Williams may switch to Mercedes power for 2014

[John S]

Price will be big deciding factor according to Nextgen-Auto.com.

More worrying is the Mercedes line on keeping info away from McLaren next year. Really only sums up why you must be a factory team if you want to be in vanguard with top F1 runners. Although a two tier system should not exist surely this is only serves to prove in reality it does. 

Williams could switch to Mercedes power, Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport is reporting.

Currently, the British team is powered by customer Renault engines, but the French marque is reportedly charging EUR 5 million more than its next most-affordable competitor for the turbo V6 units of 2014.

"Williams could change," said correspondent Michael Schmidt, "because the contract is expiring." Caterham is reportedly also concerned about the high quoted price of the 2014 Renault.

Even more engine changes are afoot.

An announcement about Toro Rosso’s switch from Ferrari to Renault is imminent, and Ferrari has already found a replacement — Marussia.

"Announcement soon," said Schmidt.

Meanwhile, a rumour in the Monaco paddock is that Honda could fast-forward its return to formula one from 2015 to 2014.

"Right now this is no more than a rumour," said Schmidt.

But there is great concern at Mercedes about 2014; when McLaren will use Mercedes engines, whilst 2015 partner Honda is at the very same time preparing its V6 design for the following season.

Mercedes chairman Niki Lauda said: "We will give McLaren only the information about our engine that they desperately need."

Nextgen-Auto.com, Today.

[cosworth151]

I'd bet that Mercedes is concerned about info on their units being transferred to Honda via McLaren.

[Jericoke]

Price will be big deciding factor according to Nextgen-Auto.com.

More worrying is the Mercedes line on keeping info away from McLaren next year. Really only sums up why you must be a factory team if you want to be in vanguard with top F1 runners. Although a two tier system should not exist surely this is only serves to prove in reality it does. 

If McLaren's Mercedes engines start behaving badly, surely that would be a black eye for both Mercedes and F1.  If suppliers can't be counted on to be 'neutral', then they can't be counted on at all.

I appreciate that suppliers will always have closer relationships with some customers (or even the factory team) than others, and that closer relationship will always provide an advantage.  That's different from trying to hamstring a customer though.

I presume the engine contract stipulates exactly what is 'desperately needed' information, and McLaren will be sure to get that.

I know that when a customer is switching to another supplier can be a tricky time, but my company will bend over backwards to ensure the customer's last memory is us doing our very best.  Looks like someone is trying to burn the McLaren/Mercedes bridge.

[lkjohnson1950]

Someday Mercedes will realize that Lauda has a big mouth with no filter on it and let him go. That is classically bad PR. 

[F1fanaticBD]

With the 2014 engines, the development of the engine will once again come alive. And with testing ban still being implemented it is very crucial for the teams to gather data about their engine performance and their consequent improvement. I think Mercedes people involved in McLaren will be very tentative, with a conscious effort to keep things as much as possible within them, and that will be a hindrance for a team like Mclaren's stature.

I have a feeling McLaren needed a very good season this year, because surely they will struggle next year for sure, and we don't know how that Honda engine will going to be. Their Bahrain's investors being annoyed with their car division loss, it would only mean tough time ahead of this company.