Analysis: FIA Defends Rule Changes

Formula One's governing body, the FIA, on Friday defended their decision to force through engine changes for the 2006 season against the wishes of several major manufacturers involved in the sport.

The FIA confirmed that they will force through new car, engine and tyre regulations in 2005 and that they will bring in an all-new 2.4-litre V8 formula for the following season to improve the safety of the current cars.

Williams partners BMW had openly criticised the FIA's plans, claiming they did not run in line with their objectives and that further extending the life of the current V10 units would be more appropriate.

They were one of three teams to vote against the moves but in a statement the FIA said: "These regulations impose restrictions on engine development comparable to those already applicable to Formula One chassis.

"Such restrictions have not stifled technical development but have prevented uncontrollable performance increases. The proposed engine restrictions will slow the rate of increase of power output in a similar way."

The new rules will insist on the introduction of a V8 "with a number of design restrictions" but will allow the current V10 units to be used at limited revs so as not to prejudice the smaller teams. But the voting over the new regulations has been a long, drawn-out affair.

The World Motorsport Council asked teams to propose a new set of regulations after a meeting on June 30 this year but failed to receive a firm response before their September 6 deadline.

The FIA then proposed three packages of measures to the Technical Working Group (TWG), which is made up of top-level engineers from each team, and requested a decision on which to choose within 45 days.

The teams failed to agree after numerous meetings so the FIA used its right, on safety grounds, to instigate the new set of regulations themselves without the teams' agreement otherwise required.

The package was chosen because the TWG, in a meeting on September 6, voted 7-3 in favour of those particular changes but failed to provide the 8-2 vote that was required for it to be passed through immediately.

Teams were already prepared for the changes and are well advanced on their 2005 car designs having predicted which new rules would be introduced but several of the smaller teams were disappointed by the prolonged discussions.