Engine penalty Fix thread.

Here we go again ...

 

I’m not sure which addiction has been worse for F1: money or technology. The cars don’t have to be so complex, but to lure manufacturers the boards of directors have to be convinced that all of that money is going toward technology that is “relevant” to and supportive of their core business. Certainly, all that technology isn’t necessary just to make the cars faster…..which should be the point….unless you write the technical rules specifically to that purpose.

 

It's certain that technology is slowly killing the sport. But I can't see it ever going back to "basics".

 

Well, probably giving a pair of extra engines per season would reduce drastically the penalties. The engines are not included in the cost cap and the price for the customers is capped too so it wouldn't bankrupt the whole grid.

 

Go back to 5 engines per season, and cut the number of races. Also, why not let the teams rebuild the engine that is in their allotment?

 

But why doesn't FIA allow the teams to rebuild the motor?

 

I guess the blocks are already wasted after 5 races so not worth rebuilding. But maybe they should allow replacement of internals when something breaks down. Also I don´t know why turbos are so restricted.

In any case, it looks like the parts allotment is insufficent. Probably FIA does it on purpose not to save costs but to have mixed grids.

 

I suppose they are too complex to be worked on outside the facilities of the engine builders.

I can't see Haas, or Williams having access to the entrails of Ferrari or Mercedes engines.

 

Years ago, BMW used old cylinder blocks from road cars that had been through plenty of thermal cycles to make their turbo engines (in Piquet time), saying it was more beneficial than taking new ones fresh from foundry. Something to do with weathering, metal stress relief and molecules that I can't fully explain.

 

I think there should be 5 or 6 allocated a year, it is motor sport anyway and the cars and their components are consumable anyway so there is some reason for us to watch. There could be a constructor penalty for exceeding the allocation that is related to the final championship finish position, ie each engine is -20 points, if you are number 1 it’s a full -20 points, if you are in 5th position it maybe -10 points.

just my 2 cents.

 

It's the easiest way for the FIA to police the current regs (using seals) and stop the teams from cheating. Nothing to do with how complex the engines are or how long the blocks last.

 

Why not simply have a budget cap and let the teams allocate their capital as they see fit?

 

The simple notion of budget cap in a "sport" is contentious.

Why do we need it? who benefits from it? Who called for it ? How do you control it?

 

I agree. I'd love the formula to be "if it fits inside this box, run it if you think you can win with it." Wishful thinking, though.

 

I too dream of a Formula Unlimited, sort of "Run What You Brung", with a minimum of parameters imposed.

I tend to think that rules kill the fun, everywhere.

 

Allowing the engines to be 'rebuilt' opens a huge can of worms as to what constitutes the parts required for a 're-build'. The teams will just find a way to make it look like EVERY part needs to be replaced and you are just where you are started. The power units are much to complex for the FIA to police when it is permitted to rebuild part or all of it.

 

This is true. BMW did use engines from old taxi cabs because the thousands of heat cycles they had been through made for a very stable block that thermally deformed very little. Problem is that once BMW caught onto this they devised an incredibly expensive way to mimic this same condition in new engines. Again without restrictions the teams will find a way to burn through money.

 

This is the utopian dream of many but the concept is flawed for some basic reasons:

1. Designers can easily make a car that no human on the planet can pilot to its limits. As such the human element is excluded and it becomes a competition between engineers. That is NOT sport
2. An open situation also presumes open budgets which again will very quickly escalate to the point that it becomes economically impossible to compete

Racing is no different than life in that rules and regulations are required to avoid us destroying ourselves. It is basic human nature and elevate the element of competition and you have a recipe for disaster.

 

Hold your horses !!

I said it was a dream ...