Toyota to Quit F1 If Standard Engine Is Approved

Toyota has made the first step to warning the International Automobile Federation that they will most likely leave Formula 1 should the standardized engine rule become mandatory in the near future. The Japanese manufacturer recently issued a warning that most of the F1 constructors are considering abandoning the sport if such a rule should be implemented starting 2010.

“For Toyota it would be a reason to leave Formula One,” German site sport1.de quoted Toyota's John Howett as saying earlier today. Howett has been part of the discussions regarding cutting the costs inside Formula 1 between FIA President Max Mosley and teams' representatives earlier this week. It was in fact only Luca di Montezemolo and Howett to meet with Mosley at Geneva last Tuesday.

Most F1 constructors disagreed with the introduction of standardized power trains inside the Great Circle shortly after Mosley first launched the idea last week. McLaren's Ron Dennis, Honda's Nick Fry and BMW's Mario Theissen all argued that each big manufacturer inside the sport wants to design and develop his own engine and gearbox.

“If you are talking about a standard engine, as in an engine that is identical and made by another manufacturer and they are all exactly the same, we are very much opposed to that. We are the biggest manufacturer of internal combustion engines in the world and we would not be at all happy with an engine that was made by someone else. We want to design, develop and manufacture our engine,” Honda's Nick Fry previously opinionated.

Despite not wanting to argue with FIA too much on the matter, it's also expected that Ferrari disagrees with standardized engines too. So, if we take under consideration Luca di Montezemolo's latest statement – saying that he's very happy with Mosley's proposals on cutting costs in F1 – it's quite possible that using a standard unit in Formula 1 won't become an option any time soon.