Formula 1 Austrian GP
2025 F1 engines set for 'massively increased' electric component
Formula 1’s new hybrid engines from 2025 are set to feature a ‘massively increased’ electric component as part of their overhaul, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has suggested.
Jonathan Noble
Edited: Jul 7, 2021, 5:20 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Following a summit of major manufacturers – including Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault, Audi and Porsche – at last weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix to discuss the new rules, an outline concept of what F1 should look at was discussed.
And while the specifics will take many months to formulate, Wolff says that F1 is doing the right thing in sticking with turbo hybrid power units that run on fully sustainable fuel.
Speaking at the FIA Conference in Monaco on Monday, Wolff said that there was consensus that F1 could not go back to loud combustion engines.
“The discussion was ‘what are we doing in the future in terms of engine’, because we want to save costs, so we don't want to reinvent the wheel,” he said.
“But we also want to have an engine that is relevant from 2025 to 2030, and we can't be old petrol heads with screaming engines when everybody expects us to be going electric.
“So these engines are still going to be fuelled. We are staying with the current V6 format, but the electric component is going to massively increase.”
F1's current power units feature both an MGU-K and an MGU-H, but there have suggestions the sport may abandon the MGU-H because of its cost and complexity. That would then open the door for a more powerful kinetic component to be used.
One of the core components of the new hybrid generation of engines will be running on sustainable fuels, which car manufacturers believe will be hugely important with cars continuing to use combustion engines for many years to come.
Wolff added: “Why we are staying with the internal combustion engine is that we believe that the fuel is going to be with us for a long time.
“In Europe we may have the ambitious targets of having electrical mobility as part of our daily life by 2030, and I can see at Mercedes how ambitious the targets are, but in the rest of the world, we will have millions of vehicles that would still run on fuel.
“For Mercedes cars itself, we believe that we will have several million vehicles in the world that will still run on fuels. So what we can contribute with our innovation is to help them to develop sustainable fuels: be it biofuels or be it synthetic fuels.
“Our cars will run on 100 percent sustainable fuels by 2025, and this is how we will contribute to the reduction to the world's CO2 emissions.”
Read Also:
- Shovlin: Mercedes became ‘the makers of our own issues’ in Austria
- Honda’s Sakura facility will supply Red Bull F1 engines in 2022
Wolff said that there was growing evidence that F1’s innovation in finding sustainable solutions and driving the technology forward was something that was attractive to the younger generation of fans.
“If you look at F1 today and large audiences that follow us, especially the younger audiences, our strongest growing group is the 15 to 35-years-old,” he said.
“I was in Austria this last weekend, it wasn't so great on the track, but it was impressive to see a full house. We had 115,000 spectators. And what I've seen is a younger audience like never before in Formula 1.
“And I believe for these younger audiences, Formula 1, and we made a survey, stands for innovation and high tech. We may be going a little bit away from gladiators.
“But the kids in the younger generation see it as flying fighter jets around the racetrack, so we must never forget that high tech innovation is part of our DNA.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article F1 must avoid equivalent of diving footballers, says Horner
Next article 10 things we learned from F1's 2021 Austrian GP
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jonathan Noble
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
Formula 1
Formula 1 Dec 31, 2024
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Formula 1
Formula 1 Dec 31, 2024
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Dec 28, 2024
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Latest news
How Qatar red flag helped Johann Zarco put Barcelona crash behind him
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Qatar GP
6 min
How Qatar red flag helped Johann Zarco put Barcelona crash behind him
McLaren to upgrade MCL40 car at its bogey F1 track Las Vegas
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Las Vegas GP
56 min
McLaren to upgrade MCL40 car at its bogey F1 track Las Vegas
Carson Hocevar and Cleetus McFarland win LeMullets 2026 in epic finish
General
Misc General 5 h
Carson Hocevar and Cleetus McFarland win LeMullets 2026 in epic finish
TV ratings released for NASCAR Cup season finale
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
12 h
TV ratings released for NASCAR Cup season finale
Feature
Discover prime content
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s
Formula 1
By Kevin Turner
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe