Formula One Engine Through the Years

A Formula One engine has seen many forms over the years of existence starting from 1950. Over the years, the F1 fraternity has worked hard to lower down the fuel emissions while not compromising with the power and horsepower.
With the advancements of new technology, an engine is getting more and more complex.
We take a look at the story of a Formula One engine through the years..

PS:  Watch this to have a treat for your ears:

Formula One Engine Through the Years

1950-1953
(4.500cc aspirated or 1.500cc compressed – 1950 and 51/2.000cc aspirated or 500cc compressed – 1952/53)

The Formula One engine concept existed before but the World Championship was only established in 1950. The priority at that time was to reconstruct Europe and Japan after WW II. The same engine rules used before the conflict were retained in the first years. Normally aspirated units with no more than 4.500cc (1.500cc compressed power plants also allowed. While the German were absent (Audi and Auto Union dominated formula races between wars), the Italian contingent appeared in strength to clinch first GP win and title (both with Giuseppe Farina, in an Alfa Romeo).

Soon the Arese brand, Maserati and a then young Ferrari had company – Talbot and Gordini, from France, and British Bristol and Connaught joined. Power, at the time, oscillated between 325 and 425hp. On 1952, authorities decided to embrace the F-2 rule book, bringing engines down to 2.000cc without compressors and a mere 500cc with it). Under those rules, new power plants couldn’t deliver more than 190hp, but Italian dominance continued.

1954-1960
(2.500cc normally aspirated or 750cc compressed)

The golden age of the World Championship, in which Argentinian Juan Manuel Fangio created his legend, was quite simple in terms of Formula One engine rules. Ever since compressed units were allowed (with no more than 750cc), but no manufacturer tried to do something alike, so what prevailed were normally-aspirated engines up to 2.500cc. Mercedes, Ferrari, Maserati and Gordini were the main contenders on the first years, later joined by Climax, Vanwall and BRM.

And as we are talking about front-engined cars, architecture was not so fundamental as it would turn out to be some years after. Inline fours, sixs and eights; V8s and V12s were on the menu, with similar performances. Mercedes used to have the more powerful units, but not necessarily dominated, as Fangio would show, winning also with Ferrari and Maserati power.

On the end of the decade, finally the British power plants reached the stardom and broke the Italian/German dominance. Jack Brabham made good use of the Climax inline four on his Cooper to win the championship two years in a row. Power, at the time, barely touched 300hp.

1961-1965
(1.500cc normally aspirated)

Amid protests specially from the British teams and manufacturers, CSI, the predecessor of the FIA, decided to reduce displacement to only 1.500cc, which meant much less power and virtually forced all teams to change to rear-engined cars. And started a quest for “the lighter, the better”, which made Formula One engines become pieces of jewellery. Question is that only Ferrari was really ready to the new rules, having developed a V6 that became champion with Phil Hill. At that time, Climax and BRM needed to rush to produce their V8s, using initially inline fours that were neither powerful, nor light.

But things changed on 1962, when Porsche also joined the fray, and BRM gave Graham Hill an engine powerful and light enough to smash competition. And the then less-known Honda made its first attempt in 1964, with an impressive V12 that won its first GP the year after (Mexico, with Richie Ginther). Medium power, that started with “tiny” 175bhps, jumped to 220 five years later, when finally that generation cars matched and beat the lap-times of its predecessors.

1966-1989
(3.000cc aspirated or 1.500cc turbo compressed)

It was one of the most prolific periods in F1 history. The rules only stated that engines should have 1.500cc, if compressed, and up to 3.000cc without it. Architectures were many, from the V12 of Matra, to the V6 and 12cyl boxer of Ferrari; the V8 Repco (which was based on a production Oldsmobile block and became champion with the late Jack Brabham on 1966) and the Cooper-Climax similar design. No other Formula One engine become as popular and symbol of longevity, however, than the Ford Cosworth V8, a unit created by a team commanded by Keith Costin and Mike Duckworth (hence its name), as the European brace of the car constructor convinced US-bosses that it could be a winning move.

And that it was, starting on 1967 and winning the first of its 13 world titles the year after, with Graham Hill and his Lotus. Virtually every team on the grid (Ferrari the biggest exception) had it at its cars, as the DFV was reliable, light, powerful and cheaper than the bigger rivals. And it helped squads like Williams, McLaren, Tyrrell and Brabham to reach stardom with limited budgets, as well as fueled projects for so many privateers, like Wolf, Ensign, Shadow, ATS, Arrows, Copersucar/Fittipaldi and Hesketh.

On the end of the seventies, F1 was virtually a F-Cosworth V8, as Ferrari was the sole real exception (which paid in 1979). But on 1977 french manufacturer Renault decided to follow another path and, as allowed by the rules, decided to create a turbo-propelled engine with 1.500cc. The Alpine V6 was totally unreliable (known as teapot, such was the smoke it left on tracks), hard to deal with its brutal power deliver and lag, and it made rivals laugh until 1979, when it won for the first time, marking the start of a new era. Soon Ferrari would follow, as other factories like BMW, that would be the first to win a championship, in 1983, with its inline four that powered Nelson Piquet’s Brabham. But the aspirated engines wouldn’t disappear soon.

From 1984 onward, FIA imposed a fuel capacity limit, then forbid aspirated engines in 1986 to allow them back the year after. Turbo pressures were also limited, to avoid the power escalation that made some engines deliver up to 1.500hp in their qualifying guise – they were nicknamed “Kleenex”, as they used to be discarded after a few laps.

1989-1993
V10/V12
(3.500cc, normally aspirated)

For many that period was the state-of-the art in terms of Formula One engines. Turbos had gone, the Honda-Ferrari-Ford-Renault engineering war gave birth to some of the most sophisticated units ever done. Their lap times stood the test of time. It took a little longer than expected to define which number of cylinders would be the best. Honda started with a V10, champion with Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna. Changing the architecture to a V12 in 1991, when the Brazilian won again. Ferrari stuck to the V12, albeit heavier and thirstier and fought for the championship on 1990, with Alain Prost.

Renault returned to the circus betting on a V10 Formula One engine that wasn’t a match for its counterparts on the start. But, once reliable and developed, turned out to be the engine to have. Coupled with a fantastic Williams chassis, a work led by Adrian Newey, it won two years in a row. Namely, 1992, with Nigel Mansell and 1993 with Prost. At that period, many manufacturers tried to join the fray, such as Yamaha, Lamborghini, Judd, Mugen, Porsche and Ford Cosworth.

1995-2005
V10/V12
(3.000cc, normally aspirated)

After Ayrton Senna’s and Roland Ratzenberger’s deaths, something had to be done. Not just in terms of cockpit safety, but also trying to decrease engine performance. The only limit was the displacement, Ferrari tried to stick to its V12 architecture, but it lasted only a year. They changed to a more common V10 in 1996, when a certain Michael Schumacher joined the team.

The French unit on the Williams cars propelled Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve to the top on 1996 and 1997. The work of Swiss engine guru Mario Illien started to reap rewards with Mercedes-Benz star on its side. Namely, the double 1998/1999 went to Mika Hakkinen and his McLaren.

As the Formula One engines became more similar by the rules – power was closing 900hp at that time. With Jean Todt, Ross Brawn, Rory Byrne and Schumacher, it was a period of utter domination to Maranello’s engines. Well… almost, as Renault, and Fernando Alonso, won in 2005 and 2006. Those were the times of the screaming power units, that reached peaks of almost 20000 rpms. BMW, Toyota and Honda were officially involved. The 90º angle between the cylinder rows was the habit. Renault, in 2002, tried to change things and developed a 120º unit. The aim was to reduce gravity center (the exhaust exits were put on the sides of the car). But it turned out to be a complete fiasco.

2006-2013
V8
(2.400cc normally aspirated)

Speeds were increasing dangerously (Juan Pablo Montoya touched 374kph at Monza straight). Something needed to be done to hold the F1 cars performance. The solution was to simply take 2 cylinders away of the V10, reducing their capacity 20%. It wasn’t costly for manufacturers and teams. Besides, it was thought that the aerodynamic development could compensate some power loss. All main measures were strictly controlled (minimum weight, stroke, bore, materials allowed), which left little space to creativity. Details like fuel/lubricants were the only capable of making a slight difference.

Fact is that three different engines had their moments of glory in that period. Refueling was prohibited from 2010 onwards to emphasize the competition and the importance of the aero-package. It started with Fernando Alonso and the Renault, jumped to Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari), Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes). It was a combination of Adrian Newey’s genius, Sebastian Vettel’s talent and the Renault Formula One engine that made Red Bull unbeatable from 2010 to 2013. Engines used to deliver up to 780hp.

2014-
V6 Hybrids
(1.500cc turbo, with ERS and KERS)

The powers to be in Formula 1 (specially FIA president, Jean Todt) decided it was time to show a more ecological-friendly image to F-1. It wouldn’t be the case of talking only about a Formula One engine, but power units. These power units use extra power converted from the brakes and turbo, via electrical motors. No more limits on when to use all the available horsepower. Trouble is that turbo-compressed power was out of the circus since the end of the eighties. New power-plants proved too complicated to develop and make reliable. Unreliability plagued the very first test and it was hard to integrate all systems. The rules limited fuel consumption with a maximum of 100 kg/hour. It demanded more efficiency to keep (or make better) the numbers of the aspirated V8s. To control budgets, the number of engines available per year is also limited. One can go ahead of the total, but being penalized with grid positions loss.

To make matters worst, initially FIA decided for the use of a token systems. To prevent huge costs, each unit is developed with respect to a points scale. Problem is that, who started the new formula badly had little room to improve. Those with a better project would shine, just as Mercedes did. Their engine had unique features like the compressor and the turbo on the extremes of the block, rather than together. They also had a better weight (and components) distribution.

Teams and manufacturers are coy about real numbers. But the belief is that actual power units deliver up to 650hp (combustion engine). Some 250 extra hp coming from the DRS. But the fastest lap times established with the old generation engines prevailed until 2016, when finally the new power units could deliver all its strength.