Unfreeze On Engine Development Unlikely Even Amid Backlash Of Mercedes Dominance

Mercedes won the Constructor's World Championship on Sunday with three races of the season remaining. Whilst extremely impressive, it's hardly surprising as their engine has been so dominant over the year and the works team's chassis has been able to make the most of some highly sophisticated engineering within it to drive (see what I did there?) Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton to the upper echelons of the Driver's Championship. What Mercedes have been able to create is very complicated and difficult to explain by someone without any real technical expertise in the area (if you're interested then there is a fantastic article on BBC Sport), but it has set the F1 world alight with some great racing. I heard someone say that it was yet another year where one car has been all over the opposition and it was clear from the start who was going to win, which made it boring. I disagree, 2014 has been excellent and the racing throughout the pack has been top notch.

What I can't disagree with is the complete dominance of Mercedes-powered cars and, whilst Fernando Alonso did his best to compete, this has made it a little boring. Making the fastest cars is what F1 is all about. It's about introducing new technologies into motor racing that will eventually make it into the cars we mere mortals get to drive. Think ABS, traction control, flappy-paddle gearboxes and even direct fuel injection. Ultimately, the hybrid engines we see in the F1 cars will make their way, in some form or another, to regular cars. They already are, sort of, with the McLaren P1, Porsche 918 and Ferrari LaFerrari. So if these cars are already making waves throughout the world with their ingenuity and hybrid power units, why restrict the development in Formula 1?

All the teams, except Mercedes, would like the, rather draconian, rules regarding engine development relaxed to enable them to develop the engines in the best way. Look at KERS for an example. In 2007, when it was first touted for use in Formula 1, it weighed 107kg and had an energy efficiency of 39%. When it was introduced in 2009, albeit only taken up by a few teams at that point, it weighed 25.3kg and achieved an efficiency of 70%. In its final incarnation, the KERS unit weighed in at under 24kg and ran at 80% efficiency. This would not have been achieved unless the engineers involved had continuously striven for improvement.

Apply the same figures to the current engines and the results are staggering. Admittedly, it's a fantasy to believe that any form of internal combustion engine will achieve a thermal efficiency of 80%, but with the current crop of F1 hybrids running at roughly 40% efficiency, that's about roughly the same as the KERS unit was in 2007. Imagine an elongated timeline and there's an argument to say that the engines will be hugely more thermally efficient, and therefore more fuel efficient, within a timeframe of 10 years.

This is all theoretical of course, given that Mercedes are likely to veto any changes on the engine freeze rule. It's a strange situation to be in, but Mercedes have had the edge this season in terms of power output and it plays into their hands to restrict the engine development and keep the performance difference in hand over their rivals. However, this is one of the most forward-thinking car manufacturers in the world. If you want to see what is likely to be standard on the cars of tomorrow, look at what is standard on the Mercedes S-Class today. Advances like seat belts, air conditioning and the road-going ABS system have all been first seen on our roads in the S-Class through the ages. 

It makes no sense in the long term for Mercedes to restrict the engine development in order for their F1 team to gain short term success. Of course it will increase brand recognition for the AMG Petronas team to win more races, but will it gain more admirers globally as a result? Would you rather be a team which encourages future planning to bring the F1 team more in line with their production car arm, or a team that wins races but lacks respect because the only way they were able to do it is because they disallowed other engineers to build on an already fantastic formula?

Toto Wolff, I implore you to reconsider your views on this subject. Do not let a single Constructor's World Championship cloud the judgement that has seen reach impeccable levels of performance. Please allow the future to be shaped by rapid advancements in technology that have come from Formula One. Don't be scared by the prospect of other engine manufacturers catching up in terms of performance. Instead see it as a challenge. You've won this year, and the Driver's title looks to be going your way as well, so see next year as the next step. Strive for better performance from both the chassis and the engine. Let everyone else do the same, because if there's no development, there's no future for Formula One.