While the power unit rules have already been fixed, everything related to the chassis is still under discussion, and inevitably part of the focus is on cost reduction.
Gearboxes are an obvious target as they are not regarded as a performance differentiator, and efforts have been made in the past to address the issue of cutting expenditure, including a failed attempt to introduce a common gearbox before the current rules came into force.
The team with arguably the keenest interest in the future regulations is Aston Martin, which has used customer units from McLaren and latterly Mercedes for many years, and now has to establish its own transmission department.
The Silverstone outfit is keen to ensure that it is ahead of the game if there is any move to standard parts or an overall simplification of the technology required.
“If you look at the gearbox these days, and you compare it with other motorsport categories, the gearbox is not a performance differentiator anymore,” said Aston team principal Mike Krack.
“Everybody has more or less the same performance from the gearbox. But the cost for gearboxes is horrendous, especially if you compare it to other categories.
"So in a cost cap world, it's a question that you have to ask – if it makes sense that you go with such complicated technology if there is no difference in performance?
“Every team is just writing off $8-9 million a year for gearboxes where there is no performance difference at all.”
Source: Autosport