Renault/Honda/Toyota get greenlight to improve engines for 2009

[John S]

Renault and Honda have confirmed they will be among the teams authorised to make performance improvements to their engines ahead of the 2009 season.

The FIA declared recently that some teams will be allowed to 'equalise engine performance', following the emergence of a situation whereby some frozen-specification V8s have pulled ahead this year.

"We will have to present a project to the FIA with all the changes that we want to do, and they will have to approve them," Renault boss Flavio Briatore confirmed to the Spanish newspaper El Pais.

Honda's team CEO Nick Fry, meanwhile, explained that only some teams will get the green light to carry out work.

"For some, like McLaren, Ferrari and BMW, it is probably not necessary. But yes, I can confirm that we (Honda) will be able to do it."

It is believed that Toyota is the other carmaker likely to be approved for engine performance improvements.  Taken from report on F1-Live.com

[cosworth151]

All three could greatly improve their engines in two easy steps:

1. Take current engine. Place in dumpster.

2. http://www.cosworth.com/

 

[Warmwater]

IMHO:
1. The engine freeze rule is a stupid idea (we can imagine whose fertilized mind this came from), can you imagine what it would be like if the engine designs were frozen in 1955?
2 Doesn't the idea of racing technology have something to do with improving the breeding stock?
3. Presumably the reason for the engine 'freeze' is a lame attempt to reduce the cost of F1 racing, but won't the same amount of money be spent in other areas to make up for the relative differences in performance?
4. I miss the V-12's...............

[Alianora La Canta]

Engine freezes are stupid enough. Engine sorbet is just a recipe for inequality and perceived inequality. How long before someone accuses Ferrari of receiving the same permission?

[Dare]

Just a tad off topic but I didn't want to start
a new thread for one question about engines.

If STR received the Ferrari engine with the
new upgrades why didn't Force India?

[John S]

Just a tad off topic but I didn't want to start
a new thread for one question about engines.

If STR received the Ferrari engine with the
new upgrades why didn't Force India?

Can it be anything to do with Red Bull having 2 votes in FOTA meetings chaired by Luca?

[Alianora La Canta]

It's more to do with the fact that Spyker signed the original contract, didn't have enough money for bells and whistles like upgrades, so the team simply gets the most basic version Ferrari can get away with. STR, being richer when it signed with Ferrari, gets upgrades, albeit (by the look of it) a few races after the works team.