Rosberg: F1 may have to quit petrol engines
2016 world champion Nico Rosberg says F1 may have to give up its fuel-powered engines some day.
Since retiring from F1, the German has made several 'E-mobility' investments, including in the all-electric single seater series Formula E.
Rosberg says battery power could be the future of F1, too.
"If the whole world is buying electric or hydrogen cars, F1 could not keep its gas engines," he told the world economic forum in Davos, Switzerland.
"It would not make sense," Rosberg is quoted by France's Auto Hebdo. "At some point, they would have to change, I think."
Currently, many F1 figures and fans reject the appeal of Formula E, even though it is increasingly attracting world-class drivers and car manufacturers.
"It's just a different category," said Max Verstappen.
"It seems like it's getting more interesting, but at the moment I'm happy where I am. I will probably be one of the last people in the world to try and buy the last barrels of oil."
Rosberg, though, says those types of attitudes could change quickly.
"Two years ago, everyone rejected electric vehicles, and now, some fans of thermal engines are opening their minds. It gets cool very quickly," he said.
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Electric F1, god forbid, formula E has so many idiotic rules, the latest being the braking on an in lap and at the end of the race. The claim that so many top drivers are competing in the races is utter nonsense. Who are these top drivers? Apart from Massa all I see are ex F1 drivers who failed to make any significant impact in the top echelon of the sport.As a spectacle formula E is woeful, its only this season they have a car which can complete the full race (45 mins+1lap) distance. Now apart from fan boost they use two four minute periods of additional power. Well sorry not for me, I would rather spend money on a day of BTCC, and the supporting races, after all that is proper racing, overtaking body contact and brilliant drivers in competitive cars
Formula E cannot create the same racing experience as F1 so I think introducing electric motors in F1 would be the death of it. So just leave it as it is and we can still have excitement watching F1for a few more years. Any of the fans have scalextric sets ? Compare those to Formula E !
While electric cars are limited by battery power, they cannot truly produce the spectacle afforded us by F1. As we have seen, limiting fuel supply on F1 cars to much, produced a scenario of drivers having to slow down in order to get to the end of the race. The only solution would be to embed chargers in the race track. With the current payments required of race track owners to host F1, this would be not be affordable. Perhaps if Liberty got a little less greedy and funded the chargers?
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