Any of these modifications can send cylinder pressures through the roof and place much more strain on the bottom end components. This is especially true if nitrous oxide or forced induction like a supercharger or turbocharger has been added to the mix.
A production cylinder block fitted with stock main and rod bolts may work fine in a street performance application, but when the horsepower output of the engine progresses well beyond stock, a bolt-related failure becomes much more likely when using the stock bolts. Replacing the stock main and rod bolts with high-performance hardware should be the first step in the upgrade. For simplicity’s sake, we’ll confine our definition of “bottom end” to the crankshaft and the main bearing and connecting rod bearing areas of the block.
It’s easy for a novice to think of an engine upgrade solely in terms of adding a set of domed high-compression pistons when, instead, his initial thoughts should focus on strengthening the bottom end. A well-built bottom end means a solid foundation for any performance engine. Get the latest sports news and analysis of valuations, signings and hirings, once a week in your inbox, from the Forbes SportsMoney Playbook newsletter. No other suppliers are believed to be in the running so if Honda or Renault do bring the checkered flag down on their time in F1 Liberty could end up in a race against time to replace them. That honor is understood to go to Ferrari but it can’t be verified as the Italian team doesn’t file separate financial statements for its F1 team or engine division as they are integrated into its production car operations.īritish auto maker Aston Martin was planning to supply engines to F1 from 2021 but did a U Turn in 2018 after Liberty scrapped the cap on investment in them. Mercedes isn’t even believed to have the most expensive F1 engine program. In addition, it would have to build (perhaps literally) an F1 division and develop an engine from scratch. However, a new auto maker wouldn’t be able to bank on signing any supply agreements so it would have to budget for covering all of the costs itself. The story doesn’t stop there though as Mercedes gets an estimated $37 million annually from supplying its engines to the Williams and Racing Point teams. If this trend continues it will bring its spending over the V6 era to $1.4 billion. The company’s latest results are for the year to 31 December 2018 and, as we recently revealed in British newspaper the CityAM, its costs only rose by $4.7 million (£3.6 million) on the previous year. The financial statements of Mercedes’ engine division reveal that since development began on the V6 engine, its costs have come to a total of $1.2 billion (£914.4 million). However, if other auto makers want to stand even a chance of copying Mercedes’ success they would have to match its turbocharged commitment. It has driven a great deal of exposure as it is the first production car powered by an F1 engine. Mercedes is taking this partnership to a new level with the upcoming launch of the Mercedes-AMG One hypercar which will have a top speed of 218 miles per hour and a price tag of $2.7 million. It is a reality and this is why the hybrid 6 cylinder turbo engines are so important for us.”Īn F1 engine sits under the hood of the Mercedes-AMG One hypercar (Martyn Lucy/Getty Images) Getty Images It is all because of the development on track absolutely. “We are using some technology for cooling invented here and that technology is being used in the next generation of S-Class as well. The S-Class is running on a 6 cylinder turbo engine and the way we optimise our engines in terms of efficiency and power deployment translates directly into road cars. It has also used technology from its F1 cars in the next generation of its S-Class sedans.Īs Mercedes F1 team boss Toto Wolff told us, “many people say technology transfer is just a marketing story. That’s not all as Mercedes has also mastered the art of transferring technology from F1 to its production cars.Īs we have reported, Mercedes rotates engineers between its production car operation and its F1 team. According to Interbrand, it hit $48.6 billion in 2018 with F1 making an important contribution to Mercedes’ status as the eighth most valuable brand in the world. Rival auto makers may be attracted by Mercedes’ success which has seen its brand value grow by $16.7 billion since 2013, the year before it won its first F1 title.