Aston Martin knows what’s coming: joining forces with Honda brings them closer to victory. It brings them closer to winning in Formula 1. And it does so simply because of history. Because of something that didn’t happen before, but which has become the norm since the arrival of hybrid engines in 2014.
Especially with the way the engine fits into the body of the upcoming AMR26. Luca Furbatto, engineering director at Silverstone, explained it perfectly. Aston Martin is eager to put the Honda engine insideLuca Furbatto recently explained in an interview with Formulapassion how the reading and implementation of the new technical regulations for 2026 was going.
This change will mean everything for the green team, and it is what has led them to join forces with Honda. However, he has dispelled any doubts about the Japanese manufacturer’s skills within the team, something that was a particular concern after their early days with McLaren in the hybrid era.
Aston Martin is looking to the future with Honda with optimism, now that its growth process has come to an end. Its mega factory, the Technology Campus, is already operating at full capacity. And although departments such as aerodynamics still need to expand a little more, the team is already much better prepared for greater aspirations. This will be the challenge they will have to face with their partner from now on, looking ahead to 2026.
“Aston Martin has changed a lot from 2021 to today,” recalls Luca Furbatto. “We were a small team, still based at the Jordan facility, but now we enjoy a beautiful, state-of-the-art location.
Aston Martin’s transformation with Honda: from relying on Mercedes to a factory team
We are talking about the Silverstone-based team having an exclusive partnership with Honda. It will end all ties with Mercedes, which currently supplies the power units (engine and hybrid part), the gearbox, and the rear suspension. This transformation is no small feat, as it will be accompanied by other significant changes, such as the in-house development of the transmission. All of this will be carried out by a team that will be personally supervised by Luca Furbatto, Aston Martin’s engineering director.
In fact, everything related to hybrid engines, increased electric performance, and sustainable synthetic fuels (known as e-fuels) will play a key role. This is something that Aston Martin believes is essential for a team to differentiate itself or stand out from the rest.
“Yes. We already saw this in 2014 with the arrival of the power units,” says Furbatto. “The fact that the battery and the electrical part in general are getting bigger means that the layout of the internal volumes is crucial.”
“It’s one of the reasons why we decided to collaborate with Honda.”
The next generation of power units will retain the conventional V6 turbo engine layout and hybrid system. This will eliminate the current MGU-H, the thermal energy recovery system, which since its introduction in 2014 has been considered expensive and complex.
In its place, the power of the MGU-K, the kinetic energy recovery system, will be increased, achieving a 50:50 power split between the internal combustion engine and the electric motor.
“It’s a regulatory change that affects both the engine and the aerodynamics. In the last 25 years, there has never been one this big because during that time at least one of the two areas remained stable. It is very likely that scenarios will arise in which some get the concept right and others don’t, with very significant differences between the different cars,“ he said.
”It is very likely that some will get the concept right and others won’t; there will be very significant differences between the different cars.”
Not surprisingly, in this scenario, each team will have to make the most of the bodywork and the available space to integrate these elements. As was the case with the last change in the engine regulations eleven years ago, if a team or an engine manufacturer gets it right, they can achieve superlative performance in the championship. However, this could not be done as a customer team, but only with an engine manufacturer working exclusively for the team. As Furbatto revealed, this is one of the main reasons—if not the main reason—that led Lawrence Stroll to seek Honda as a factory partner in Formula 1. Alongside Alonso and Newey, the ambition to win is immense.
“It’s one of the reasons why Aston Martin has decided to collaborate with Honda,” the engineer said in an interview with Formulapassion. “Because if we want to make a leap in performance, we have to be a factory team, not a customer, and be in control of our destiny. It will be a huge impact for us,” he stressed.
“We currently buy the gearbox and rear suspension from Mercedes, but in 2026 we will achieve official team status with Honda, many things will change and we will have to carry out a series of new projects for the car. The last time this team manufactured its own gearbox was in 2008, and things have moved on a bit since then!” said the Italian, referring to the time when the British team had just been renamed Force India after the purchase of Spyker F1, formerly Midland and Jordan.
“Since the arrival of hybrid power units, only the official teams have won the World Championship,” says the Italian. Something that, he admits, was not the case “in the past,” when, whether you were an official team or not, you could take the title home. McLaren, which also uses Mercedes engines, has been the only exception in the last 15 years.
Now they will have to adapt after years and years with Mercedes: “We are very happy, but we are practically run by them in terms of architecture. The power unit, the gearbox, the rear… we have to design the car to what they give us.” Looking ahead, they hope that this time the move will be a winning one.