Engine Parity is something of a black art to be honest. Last year saw the engine freeze open temporarily for Renault who hadn’t made any “reliability modifications†to their engine during the year as they thought the letter of the law was being followed. After discovering that other teams had made these “reliability modifications†and were beating Renault’s brains out did they realize that maybe it had more to do with the spirit of the law.
This year has been a dominant year for the Mercedes engines who supply McLaren, Brawn and Force India. This has prompted a question of un-freezing the engines or taking a close look at the power curves and performance factors of the lump to ensure parity. Stefano Domenicali said:
“For sure this is something that we are discussing in the engine working group,†he said.
“With all respect we understand that we have seen a great performance from the Mercedes engine, but as always before giving the final sentence on that, we need to see the numbers and the power curve and everything connected to that.
“It is a point that is on the table to discuss between the teams.â€
Without a spec design, there is real no way to have the same engine. Ross Brawn figures anyone without the strongest lump on the grid will complain of a lack of parity:
“I think it’s inevitable that whoever’s got the strongest engine will have people saying that [engines should be equalised],†he said. “It’s just impossible to have absolute parity on the engines.â€
That stand to reason as other teams are outclassed in the horse power and torque world so is this engine freeze another leftover vestige of the Max Mosley FIA attempt to “reduce costs†which have actually increased costs? Should we not get rid of the engine freeze altogether or do you like the quasi spec rule? Let us know your thoughts on the issue below.
