V8 engines should remain in F1's past

They say you should never go back because you'll always be disappointed. But that's exactly what F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone has suggested Formula 1 does, by ditching the new and more efficient 1.6-litre V6 turbo engines, which manufacturers have spent years working on at great expense, and returning to V8 power units that are revised to produce 1000bhp.

Part of Ecclestone's argument makes sense. "We need to go back to engines whose costs are more reasonable," he said. He's not wrong. The power units and their associated new technology are expensive. And with costs running as high as £18 million for some customer teams, that can equate to as much as a quarter of some of the smaller squads' budgets.

In an era when teams are struggling to survive - just ask the recently defunct Caterham squad, or Manor, who only made it to the grid in time for this season after securing a last-ditch finance package - that kind of cost can cripple a team.

However, reverting to V8s wouldn't be as simple as the teams returning to their factories, dusting off the old units, sticking them in the back of the car and going racing again.

As well as needing to revise their facilities, which they have already spent millions reworking to cope with the latest engine change introduced in 2014, it would involve a significant expense to tweak the power units to meet the current regulations while also adjusting them to produce 1000bhp.

Wolff's Mercedes has won 19 of the 23 races since power units were introduced © LAT

Although Mercedes and Ferrari wanted to stick with the V8s when the idea of the new engine formula was first mooted, the former has gone on to dominate the sport, while the latter has this season produced an engine which can seriously challenge. Why would they want to change now and, on top of that, suffer yet more expense?

In Bahrain, Mercedes' Toto Wolff said that plans are currently based around the V6 hybrid power units and suggested all four engine manufacturers are "pretty clear that the current engine architecture with the hybrid component needs to stay in place".

Better still, Wolff said that it would be relatively straightforward to increase the horsepower to 1000bhp - as they are already on schedule to hit 950bhp by 2017 anyway - plus, crucially, boost the sound of the engines.

"I think there are pretty easy ways to increase the horsepower - this is increasing fuel flow," said Wolff. "Then it's a question: what do you want to market? Does it make a big difference between having 950bhp and 1000bhp?

"If you want to increase the fuel flow by 10kg or 20kg etc an hour, then you are going to have more than 1000bhp.

"But then you need to redesign crucial components of the engine, you need to make them more reliable and that again involves a lot of development costs.

"I think we all understand we want a spectacular formula, not only on the chassis side but also the power-unit side."

Ecclestone has made it clear he's not a fan of the current power units © XPB

Ecclestone said he would accept keeping the current V6 hybrid power units when he was told about Wolff's comments - but he says costs must be controlled.

He is also concerned that the move to hybrid engines has meant some of F1's fans have become disillusioned and lost interest, and that has subsequently contributed to the fall in global TV audiences as well as the number of fans paying to attend grands prix.

"F1 isn't just technology, but enjoyment too," Ecclestone said. "We need to think about who buys a ticket, goes in the grandstands and wants to see a great sporting spectacle.

"It's money doing the rounds: the public pays for tickets, the organisers cash in and pay us, who then forward the money to the teams together with TV rights.

"But if TV audiences shrink and the public at GPs do too, then it becomes a problem."

Sticking with the V6s but increasing them to 1000bhp should make the cars harder to drive, providing more of a challenge for the drivers and producing more exciting racing - and hopefully a better show all round. The drivers are excited by the prospect, too.

Renault's V8s dominated, but its V6 woes have ended Red Bull's run of success © XPB

Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo said: "We are all up for going faster and having more power. It creates adrenaline at the end of the day and that's why we do it.

"Maybe it could also separate a bit more the guys with a bit more commitment than the others, as going faster is always a good thing for us young kids."

It sounds like a no-brainer, doesn't it?

The key, of course, is cost. As Wolff says, crucial components will need to be redesigned and developed, but that would arguably be cheaper, more forward-looking and relevant to the car industry than ditching this new technology and returning to the V8s. After all, if F1 is the pinnacle of motorsport, it should be pushing the boundaries - not going backwards.

"As a customer team for engines, for us the most important factor in this debate is what the cost will be," said Sauber team boss Monisha Kaltenborn. "The engines have unfortunately returned to where they used to be and that's not a sensible thing. We wanted to get away from there."

If adjusting the engines to boost fuel flow immediately proves too costly, the other option would be to stick with what we've got and let the development run its course.

The cost of the new power units has hit customers teams hard © XPB

Over time the V6 power units will mature, and while the early development will be fundamentally expensive, after a few years manufacturers will start to recoup their costs on R&D.

We could even get to a stage where development is frozen - as was the case with the V8s in 2007 - and that should make engines much cheaper.

Then the onus will be on the manufacturers to play their part. They should be able to afford - or rather should be required by the regulations - to offer their engines for a maximum price per year. That way, customer teams can budget for them accordingly without threatening their survival.

"We fully understand that the manufacturers need to showcase their core technology, but it should be at an affordable level," added Kaltenborn. "I don't think we should be used to finance their R&D because they will produce that engine anyway. You will never see a Mercedes using a Ferrari or the other way round."

It's now up to the sport's bosses, teams and manufacturers to forget about the past and look to the future - or they could risk not only losing teams, but also the fans and TV audience Ecclestone is so desperately trying to keep.