Red Bull looking for a different engine supplier ?

Renault plays down early season crisis

Renault plays down early season crisis | News | Motorsport.com



Here is the interesting bit:


“After Renault-powered teams struggled for laps at the Jerez test recently, former F1 team boss Gian Carlo Minardi this week repeated rumours world champions Red Bull may be looking for a new supplier of turbo V6 engines.”

 

Honda must probably be considered as a likely contender.

But it's only from 2015, and I wouldn't be surprised if McLaren didn't insist on a contract of exclusivity for the first year.

We don't know either how long Red Bull is committed to its current supplier - Renault.
There must be some performance claused somewhere in the small prints.

A bad year at Red Bull will be disastrous for the standing of the team.
I also predict that it may damper Matsezich's enthusiam to bankroll the team for ever.

 

Renault's recent troubles with its new engine may be a game changer in F1 and announce its departure from F1.

CEO Carlos Goshn isn't a fan of F1 and has repeatedly said that Renault will stay in F1 as long as it stays successful and bring results.

In other words, if Viry-Chatillon cannot sort out the problems and put Renault back at the front of the fiels, it's "curtain" for the F1 engine department.

 

No, Renault is 3rd with 165 GPs

Ford-Cosworth is 2nd with 176 GPs

Ferrari is 1st with 222 GPs.

 

Where did you hear that?


I am curious.

 

Interesting.

I read a couple of years ago that Dietrich Mateschitz (STR and Red Bull owner) wanted to sell Toro Rosso, but couldn't find a buyer because the team HAD to stay based in Faenza, Italy. That was a condition put to a potential owner.

The previous owner, Paul Stoddart, also wanted to bring the team in England - it was called Minardi then- but was prevented by some clause in the contract he had signed, forcing him to stay in Italy.

I don't know if there is any truth in that. It may be that it was a condition put by Giancarlo Minardi when he sold his F1 team to keep it in Faenza.

 

Yeah, you may be right.

It just shows that you have to treat any news related to F1 with caution.

 

Ferrari was engine supplier to Toro Rosso until next year, I believe.
I don't think Ferrari ever considered Toro Rosso to be " a significant threat to their bid of a championship". At best Toro Rosso is a mid-field team.
In any case, Ferrari, just like Renault, Mercedes and probably Honda) needs to sell its engine to lesser teams to spread the costs.
Now Marussia gets Ferrari engines.

There may also be some clauses that an engine manufacturer must make its powerplants available to other teams.