Categories: 2017 SeasonF1 News, Reports and Race Results

F1 engine token system set to be scrapped from 2017

Development of the current F1 power units will be opened up in 2017 as the sport has agreed to scrap the token system.

At present, only certain parts of the power units can be developed, with each component carrying a weighting in terms of how many tokens it would cost to change it. Each manufacturer currently has a maximum of 32 development tokens to use in 2016, a number which was set to decrease over the coming seasons as more areas of the power unit would become frozen.

The system was originally designed to limit the cost of power unit development, but with the manufacturers closing in on a cost cap for customers they will be allowed more freedom as a result.

Cyril Abiteboul confirmed the end of the restrictions during Renault's launch event yesterday in Paris.

"The token system is being removed," Abiteboul is quoted as saying by Motorsport.com. "One of the reasons we have all agreed to do this is that we all need the performance of the engine to converge.

"An F1 that is dictated by the performance of the engine is not good for anyone. You see it is not good for Mercedes, it is not good for Renault, Ferrari – we all have interest to change that.

"We have decided, also for the public, to stop the public being confused between the penalty system, the token system – we have decided to simply remove the token system."

The men behind the Renault F1 return

Force India winter diary part four - Technical Director

Feature: How to fuel success in F1

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.