Mercedes-Benz to power Williams F1 cars
ANDIK CENASRELATED CONTENT
- Mercedes-Benz engine to take the place of Renault
After a long and illustrious partnership with Renault, Williams F1 Team has decided to part ways with the French engine manufacturer. Williams has signed a long-term engine partnership with Mercedes-Benz from the 2014 Formula One World Championship season onwards.
According to the agreement, Mercedes-Benz will supply Williams with a power unit, which includes an internal combustion engine and Energy Recovery System by Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains, based in the UK. Despite having the powerplant supplied to by a third party, Williams will continue to make its transmission in-house.
The changes in regulations to the 2014 season mean that the cars have to be a lot more efficient. To prove their car’s worthiness, engineers will have to get their cars to complete a 300km race distance on a 100kg fuel load. Previously each team’s car consisted of a 2.4-litre V8 engine, for this season onwards, they will be employing the services of turbocharged 1.6-itre V6 hybrid units. In order to achieve the same power levels as the V8 engines, the V6 units will require a 30% increase in energy efficiency.
This is mainly achieved by the use of an Energy Recovery System that can provide ten times more energy than the current KERS units. The new ERS will recovery energy from both the exhaust turbine and the rear axle and will deploy energy back to both too.
With technical developments such as this, there is a much better chance that these kinds of advancements can be used in real-world applications in areas such as battery technology, turbocharging, energy and combustion efficiency.
Unlike Red Bull who is quite content with Renault power, Williams isn't.Regarding the new partnership Williams F1 Team Founder and Team Principal Sir Frank Williams said, “I’m delighted to announce our new association with Mercedes-Benz for the 2014 Formula One season and beyond. Mercedes-Benz has been one of the sport’s most successful engine suppliers and we believe that they will have an extremely competitive engine package. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Renault for their continued hard work since we renewed our engine partnership at the beginning of the 2012 season.
Many F1 teams have opted for the Mercedes-Benz power units since last year. How this fares for Williams remains to be seen, as Red bull Racing has been using Renault engines for a long time, which are the same engines that have made it a dominant force in Formula One.
