The proposed 2027 Formula 1 engine changes could have a much bigger impact on the sport’s future than many initially expected. Although an agreement in principle was announced after the Miami Grand Prix, manufacturers have yet to reach a definitive consensus on several key aspects of the new regulations. As a result, some of the planned changes could even be delayed until 2028.
Finding common ground in the coming weeks is crucial because teams are currently defining the core characteristics of next year’s chassis. Once those design foundations are established, every other area of development follows. Any major regulatory adjustment introduced too late would therefore become extremely difficult, if not impossible, to implement.
The central proposal for 2027 is to move to a 60/40 power split in favour of the internal combustion engine. To achieve that target, the FIA and manufacturers are discussing modifications to the fuel flow meter, allowing a higher fuel flow rate that would increase ICE output by roughly 50 kW while reducing MGU-K power by the same amount.
However, this solution immediately raises another question: where would teams store the additional fuel required to complete a Grand Prix?
The FIA Technical Regulations do not specify an exact fuel tank capacity but instead define the maximum volume available within the chassis. In practice, teams already operate close to the limits for both weight and packaging efficiency. Increasing the amount of fuel required for a race would likely force teams to redesign their chassis to accommodate a larger fuel tank.
That has become a particularly sensitive issue because several teams were reportedly planning to carry over their existing chassis into next season, similar to what happened between 2024 and 2025 during the final year of the previous technical cycle. If the proposed regulation changes are approved, those existing chassis may no longer have sufficient fuel tank capacity to complete a race distance.
Two potential solutions are currently being discussed.
The first would be to grant an exemption so that any chassis modifications required to accommodate a larger fuel tank would not count toward the budget cap. However, even if those costs were excluded from the spending limit, smaller teams would still need to commit additional financial and engineering resources to redesign their cars.
Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu expressed concerns about any further increases in spending.
“I don’t want to increase the budget cap. The budget cap is already much higher this year. Much higher, right? And then having another, I wouldn’t call it an excuse, but a reason, to increase it again by 2 million, by 5 million… at that point it’s no longer a budget cap,” said Ayao Komatsu.
As a result, teams are also discussing a second option: reducing the distance of certain Grands Prix by one or two laps. This would allow teams using existing chassis and fuel tank designs to complete races without requiring major structural modifications.
Speaking during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, Racing Bulls Team Principal Alan Permane confirmed that an initial agreement in principle has already been reached on this approach.
“On the chassis side, we’ve already discussed it and reached an agreement, certainly at Team Principal level, that if someone wants to keep their chassis and it isn’t large enough to cover the 310-kilometre race distance at some events, only where necessary, we could shorten those races by one or two laps, while limiting the trip to the grid to a single lap,” Alan Permane explained.
Compared to the ongoing discussions among engine manufacturers, this proposal appears to enjoy broader support. Mercedes and Red Bull are reportedly in favour, while negotiations continue regarding implementation timing and the value of the ADUO development concessions.
The more extensive the planned changes become—such as potential increases in battery capacity—the more additional investment would be required for a set of regulations that is already proving expensive for manufacturers.
For that reason, shortening selected Grands Prix may represent the simplest and most practical solution. Not every race would necessarily need to be shortened because teams are also evaluating another fuel-saving measure: reducing the number of laps drivers can complete before taking their place on the starting grid.
Under the current regulations, drivers have ten minutes from the opening of the pit lane to leave the garage and form up on the grid before a Grand Prix. During that period, they are free to complete multiple laps, return to the pits, carry out practice starts at the end of the pit lane, and assess car balance in changing conditions before the race begins.
Those additional laps, however, consume valuable fuel. Teams must declare the weight of the car and the amount of fuel onboard before the cars leave the pit lane, allowing the FIA to carry out random inspections.
One proposal currently under consideration would therefore restrict drivers to a single lap before joining the grid, mirroring the procedure already used during Sprint events, where additional reconnaissance laps are not permitted.
It represents a first point of convergence in a debate that is still far from settled, with several important discussions still required before Formula 1 can finalise its 2027 engine regulations.
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