F1 teams close to agreeing new 2013 engine formula
Until then, development of the current 2.4 liter V8s will remain 'frozen', to be replaced thereafter by similarly powerful engines that use less fuel, emit less pollution and are affordable for the small teams.
Spain's El Mundo Deportivo newspaper said an in-principle agreement has been reached for a four cylinder, 1.5 liter engine equipped with a twin-turbo and direct injection.
The new formula would reportedly also involve KERS.
"If F1 has to develop something helpful for real (road) driving conditions, then the best solution is for an engine that is turbocharged and GDI (gasoline direct injection," Ferrari CEO Amedeo Felisa told Autocar magazine at the Beijing Motor Show.
"That is what we would support," he said.
Mercedes' Norbert Haug agrees that smaller engines are likely for reasons of consumption and emissions, but warns that high technology needs to remain a crucial focus.
"If you fly from Europe to Japan on a 747, you would use more fuel than an entire F1 season. We need to see the whole picture," he insisted.