal for over a decade now of opening up the sport to more power unit manufacturers. Back in 2017 Porsche were early front runners to join the sport and their involvement in the FIA’s working party for the next generation of powertrains was influential in retaining the hybrid systems were have today.
Yet in the last ten years global auto manufacturers have slowly realised – particularly in Europe – that hybrid is a mere stepping stone for road car users to embrace the fully electric options available.
The FIA new power unit specifications for 2026 are upping the electrical power contribution by 300% and the new engines will have a 50/50 contribution in power of internal combustion engine and battery power.
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Early data from teams like Red Bull have suggested the ratio is too heavily biased towards the electrical component and that at power hungry circuits like Monza the internal combustion engine will derate on the longer straights acting as a mere power generator for the battery.
Yet the FIA refused to change the specifications heavily influenced by the likes of Porsche – who are no longer at the party – in a vain attempt to be true to their mission of incremental inclusion.
The irony of the whole decade long debate over the future F1 power units has seen a net gain of exactly zero in the number of F1 OEMs. With Renault recently announcing their withdrawal from the sport, this means Audi in effect are merely replacing the French historic F1 engine manufacturer.
As TJ13 has regularly reported, Audi have underestimated the effort required to build an F1 power unit from scratch. This year the German brand sacked its two highest ranked employees on the project as Andreas Seidl and Oliver Hoffman were exited and Mattia Binotto was appointed the big cheese in charge of the entire F1 operation.
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Audi technical director says ’27 before they’re ready
After a few short weeks appraising the Audi F1 project development, Mattia Binotto is in agreement with his technical director James Key, that Audi will not be ready for the big new F1 regulations coming in 2026.
“I think ultimately, we’re probably not going to be the final product that we’re aiming for until about ’27 time really, because there is a lot to do,” Key said as the calendar ticked over from 2023. “But we’ll be in far better shape as we approach ’26. And that will give us the opportunity to take the step forward we need to.”
Of course since then, the warring factions of Seidl and Hoffman have been dismissed, yet the PR from Audi has consistently presented the image that Sauber are battling away with car design regulations and under funded, while Audi focus on the power unit side of things.
Now Mattia Binotto shares his view on the progress Audi is making making with its new F1 venture and it appears he agrees with his technical director. With an engineering background in F1 engines, Binotto knows what he’s looking for and has been spending considerable time at Audi’s Neuburg facility.
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Binotto agrees on timescales
“I’ve been visiting Neuburg in the last days and weeks,” said Binotto. “The engine is progressing well, running on the dyno, some long distances so far already performed.
“But I think here as well, it’s a learning process. We are competing with other organisations where manufacturers are settled down, are very expert, got a fantastic background, experience from the past years. The regulation is changing, but certainly, all the experience you’ve done so far is pretty important and valid.”
Binotto is right in his analysis. The new F1 powertrains are essentially an upgrade on those currently used. The complex heat recovery unit has been abandoned, the electrical power upped by 300% and the power units will run on 100% bio fuel, which for some will be the biggest challenge and area of innovation for the teams.
“So while I think the organisation there is great, the facilities are great, the programmes are going ahead, still there is a learning curve which needs to be done. So I’m expecting initially to have a gap to recover. How big it will be, I think that you can never know.”
“That only by the time we will be on track that we can only understand. But we’ve got more than a year from now to then.”
Audi powertrain defines their F1 project
Audi will benefit from the decision by Renault to withdraw from producing Formula One power units. The French manufacturing unit in Viry-Chattilon has suffered over the years from a lack of investment. Now the decision has been made to end Renault’s OEM involvement in F1, the best people in France will surely be courted by their German rival.
As a new F1 powertrain manufacturer, Audi have been allowed incremental resources to develop their 2026 unit, more time on the test benches and more funds than the established F1 engine producers. “There is an intense programme on the dynos in development and it will be our task to make sure that we can enforce it, speeding up as much as we can, but try to be as competitive as we can be at the start of 2026,” Binotto adds.
“It’s a huge task, but I think for Audi, it’s one of the most important ones, because being branded by our own power unit, that’s a key element of the project,” says Binotto.
“It’s a key element of our objectives, being not only a chassis winning a championship in Formula 1, but being a full manufacturer, chassis and power unit manufacturer. But we know that the task is huge. It’s a big investment.”
F1 take the wrong direction
Since the turn of the Millennium, F1 appears to have lost its way in terms of being at the cutting edge technology which will inevitably end up in road cars. The gamble on hybrids was a horrible decision when the world’s 2 billion internal combustion engined power vehicles are crying out for a bio fuel to clean up their emissions.
As Red Bull argued, F1 with V8’s and bio fuel would make the biggest impact on the world of motoring, but F1 blundered on with its hybrid power trains.
“But, I think we’ve got the good people. I think there is all we need to do well and the full support. It will be down to us to earn the trust of the leaders.”
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A mountain to climb
Audi recently claimed a big scalp in their F1 adventure as they announced Red Bull’s sporting director, Jonathan Wheatley, would be joining the German team’s efforts as team principal.
On the driver front it appears Zhou Guangyu will be leaving Sauber this winter and a decision over whether to retain Valtteri Bottas is under consideration.
Audi will not join F1 with the big bang they hoped given both the senior members of the team are mentioning 2027 as the point they expect to be competitive. Of course there’s no guarantee even the might of Audi can crack F1, given Renault despite their 25 championship winning trophies have decided the sport is too difficult for them to pursue in modern times.
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Turmoil at the FIA: Two top officials announce resignations – The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the governing body of Formula One and global motorsport, has been plunged into further turmoil with the resignation of two of its top officials: Director of Communications Luke Skipper and Secretary General for Mobility Jacob Bangsgaard.
The timing of these high-profile departures is particularly notable as they come at a time of growing criticism and controversy over the leadership of FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem… READ MORE
With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
