08/05/2014
NEWS STORY
In an effort to address the outcry over the sound of F1 2014, Mercedes will trial a prototype solution during next week's two day test at Barcelona.
After years of warnings from Bernie Ecclestone, it was the new sound of F1 that dominated the headlines as the season got underway in Melbourne rather than the raft of new rules, the biggest season-on-season change in the history of the sport.
Whilst the initial outcry has given way to mutterings of discontent in recent weeks, faced with the prospect of a fan backlash as the European season gets underway, the engine manufacturers are attempting to come up with acceptable solutions.
Speaking last month, Mercedes Andy Cowell ruled out the possibility of improving the sound by increasing the rev limit.
"I don't see the need for the revs to change to change the noise of the power unit," he said. "The principal reason why the engine is quieter is the turbine wheel and the muffling effect that you get from that. That's one of the key technologies for recycling the waste energy that would normally go down the tailpipe so it's a key aspect of the technology that we've got. There are other things we can do though with the tailpipe, perhaps, to change the noise."
Renault's Rob White agreed, suggesting that adapting the tailpipe is the way to go.
"The scope to fundamentally and profoundly alter the noise of the engines is extremely limited by the type of technology that we have deployed," he said, "and therefore I think we need to be realistic about the scope of any action that we might take but of course we're sensitive to the subject and we'll certainly participate in any of the studies that might lead to actions being taken."
Mercedes has now revealed that it will trial a possible solution during the tw-day test that gets underway on Tuesday, tweeting earlier today: "Mercedes will evaluate a prototype solution during next week's test to assess its impact on the tailpipe noise.
"It's a first step in a development process to address the feedback from our sport's #MegaFans about these mega new hybrid Power Units," the German manufacturer added in a subsequent tweet.
Check out our Thursday gallery, here.
Chris Balfe