Ferrari willing to help make alternative F1 engine

Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne says current manufacturers could supply alternative power units if they were subsidised by FOM.

The FIA looked in to the possibility of introducing and different specification of power unit from an independent supplier in order to help reduce costs for customer teams. However, the idea is currently on hold while engine manufacturers come up with new proposals to address the sound and cost of the current power units.

Marchionne believes any potential regulation change can still include the current manufacturers, but says Bernie Ecclestone's FOM should help foot the bill.

"If you go to Mercedes and you tell them 'please give us a group of engineers to develop in a parallel mode a different engine, different to that of Mercedes that is compliant with the F1 rules and that costs a certain amount' then I think FOM should cover that amount of money," Marchionne is quoted as saying by Autosport.

"Ferrari is available to join a project where we could develop power units. We would also consider sharing our technology but we should not be the only one. The development commitments should be shared with the other teams having the power units and of course that should be done in economic terms."

F1i classic: Jim Clark's last wins

Technical preview: What changes in 2016?

Hamilton v Prost v Schumacher

Use the red tabs on either side of the screen to scroll through more Formula One news and features

Five things to look forward in F1 in 2016

Key dates for the 2016 F1 season

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.

Recent Posts

Prost: ‘Very difficult’ for Renault to return to F1 in the future

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Alain Prost has suggested the sport may have seen the…

5 hours ago

Ocon: Haas’ expanded partnership with Toyota is ‘fantastic’ for 2026

Esteban Ocon is brimming with optimism about Haas’ future – and a big part of…

6 hours ago

Norris looks ahead to 2026: ‘I would love to race Lewis more’

Fresh from clinching his maiden Formula 1 world championship last weekend in Abu Dhabi, Lando…

8 hours ago

Herta offers feedback on first official F2 test in Abu Dhabi

Cadillac F1 reserve driver Colton Herta made a strong start to his preparations for the…

9 hours ago

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway: Born on this day in 1909

On this day in 1909, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indiana was finally completed. The…

10 hours ago

‘Dirty games were played’: Marko exposes Horner’s lies at Red Bull

In the high-stakes world of Formula 1, where alliances shift faster than a pit stop…

11 hours ago