New manufacturers entering F1

[Mark F1]

Presuming that nothing comes of Phoenix's plans to enter F1 in the near future, the 12th slot on the F1 grid will be up for grabs. We already have seven of the world's top manufacturers in F1 (Ferrari, BMW, Mercedes, Honda, Toyota, Ford and Renault) but if there was to be an eighth manufacturer enter the one I would like to see in F1 would be Audi.

They have a fantastic record in most forms of motorsport which are briefly listed below:

Rallying - Audi Quattro introduced in 1981 and changes the face of rallying for ever. It's amazing amount of BHP leads to two maufacturer titles and two drivers titles in 1983 & 1984.

Touring Cars - Various versions of the Audi A4 gives them many wins & titles throughout the 90's, including seven national titles in 1996 from around the globe, including Australia, Britain and South Africa.

DTM - Ultra successful Audi V8 Quattro was one of the cars to beat in the early 90's. They became the first manufacturer to defend it's title with Hans Joachim Stuck and their current DTM car, the Audi TT, has won many races since the relaunch of the DTM in 2000.

Le Mans/ALMS - They achieved a podium on their Le Mans debut in 2000 and have since won two consecutive Le Mans races. Have been almost been unbeatable in the ALMS for the past two seasons with the ultra reliable Audi R8.

As you can see, they have won the lot in motorsport but They have never competed in moden F1 since the World Championship was established in 1950. They have raced in Grand Prix's, but the last time they did was back in 1939 under the Auto Union name, so like with Toyota, it is one of the few arena's it has not competed in. Can you imagine the German rivalry there would be if BMW, Mercedes and Audi were all in F1. They have previously denied any interest in F1, but hopefully within the next 5 - 7 years or so they will see the benefits of competing in motorsport's premier series and decide to take the 12th slot on the grid.

Just imagine, a pair of silver arrows taking there grid positions in Melbourne at the start of the 2007 or 2008 seasons, it could just happen !!

[kdr]

bmw, mercedes and audi all in f1...say bye-bye silverstone and a big reprieve for the nurburgring!

[TeddyG]

I dunno the whole deal but I heard Volkswagon were thinking of joining sometime in the future (I'm not sure if Audi and VW are the same or not) but I know VW owns Lambourgini and I think it would be cool if they were to enter F1 under that name!

[Lee Janotta]

I'd most like to see Porsche get in it, supplying a powerful engine available to the whole back half of the grid.

It would also be nice if GM bought Lotus away from Proton corp and entered as Lotus-Cadillac as a true Anglo-American effort, but it won't happen. Would be fun to see Justin Wilson and Gunnar Jeanette or Danica Patrick flying around Indy though.

[touringlegend]

It's inevitable really. I can't see Volkswagen Audi Group (VAG) staying out of F1 for much longer.

As you've shown there Mark, everything they have a go at, they are succesful at. But I'm not sure if VAG would enter with Audi...

[facco]

The press silly season releases state that VAG shall enter as Volkswagen.

[Mr V]

Originally posted by facco
The press silly season releases state that VAG shall enter as Volkswagen.

i think VW should enter as SKODA until they've got themselves a top car/engine then change to VW or AUDI so their name won't be tarnished at all!

[EERO]

If VW were to come in, I'd think Bugatti or Audi would be the names to use.

The only other Major not in yet is GM and THEIR only international brand is SAAB, though Cadillac might be apossibility.

Proton is too small and the Koreans are not financially stable enough.

The more likely possibility would be if Ferrari were to offer their engines as ALFA Romeos or Maseratis,; Renault theirs as a Nissan: Mercedes as Chrysler or Mitsubishi, Toyota as Lexus, if a rule to supply two or more teams were ever to be imposed.

[f1manoz]

I agree with EERO, Bugatti should be used. Then we can all harp about the glory days of the 1920s!

But performances in other categories (talking about Audi) means nothing when they compete in F1. This is a whole new ball game. And it takes blood, sweat and tears to get the whole thing right.

[Mr V]

and BMW could supply a second engine and call it a mini! the minardi-mini has a nice ring to it!

[Jukebox]

I'd sure would like to see Lotus in the F1 again. Petronas could very well sponsor the team as Lotus is owned by Proton. Could be a mile stone of improvement to the Malaysian motorsport industry.

Maybe Petronas could allocate more money on F1 and revise on their involvements on BTCC, motogp, WSBK and rally.

[touringlegend]

Petronas / Proton / Lotus have too much to worry about before F1. Petronas pay for their whole BTCC campaign, but back in Malaysia Proton's in trouble and so is Lotus.

Why would they want to waste money on F1 when they can get as much coverage from succesfully competing in other motorsports ?

[Jukebox]

Because Petronas holds share in Proton. I don't know about their Lotus and TD2000 classsic car sales but domestically Proton recorded as best selling car every year. True, sales internationally are not so great but whereas to gain more exposure. Although touring and rally races just might do them good but in terms of the technology acquired in total F1 involvement would be even better.

[Lee Janotta]

Lotus had to do some painful layoffs just last year, F1's _not_ in the cards unless they're sold to GM (pleasepleasepleaseplease!!!!)

[Jukebox]

GM? look at what happened to the Jaguar team with their cosworth engine, not to another american company...lotus entering F1 would certainly boost their sales.

[nameless]

MG run a btcc team, british rally team, and have ran in le mans last year, surely they could be a possibility.
I would love to see Skoda though, Volvo,
btw, who owns TVR

[nameless]

Originally posted by Lee Janotta
I'd most like to see Porsche get in it, supplying a powerful engine available to the whole back half of the grid.

porsche were in f1 as a manufacturer in the late 50s early 60s quite succesfully, but they did return in 91 as engine supplier to footwork but didnt finish a race and only qualified in 5. that could have put them off

[EERO]

Originally posted by nameless
MG run a btcc team, british rally team, and have ran in le mans last year, surely they could be a possibility.
I would love to see Skoda though, Volvo,
btw, who owns TVR

I don't believe that Volvo, who are owned by Ford, (and thus would not compete with Jaguar) own anyone.

[Lee Janotta]

Originally posted by nameless


porsche were in f1 as a manufacturer in the late 50s early 60s quite succesfully, but they did return in 91 as engine supplier to footwork but didnt finish a race and only qualified in 5. that could have put them off

But... They won three championships with McLaren in the '80s as engine suppliers. 1984 with Lauda, and the following two years with Prost!

[nameless]

ahh yes, thanks for reminding me...........
are porsche owned by a bigger company, or are they one of the very few companies that are not????

[Muzza]

There it goes. Formula 1 octopus-like greed is going to swallow Audi too, so you expect...

Am I the only one to regret it? Am I the only that cheers when the Volkswagen Group shows it "po" to F-1? But realistically, how long until they drop sportscar?

Do not get me wrong - I always liked F-1. But I cannot appreciate a category that needs to kill other series to keep it status as "pinnacle of motorsport".

Thank you Mr. Bernie Ecclestone, merci bien M. Jean-Marie Balestre for having killed sportscar racing back in 1992, just when it was flourishing.

[Muzza]

Hi, Nameless,

In case you do not know MG will supply engines to CART in 2003, in association with Judd.

Muzza

[Muzza]

Hello, EERO,

Mercedes-Benz does not own Mitsubishi - they only have a participation on its shares.

Mitsubishi is part of the Matsu****a Group.

Muzza

[Muzza]

Hahaha...

The system does let me type M-a-t-s-u-s-h-i-ta!

Muzza

[Lee Janotta]

It's the source of much debate, nameless. Technically, Porsche is independant, but they have close ties with VAG (Volkswagen-Audi Group), both historically and financially, as they share many principal shareholders. As such, they tend to plan motorsport programs which complement each other, instead of competing directly.

DaimlerChrysler actually owns a 37% stake in Mitsubishi, a sufficient interest to control it's business decisions. They're currently building a joint engine plant in eastern Germany.