May29 (GMM) The next step in Aston Martin’s quest for eventual success in Formula 1 is to build its own gearbox.
Throughout the Lawrence Stroll-owned era spanning the identities of Racing Point and Aston Martin, and even before that when the team was known as Force India, the Silverstone based team bought both engines and gearboxes from Mercedes.
But Aston Martin and Honda announced last week that they were teaming up for a factory partnership from 2026 – prompting the team to decide to design and build their own gearbox.
“From 2026, we intend to manufacture the gearbox and rear suspension in-house,” confirmed team principal Mike Krack.
“We will start moving into the new factory this weekend. Then we will start to develop our own gearbox. We still have two and a half years ahead of us.”
However, Krack also argues that Formula 1 should rethink its rules about requiring teams to build their own gearboxes or buy them from a rival team.
“Modern F1 gearboxes have little difference in performance compared to other motorsport categories,” he is quoted by Japanese source as-web.jp.
“Developing and producing a new one is certainly a challenge, but not impossible. The problem is the cost.
“That’s $8-9 million a year for very little performance difference – and now there’s a budget cap. I think it’s time to rethink that,” Krack added.
“We are discussing with the FIA how to develop a gearbox with simpler technology and better cost performance to make the whole sport more sustainable.”
