Leon Kennedy wrote: ↑27 Feb 2026, 01:23
Brawn GP comes to mind, engine change, ownership and engineers. Other things that come to mind are Williams 92' and McLaren 98'. In both cases, Newey arrives and they win the world championship in his first year. But there is less of a revolution from that point of view engine side.
If Honda had an engine like Mercedes' or maybe Ferrari's (we still don't know which is better), well, they would win with Adrian like in 90.
The problem is the engine.
Sorry, but that's absolutely not true. According to Stroll, they are 4.5 seconds behind, which would mean that the engine has 400 hp less power. Even if Stroll's statements should not be taken at face value, this makes it clear that it is not just the engine that is causing problems. Let's summarize the known problems, some of which have been acknowledged by the team:
The most serious problem actually concerns the integration of the new Honda power unit. As Honda has now confirmed, the engine suffers from abnormal vibrations at high revs, which are so severe that they have repeatedly damaged the newly developed battery system.
However, it would not be the first time that Newey has requested a low crankshaft from the manufacturer. Newey is known for introducing precisely such measures and concepts to achieve the lowest possible center of gravity, especially in cars less than 200 cm wide. In order to place the crankshaft as low as possible in the car, the crankcase must be extremely flat at the bottom. The problem: The flatter the housing, the less material is available to absorb the massive bending forces. The result: the entire engine block begins to "work." Under full load, the housing twists minimally, which throws the crankshaft bearing passages out of alignment. This generates high-frequency vibrations that stress the engine head and internal components, as well as the battery system. It is therefore entirely possible that the concept of the car itself is contributing to this.
Another critical point is the transmission, which Aston Martin now manufactures in-house, unlike in previous years, and no longer sources from Mercedes, and problems with this have been acknowledged. After years of external supply, the company is now manufacturing a transmission itself for the first time. The extreme stresses caused by increased energy recovery during braking lead to mechanical weaknesses that make the car unstable when downshifting. Fernando Alonso expressed concern about the drivability and described the car as one of the most difficult to tune he has ever driven.
Added to this is a delay in aerodynamic development. As Adrian Newey was only able to join the project at a later stage, work in the wind tunnel started about four months after the competition. As a result, the team is currently still busy solving fundamental correlation issues, while teams such as Ferrari and Mercedes are already working on fine-tuning their upgrades.
During testing, it was observed that the rear end suddenly breaks away, which can have several causes. Newey has positioned the wishbones extremely high—some of them are attached directly to the rear wing structure, as has often been noted and reported. One problem could be that this design is intended to maximize airflow under the rear wing (similar to the beam wing that was previously permitted). However, this can also lead to instability during load changes. When the car dives during braking or in fast corner combinations, aerodynamic stall at the rear can occur very abruptly, leading to sudden oversteer. Stiffness problems may also be to blame.
Ultimately, based on the problems acknowledged and the obvious vehicle dynamics characteristics, it is clear that there is more than one problem with the new Aston Martin. And as mentioned, the team itself admits to problems with the transmission and rear end in addition to the engine.
These facts alone make it clear that this cannot be compared to Williams or McLaren in the 1990s, where Newey joined teams with established structures, organization, technology, procedures, and methodologies that were already on a clear upward trend and belonged to the absolute top teams, but rather to a team where all of this is still lacking. The admitted errors with the gearbox alone prove that (at least in some areas) the necessary technology, methodologies, and procedures are lacking. Newey himself has already publicly stated that there is a lack of correlation between the wind tunnel and problems with the simulator. It is therefore very clear and obvious that Aston Martin is much more comparable to Red Bull in 2006, when Newey moved there, than to Williams and McLaren in the 1990s, even though it has newer and more modern infrastructure. And in a team with such limitations, even Adrian Newey cannot work miracles. This is as logical as it is simple. Because if the wind tunnel and simulator alone do not provide data that is precise and "good" enough, even Newey will end up with a car that is problematic and slow. And we're not even talking about "losses" in the organizational area, or in methodologies and procedures.
But to cut a long story short, the AM26 has more problems than just the engine itself, as the team itself admits. So it's wrong to say that if AM had a Mercedes engine, "they would win with Adrian like in 1990." Because to win, a car needs a good transmission and a good rear end. The AM lacks both, which is certainly not due to the engine and therefore makes it obvious that the problems run deeper. And since the team itself, as the highest authority, acknowledges and admits these problems, this is clear evidence that there is more wrong than just the engine. Or is the team lying and saying it has problems where there are none? That doesn't make much sense and would be a first in F1....
. Regarding the rear, I don't see the problems you listed, rather I see problems at the front, but in my opinion they are due to the fact that they haven't touched the car at all regarding the setup. Regarding the gearbox, it's a problem we noticed during the videos, but no one has made an official statement about it. The only reported problem so far is the engine, according to Honda. Lobato himself also stated that Newey says he's absolutely fine with the aero/chassis side of things. 