Toyota withdraws from F1 with immediate effect

[faksta]

Originally Posted by Ferrer

Could they be turned into Mercedes F1 team, if McLaren ends up buying BMW's F1 engine bussiness?

Such rumours are in the air since several races ago. As a proof, look at SLS AMG and MP4-12C situation. I think it may well happen, but then again, who can be sure?

[fpv_gtho]

I think perhaps Mercedes want more links to the sport than McLaren, who have dragged them into the gutter the past few years with some of the various scandals.

[LeonOfTheDead]

Originally Posted by fpv_gtho

The Virgin/Brawn sponsorship deal was only for this year.

Brawn is in advanced talks with Mercedes for a large share of the team to be bought. Theyre pretty secure for next year despite their lack of sponsors.

The 80 M $ of the WCC should help as well.

[TheScrutineer]

With the amount of shares Mercedes have in Brawn it will be interesting how this relationship develops. Fingers crossed for a white and green souped up Brawn Mercedes A class!

[DanVB]

Like I said in an earlier thread I started, there is a very small "bang for the buck" in Formula 1 outside of Europe, especially in North America.
Toyota was hit hard by the faltering world economy and could not justify the spending in F1 anymore.
As for my allusion to Ferrari in F1 rather than sports cars, I believe they would sell cars regardless of both venues. At least in F1, the rules are relatively stable compared to endurance racing and they call some the shots in F1 also.
F1 has just gotten to be absurdly expensive to be successful!

[LeonOfTheDead]

Actually one of the most controversial points in F1 iare the continual changes to the rules.

[G35COUPE]

How often does F1 technology ever make it to the street to justify their insane annual team budgets of $150 million or more in a single season?

Sure, ABS, traction control, vented brakes, shift paddles, tire compounds, aero dynamic components (diffusers, wings, lips, etc) etc, may all be associated with F1 developments. It still does not translate to items that the consumer can use in their regular road cars when considering the huge annual budgets of F1. So, why the huge investments in F1? (***still scratching head on that one***)

I thought racing rules were designed to help bring down cost? Apparently, F1 costs just keep rising. I wonder why.

[Matra et Alpine]

RESEARCH of R&D is always an expensive crap shoot.
You don't win if you don't push the boundaries with crazy ideas.
Engine Manaement Units, fuel injection, valve and spring materials, piston materials, low friction coatings - Nikisil turning up in everything now.
The list is actually HUGE ... just that the DEVELOPMENT part of their R&D will take a different tack from the performance angle.

But in reality, huge investments in F1 is about winning the "Pinnacle of motorsport" to increase the advertising revenue and hence budget to make next teams car an even bigger winner

[LeonOfTheDead]

Originally Posted by G35COUPE

How often does F1 technology ever make it to the street to justify their insane annual team budgets of $150 million or more in a single season?

Sure, ABS, traction control, vented brakes, shift paddles, tire compounds, aero dynamic components (diffusers, wings, lips, etc) etc, may all be associated with F1 developments. It still does not translate to items that the consumer can use in their regular road cars when considering the huge annual budgets of F1. So, why the huge investments in F1? (***still scratching head on that one***)

I thought racing rules were designed to help bring down cost? Apparently, F1 costs just keep rising. I wonder why.

Because while teams like Ferrari and McLaren spent 450 M $, they earned much more (perhaps not this year, but I wouldn't be so sure the lost any penny).

From next year, with the new rules, there should be a sort of budget cap to 100 M $, but it doesn't cover a lot of aspects.

Just consider that back in 1996, Marlboro was paying Ferrari 200 M $ for the full year sponsorship. They were also spending half that sum to pay Schumacher, but that's a different story, and as you may know, it worked pretty well a few years later.

[DanVB]

The technological advancement DO NOT necessarily come from involvement in motorsports or even F1. The companies can spend the money on R&D regardless.

F1 is a great way, however, for the owners, car company executives, sponsors and the jet setters to party with the best of them!

[grasulpla]

I accept with information:FIA made an announcement, saying just that: they left without a warning, on the last minute. They compare them with Bridgestone, who informed FIA 1 year in advance.

[wwgkd]

Originally Posted by DanVB

The technological advancement DO NOT necessarily come from involvement in motorsports or even F1. The companies can spend the money on R&D regardless.

F1 is a great way, however, for the owners, car company executives, sponsors and the jet setters to party with the best of them!

Yes, they could spend that money to come up with new ideas, but this is a way to test it. To collect together some of the greatest minds in automotive engineering and throw stuff around and see what works instead of some lab monkey saying "hey I found a new alloy, lets see if it works putting it in your camry." It's about the testing. The actually technology may seem pretty far removed at this stage if all you do is look at the shapes of the cars and the flashy side. But if you break it down to simpler components it does find it's way into everyday cars as often as you see with other approaches. And as has been mentioned, the good teams don’t just throw the money down a hole, they break even or even earn money.

[Matra et Alpine]

Western Industrial base is driven to find advnaces by attempting to deliver products.
So ... F1 is the driver that the companies need to jsutify their effort.
In comparison Japan Inc always developed the technology and THEN tried to buidl the product.

We believe the best idea come from the hot furnace of frantic development of products.
They believe the best products come from having developed the best technologies.
So F1 "success" centres around England