FIA presents specification for '26: 'Smaller, lighter, more efficient' cars
It seems a while away, but for Formula 1 teams, the start of the '26 season is fast approaching. Not only will Red Bull Racing then start running with self-realised power units, Audi will make its entrance and Honda will start as Aston Martin's engine supplier; it is also the time when new technical regulations come into force.
The specifications for the power units are known (in very broad terms) - and hard work is underway on the engines for '26 and beyond. In several other areas, teams were still somewhat in the dark, although in Mexico the FIA gave team technical people an insight into what the requirements are going to be. The changes can be summed up in three words: 'Smaller, lighter and more efficient', Motorsport Aktuell has learned.
The FIA has called the study Fangio 5.3. It describes that the cars will no longer be 200 but 190 centimetres wide. The wheelbase will be reduced from 360 to 340 centimetres. Tyres will be 16 rather than 18 inches. So all in all, the tyres will be about 10 per cent smaller.
Formula 1 cars to become much lighter
The weight of the car is also planned to be reduced; by around 25 to 30 kilos. In terms of aerodynamics, there will also be changes, but these are yet to be decided. One point of discussion is whether to flatten the Beam Wing or diffuser in addition to the front and rear wings.
Moreover, the Venturi Tunnels may be higher, while the wings will be larger and cover the tyres even more. At the rear, an Inwash principle is prescribed, which will make the rear end less fluctuating with changes to the floor. With all these modifications - the FIA believes - overtaking will once again become a little easier.
We still do not know the new aero regs, so no need to get worked up about that. The wheels change again?? Down from 18" to 16"? I feel sorry for Pirelli! All the work they did to make this size workable. I still do not like the new PU regs, but that is a done deal. Can they really create a new car that races closer? Will they then get rid of DRS? Over two years to wait and find out. I just hope Andretti F1 is on the grid then!
Guessed the FIA bowed to pressure concerning the size and weight of the cars. What's left is know how effective these changes and regulations would be on the track.
As usual we get more 'blah blah blah' changes to enable overtaking, which to date ( apart from DRS ) haven't made one jot of difference other than costing teams millions of dollars, I wonder if the new design rules will mean more flexibility in the cost cap, personally I can't see much changing unless they greatly restrict the aerodynamics, in particular the dirty/ dead air behind the car, this time I wonder which team will get it right first time out and romp off into the sunset while the rest try to play catch up with limited testing and budget restraints
That team will probably be Red Bull... but only IF the new engine is good enough, of course.
@herr flick from 2022 and 2023 there has been more over take on track with the ground affect cars .
DRS Mavric, which the FIA resorted to because of aerodynamics made it almost impossible to overtake, I can remember back in Ferrari/Schuey days their car was the fastest car on track and as the other teams started to catch them they designed the rear end to create as much dirty air as possible to stop the cars getting too close
Kent the FAA make a specification or measurement of max allowed dirty air as part of the rule set?
I think the rules change did help. The amount of cars the keep following each other very close is a lot bigger and they are able to follow each other much longer then in the past. So the rule change did help. Yes, overtaking is still done often via DRS and DRS is still needed, but just look at the overtakes from Norris in Austin, 5 years ago those would hardly happen. And the stats show more overtaking.
Evening JEM, yes I do agree with you that the cars can get closer and certainly more overtakes have taken place moreso than in the past, I seem to recall a good while ago that the FIA would like to drop DRS in favour of more natural overtaking rather than the artificial passes that DRS offers, I may be wrong about that tho I'm an old duffer so I could be having a senior moment, I'm just not convinced that any rules the FIA dream up will ever work efficiently judging by previous decision making ?
Agree that not all the rules work, but having lighter and smaller cars could be a step in the right direction. Sadly, until they are quite a bit lighter and smaller, I fear DRS will be needed.
So, all the fear mongering by RBR execs about 2026 cars was fake news.
Or a genuine concern, taken into careful consideration by the FIA. RB expressed this quite a while ago, we don't know when or on why the FIA decided to make the cars and tires significantly smaller.
May be the fia, looked at the info that redbull show the fia with the 2026 cars .witch the fia are aloud to do and see what red bull mean with the 2026 new rules
I understand your point of view stems from a dislike for Red Bull, but let's think it through for a sec: we will have cars with more batteries, which are very heavy, and with an engine that has less power than the current ones, and that will have to waste horsepower to charge the battery from the middle of the straights onwards because braking regeneration won't be enough. How will cars be lighter by making the already very light parts smaller, while increasing the heaviest bit? And how fast will they actually be in terms of top speed when the engine is less powerful AND is wasting horsepower to charge the battery? To me, it sounds that Red Bull is right and the FIA is not really thinking it through. And I really hope that it IS Red Bull fearmongering and that there's something I'm missing here!
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