Volkswagen Consider F1 Debut

Following the departures of Honda and BMW from Formula One – which will probably be followed by Toyota or Renault in the near future – the sport has undoubtedly lost some of its cache in the eyes of the public. After all, F1 was about big-shot manufacturers competing against each other both technologically and engineeringly.

However, it seems that all is not lost for Bernie Ecclestone, as at least one important car maker is currently looking at the prospect of joining the Great Circle in the years to come. According to an official statement from Reinhold Carl, managing director of Audi Singapore, German brand Volkswagen is eyeing an F1 move in the years to come.

Carl reckoned that the move will only be possible if Formula One will further reduce the managing costs of a team. According to the Audi official, the company would only consider investing “well over a hundred million euros” in order to have a Formula One team.

“If the cost is lower, it will be more manageable,” Carl told the reporters, as revealed by the GMM news agency.

In addition, Carl admitted that the recent exodus of teams like Honda, BMW or Lotus (who were not accepted by the FIA in the most recent entry list process earlier this year) will not be considered a plus in VW's decision to join F1. The series would only be attractive if consisted of big manufacturers, believes Carl.

One further information regarding this vague project of Volkswagen's is the potential name of the new outfit. According to Carl, the team would bear the name of Porsche, Audi “or even Volkswagen.”