Honda steps it up: Revised power unit after the Formula 1 summer break

It has been clear since the first pre-season test sessions: the Aston Martin team is lagging far behind the competition. The Silverstone-based team initially struggled with vibrations caused by the interaction between the engine and chassis, which led to stability issues. Honda’s engineers were able to significantly reduce these unwanted vibrations following their home race at Suzuka.

Whilst the focus was on improving reliability, work was also being carried out behind the scenes to boost the engine’s performance. The long-awaited update is due to arrive after the summer break. Honda’s Formula 1 chief engineer, Shintaro Orihara, said at Silverstone: “I’ve kept talking about the summer, but perhaps that’s a rather trite answer.”

“I’d rather say that our target is the race weekend at Zandvoort. We’re working hard to work through the list of measures and bring new performance to the track for the first race after the summer break. That’s our goal,” added the Japanese engineer.

This involves optimising the combustion chamber, as Orihara explains: “Our focus here is on improving engine performance. We’re working on the combustion chamber and also on the pre-chamber. The aim is to improve the efficiency of the combustion process. We also aim to reduce friction. And, of course, we’re striving to improve reliability as well, because if we increase performance, we must also improve reliability. The list of tasks still to be completed is still quite long, but we’re working hard to bring these new developments to Zandvoort.”

And the engineer revealed: “The new power unit was developed with the aim of improving performance, but we have adjusted the combustion characteristics. This means we need to re-optimise our parameters to refine the driving behaviour. We’re focusing precisely on that at this stage, and the approach we’re taking will also be applied to the new power unit to optimise the settings.” It’s not a question of implementing minor improvements in small steps. “We want to take a significant step forward with this.”

Topic of the week

From major doubts to a major spectacle: why GP fans have reason to be delighted

Before the start of the season, critical voices dominated, but the World Championship rounds so far have shown that the rule changes are delivering exactly what was hoped for: excitement right up to the final lap.

Read more

TV program

Today

Budapest: Das Rennen Re-Live

FIA Formula One World Championship

26.07.2026 - 17:15