Mercedes was once among the upper echelons of F1 teams, but the 2022 season saw them fall from grace as they crashed and burned out of the Q3 and Q2 qualifiers. This was despite them coming off of 8 constructor championships.
There were undoubtedly a lot of contributing factors, but their engineering department especially faced criticism for their forgettable season. Mercedes lagged in all facets of the game, be it aerodynamics, or negating the impact of porpoising down the straights.
They were also hit by circumstances entirely out of their hands like the loss of vital engineering staff, but there is no doubt that possibly the biggest single aspect of their dismal performance was their incompetent engine performance.
Table of Contents
Watch this video to learn more about Mercedes engine.
What engine does Mercedes use in F1?
Despite the setbacks this season, the Mercedes engine has been the engine to beat in F1 since 2014. They use their own in-house Mercedes V6 Hybrid Formula One Engine, designed and fabricated by Mercedes-AMG High-Performance Powertrains for Formula One. It is a powerhouse of an engine, a 1.6 liter hybrid turbocharged V6 racing engine featuring both heat energy and kinetic energy recovery system.
Season | Name | Format | Peak power @ rpm Including hybrid system where applicable |
|---|---|---|---|
2014 | Mercedes-Benz PU106A | 1.600 L 90° V6 turbo hybrid | 630 kW (840 hp) @ 15,000 rpm |
2015 | Mercedes-Benz PU106B | 649 kW (870 hp) @ 15,000 rpm | |
2016 | Mercedes-Benz PU106C | 670 kW (900 hp) @ 15,000 rpm | |
2017 | Mercedes-AMG M08 EQ Power+ | 708 kW (949 hp) @ 15,000 rpm | |
2018 | Mercedes-AMG M09 EQ Power+ | 750 kW (1,000 hp) @ 15,000 rpm | |
2019 | Mercedes-AMG M10 EQ Power+ | ||
2020 | Mercedes-AMG M11 EQ Performance | 764 kW (1,025 hp) @ 15,000 rpm | |
2021 | Mercedes-AMG M12 E Performance | 780 kW (1,050 hp) @ 15,000 rpm |
Does Mercedes make their F1 engine?
Yes, the Mercedes F1 racing team uses a series of 1.6-liter hybrid turbocharged V6 racing engines called the Mercedes V6 Hybrid Formula One Engine. It is developed and fabricated in-house by Mercedes AMG High-Performance Powertrains, a Formula One engine manufacturer owned by Mercedes-Benz. The company previously went by the name of Ilmor Engineering, before being acquired by Mercedes-Benz in 2005 and renamed Merceded-Benz High-Performance Engines.
Key takeaways
- The 2022 season was one of the worst for Mercedes as they got out during the Q1 and Q2 qualifiers.
- Mercedes uses an in-house 1.6 liter hybrid turbocharged V6 racing engine called the Mercedes V6 Hybrid Formula One Engine.
- It is developed by Mercedes AMG High-Performance Powertrains, a Formula One engine manufacturer owned by Mercedes-Benz.
- Mercedes also provides the engine for other Formula One teams, namely McLaren, Aston Martin, and Williams.
Which Formula 1 team uses the same engine?
Mercedes engines have long been considered the epitome of high-performance F1 engines. Barring the lows of the 2022 season, since 2014, Mercedes has dominated the F1 circuits, and a large part of the credit goes to the sublime performance of their engines.
Intense research and development over the years have led to an exponential increase in performance season by season for Mercedes engines. In numbers, the engine has gone from being able to supply 840 horsepower at 15000 rpm in 2014, to 1070 horsepower at the same rpm in 2022.
The Mercedes-Benz-owned Formula One engine manufacturer Mercedes-AMG High-Performance Powertrains also supplies engines to various other teams in the global racing competition, apart from their own. These include top teams like Williams, McLaren, and Aston Martin.
Mercedes
Mercedes have been the team to beat in Formula One racing since 2014, thanks in large part to the performance of their engine. It has helped them break many constructor’s and driver’s records, including for most wins in a single season in 2016.
The Mercedes Hybrid Formula One series of engines has been the backbone of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team’s record-breaking run of 8 consecutive Constructor’s Championships. It also helped establish Lewis Hamilton as one of the greatest Formula One drivers of all time, winning him 6 Driver’s Championships.
McLaren
Historically, McLaren Racing Limited is the second most successful F1 team of all time, behind only Ferrari. It is a British motorsports company based in Surrey, England, with its headquarters named McLaren Technology Centre.
McLaren has been around for a long time, since 1963, and is the second oldest active constructor in Formula One. Spanning a long career, it has won 183 races, 8 Constructor’s Championships, and 12 Driver’s Championships.
In 1995, McLaren started their partnership with Mercedes-Benz High-Performance Engines. Apart from free Mercedes-Benz engines, the partnership also entailed valuable perks like financial aid, staff from Ilmor and Mercedes assisting their team at the Woking base, official Mercedes-Benz vehicles, and full factory support.
Aston Martin
Aston Martin, a British car manufacturer based in Silverstone, England, first forayed into Formula One racing back in 1959. But their first two seasons could hardly be described as a dream start, failing to accrue any points in both and then deciding to leave the sport.
But come 2021, Aston Martin made a grand comeback to the sport, this time utilising engines made by Mercedes. The performance of their engine was among many factors which led to Sebastian Vettel winning them their first race in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Aston Martin used the Mercedes M12 E Performance 1.6 V6 t and the Mercedes M13 E Performance 1.6 V6 t for the 2021 and 2022 seasons respectively, and fininshed 7th in both seasons.
Williams
Of all the F1 teams on this list, the one who has worked with the most number of engine manufacturers is Williams Grand Prix Engineering Limited. Founded in 1977 by owner Frank Williams and automotive engineer Patrick Head, Williams is a British Formula One team and constructor based in Oxfordshire, England.
Williams has utilised the services of many engine manufacturers over its storied history, like Ford-Cosworth, Honda, Judd, Renault, Mecachrome, Supertec, BMW, and Toyota. But since 2014, Williams has been using Mercedes power units.
Immediately after switching to the Mercedes turbcharged engines, they saw an uptick in performance, In the 2014 Austrian Grand Prix, they won their first pole position since 2012. They then went on to attain 3rd position in the Constructor’s Championship, courtesy a double podium in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix the same year.
Intense research and development over the years have led to an exponential increase in performance season by season for Mercedes engines. In numbers, the engine has gone from being able to supply 840 horsepower at 15000 rpm in 2014, to 1070 horsepower at the same rpm in 2022.
Other F1 engine manufacturers and customers
| F1 engine suppliers | Teams using the engine |
|---|---|
| Ferrari engine | Ferrari Haas Alfa Romeo |
| Mercedes engine | Mercedes McLaren Aston Martin Williams |
| Red Bull engine | Red Bull AlphaTauri |
| Renault engine | Alpine |
The Formula One engine manufacturing business is a fierce one with highly competitive rivals. This results in each developer having to keep up with their performance statistics or being rendered obsolete. Apart from Mercedes, these are the engine manufacturers who have dominated the market.
Ferrari
Ferrari has developed the Ferrari Turbocharged V6 F1 Engine, a 1.6-liter engine that has been in use by the team since 2014 under the designation Tipo 059/3.
- Ferrari: Ferrari has been using the engine since 2014 after it was developed under the guidance of Mattia Binotto and Luca Marmorini.
- Alfa Romeo: While Ferrari hasn’t supplied engines to Alfa Romeo, the Alfa Romeo branding appeared on the Scuderia Ferrari F1 cars from 2015-18.
- Haas: Haas has a strong relationship with Ferrari which has been controversial and has attracted criticism from smaller, privateer teams.
Mercedes
Mercedes-AMG High-Performance Powertrains has developed the 1.6 liters Mercedes V6 Hybrid Formula One engine, with both kinetic and heat energy recovery systems.
- Mercedes: Mercedes has been using their in-house Mercedes V6 Hybrid Formula One engine since 2014.
- McLaren: McLaren started their partnership with Mercedes in 1995, and has since employed their engines and various other perks.
- Aston Martin: Aston Martin started using Mercedes power units after their comeback to the sport in 2021.
- Williams: Having worked with a wide range of engine manufacturers in the past, Williams started using Mercedes engines in 2014.
Red Bull Powertrains
Red Bull formed its engine manufacturing company under the name Red Bull Powertrains in 2021, to take over operation from Honda.
- Red Bull: After Honda left Formula One at the end of the 2021 season, Red Bull signed distribution rights for their engines from 2022 onwards.
- AlphaTauri: AlphaTauri is also owned by Red Bull, and so it also uses the Red Bull-branded Honda engines.
Renault
The Renault E-Tech series developed by Renault Sport F1 is a 1.6 liter, hybrid, turbo-charged V6 engine used by the Renault team since 2014.
- Alpine: The Renault Sport F1 team was rebranded as the Alpine F1 team in 2021, and so uses Renault’s in-house engine.
Frequently asked questions
Are Mercedes making their engines in F1?
Are Mercedes F1 engines bad?
Why is the Mercedes F1 engine not as fast as Red Bulls?
Conclusion
Mercedes, despite having had a bad season recently, is a powerhouse in the Formula One space. And a large part of the credit for their supremacy goes to their in-house Mercedes V6 Hybrid Formula One engine.
Developed by Mercedes-AMG High-Performance Powertrains, its immaculate performance has led to it being adopted by some of the most successful teams in the competition and has retained Mercedes its spot among the top Formula One engine manufacturers on the planet.
The engine has helped the Mercedes F1 team break a lot of the sport’s records, and has been a large driver behind Lewis Hamilton being one of the most successful F1 drivers of all time.
Read more about all F1 engine manufacturers and suppliers.
