F1's 2014 regulation changes explained: The Powertrain change

Renault’s F1 engine and KERS Unit for 2014

2014 will be a year of extreme changes in the world of F1 as the world’s highest echelon of Motorsport goes about in trying to be seen as a ‘Green’ sport. The biggest changes will come in the form of a brand new power-train which will see a new engine and an even more powerful Energy Recovery Systems(ERS).

Gone will be the extreme 2.4L V8′s that pump out over 800bhp and guzzle up fuel like binge drinkers and replacing them will be the new 1.6L turbocharged V6′s that will be significantly less powerful. To offset this, a new ERS that combines the current Kinetic – ERS with a new new system that when combined will be pushing out double the current power for around the half a minute per lap – 5 times the amount of time that the system is currently available.

Engine - The distinct screaming wail of the 2.4L V8′s is going to be a thing of the past from next year despite the protests of F1 boss Bernie Eccelstone as the FIA has decided to push forward with new turbocharged 1.6L V6 units.

The new turbocharged power-plants produce less power than the current V8′s – 600 bhp to the current 750 bhp. Also the new regulations control the maximum revs the engine produce. They are now limited to 15000 revs per minute,3000 less than the current engines.

However, the new turbo engines will bring back a bit of the past as well as the sound of the whirring turbo will return to the tracks as well.

Many pundits predict that this will see the lap times drop by around 1 second per lap and given the fact the drop in power available from the engine is a massive 150 bhp this is almost a certainty.

However, the other major problem for the teams will be how to ensure these new engines still blast around the track given the fact they will have a significantly lower fuel load on board – 100 kg, 50 less than this year. The drivers will have to deal with a heavier car due to the new Engine, ERS and cooling systems. To help with this a new 8 – speed gearbox is being introduced and this combined with the new turbo should help bring about better efficiency. Another change that will help is the change in fuel injection pressure which will help maximize every drop of fuel.

Another major change on the engine front will be the no. of power plants available to every driver as well. The drivers will have just 5 engines available for the entire season and to build more efficient and reliable engine but the fact that the drivers will have to make the engines last for 4000 km – twice the distance that they have to cover presently. The reliability issue will be at the forefront next year as any team that uses a Engine(or even a sixth KERS, turbo, exhaust ) will face a 10 place grid penalty in the very next race.

Energy Recovery Systems(ERS) – The Current KERS( Kinetic Energy Recovery) will be called the ERS-K( Energy Recovery System – Kinetic) which will produce almost twice the power the current system produces. The 180 bhp on tap will also be available for around 34 seconds 5 times the current availability.

Along with the new and improved ERS-K for 2014 there will be a new system that will be used to recover energy that otherwise would escape as heat from the exhaust of the car. This energy will be converted into electricity and can be stored in the hybrid motor – generator unit(MGU-H) and used fed into the other motor – generator unit (MGU-K), it can also be stored in the battery. The MGU-K can be used to drive the car around for the entirety of a single lap as it is connected to the crankshaft of the engine.

The new ERS systems will help the drivers overtake other cars more often during each lap and the increase in power from the ERS-H unit could help offset some of the power loss problems as well as the efficiency problems as well.