Former FIA-president Max Mosley believes the quieter engines, which he says he’s to blame (or thank) for, are better for the fans.
The 73-year-old had a hand in introducing the new V6 power units when he was president, so accepts some of the criticism, but having lost his own hearing through years of ‘loud’ engines, he says fans should welcome the new quieter, but just as exciting formula.
“If anybody should be ‘blamed’ it’s me,” Mosley told the Daily Mail. “We were the ones who looked at bringing in the new technology. It was 10 years in the making, and I actually like the noise.
“I wear these things in both my ears (hearing aids) because the noise of the engines went right through me for 40 years or more. It’s too late to save my hearing but not for the next generation. The quieter engines are better for families. You can take children to races without fear of their being deafened.”
He says F1 is missing a trick by not promoting the new efficient and technically advanced power units to the public.
“It is important for F1 to evolve. Safety was the big challenge of the 20th Century and the environment is the big challenge of the 21st. If that that fact is not understood and embraced, the sport runs the risk of becoming irrelevant.
“Corporate social responsibility is important for car manufacturers, so there is a need to move in this direction so the sport does not lose sponsors and manufacturers. They see how important this technology is in the development of road cars.”
