New frames: tougher crash tests and weight will make doubly the difference

The new regulations exasperate the focus on the chase for the minimum weight, which in 2026 is set to be one of the main battlegrounds. Having a lightweight car will be doubly important, both for outright performance and for energy management implications. The design of the chassis was therefore particularly challenging for the teams, thanks to the new homologation criteria required by the FIA. Weight, double importance An objective that the FIA ​​and the teams had set for the new regulations was to reverse the trend of recent years which had led to a constant increase in the minimum weight. In 2026 there will thus be a reduction to 724 kg in the race configuration and 726 kg in the qualifying configuration, from which however the mass of the tires remains excluded. Considering that a set of tires weighs 46.4 kg, this comes to a total weight of 770 kg, around 30 kg less than the 800 kg of 2025. Getting rid of them is certainly not easy for the teams, despite the new cars being smaller, given the shortened wheelbase from 3.6 to 3.4 meters and the reduction in width from 2.0 to 1.9 metres. The power unit alone, in fact, weighs 185 kg, with an increase of 34 kg mainly due to the hybrid system, three times more powerful than the previous one. The teams are therefore looking for a way to lighten the rest of the car by around 64 kg for the comparison with 2025, a work that continues today. Reaching the minimum weight is not at all a given, even less so than it was in 2022. At the time, Alfa Romeo-Sauber was among the most virtuous in this, in fact enjoying a discreet advantage over the center-group competition at the beginning, which then began to decline. Under the old regulations it was estimated that 3 kg less would guarantee a gain of 1 tenth per lap, but in 2026 the benefits of a lightweight car go beyond just performance in terms of acceleration, braking and cornering speed. A less heavy machine, in fact, is also less severe in terms of fuel and electricity consumption, requiring less battery management and thus being able to release high power for longer. The game on the frames The challenge consists in choosing where to remove weight based on the compromise with the various aspects of performance, considering for example the importance of the stiffness of the frame and certain aerodynamic surfaces. The priority is to lighten the rotating parts such as brake discs, rims and transmission parts, in order to reduce their rotational inertia. The unsprung masses of the wheel units are also extremely important, as they bear directly on the tires without the filtering action of the suspensions. It is indicative that the teams did not seize the opportunity in the regulations to design larger and thicker brake discs, as Andrea Algeri, Brembo Racing F1 Customer Manager, confirmed already in the summer: “From what we are seeing, practically no one is developing the maximum dimensions as happened in the past. In 2026 the search for the minimum weight will be frantic. Everyone is trying to have a system with sufficient performance in terms of torque and cooling, but at the same time as light as possible”. The new chassis crash tests, more severe than in the past, further complicate the situation, working against reducing weight. An example is the introduction of a second impact test for the nose, first requiring a lateral load that leads to failure of the nose in a specific area, and then carrying out a further impact test. “If seen ‘naked’, the chassis will appear similar to the current one. In reality, however, the FIA’s homologation criteria will change a lot”, warned Andrea De Zordo, Haas technical director, to The Tech Formula. “For safety reasons, the resistance of the body will have to be verified in more load scenarios and with more intense forces. Creating the chassis will be very challenging. I am convinced that all the teams are struggling to homologate it, much more than in the past”. Photo by Kym Illman/Getty Images Pay attention to packaging Another theme for the design of the body is the installation of components under the hood. “In 2026, the integration between chassis and power unit will be more important than ever,” Adrian Newey underlined already in October 2024. Housing the engine in such a way as to optimize aerodynamics, the center of gravity and weight distribution is a practice that has been handed down for over half a century. Among the many examples, just think of the 1970 Ferrari 312B, whose flat engine aimed to lower mass and reduce aerodynamic resistance, or more recently the 2011 Red Bull, on which Adrian Newey and Rob Marshall installed the KERS battery in the gearbox area to taper the bodywork. In 2026, power unit packaging takes on even greater importance. Shorter and narrower cars reduce the space available to install the power unit and accessory components, with an increase in the size of the battery, called upon to release 350 kW of power compared to the previous 120 kW. The regulation also presents strict requirements, requiring for example that the electric motor be anchored to the safety cell. From an aerodynamic point of view, reducing resistance is a priority to reduce consumption and have to manage energy less, so much so that some teams are even willing to make the engine work at higher temperatures and sacrifice a few horsepower in order to use smaller radiators. Optimizing the installation of the power unit is therefore crucial for efficiency purposes, being able to design the bodywork more freely. This also has the task of managing turbulence from the front wheels, which moreover are closer to the ground as a consequence of the shortened wheelbase. Even more than with ground effect cars, daring with the shapes of the chassis can make the difference. Same suspensions, different task The choices for the suspensions then depend on the shapes of the bodywork, of which we wait to see if the dualism between the push rod and pull rod scheme will be re-proposed both at the front and at the rear. As with the old regulations, there is no absolute superiority of one kinematic mechanism over the other, the effectiveness of which is linked to the overall concept of the machine and the compromise between aerodynamics and vehicle dynamics. It is interesting to note that in one of the latest versions of the regulation an explicit prohibition on anchoring the rear suspension to the power unit was included, a solution that someone was evidently studying. As regards the internal components, the rules are the same as the last regulatory cycle. Inerters, mass dampers, gas springs and acceleration-sensitive valves continue to be prohibited, which is why the mechanics descend directly from previous single-seaters. What changes, however, is the way the suspension works, since without ground effect there is no longer the need to make the car run low and rigid. The new Formula 1 cars will return to higher ground clearances, thus being able to adopt softer adjustments for the mechanics, also useful for managing balance. However, nothing beats ballasts in this regard, which however will not be usable before reaching the minimum weight, further incentivizing investing in maximum lightness.