M840TR wrote: ↑18 Dec 2018, 21:28
The problem was not the deal. It was excellent on paper. Hundreds of millions in funding with free engines? Deal of a lifetime! It was more the poor execution that got them. Honda didn't even have two years to build the most complex engines in the history of F1. Add that to the fact that they'd been out of the game for years and had to focus on building their facilities and hiring the right people. They should've played it safe and use a cash-strapped team like Caterham as a mule for a few years (like Toro Rosso) while running the Merc engine as a benchmark. I'm sure Honda would've complied with supplying them free engines for a quid pro quo.
Their shortsightedness cost them so much, even their jobs.
Why "hiring right people"? It's about firstly and most importantly the same group of people at HRD Sakura gaining and accumulating more knowledge and experience, then assigning right or more people from within Honda and structuring the organization. Most Honda staffs involved in F1 now used to be involved with F1 in 00s as well, and same people are doing F1 since 2013 to this day despite rather frequent changes in project leaders and some reshuffles, although of course there have been some ins and outs.
Using backmarker team as a mule is just unrealistic fantasy, are you aware of much it takes just to run an F1 team for a season? It's just money wasted for nothing that would otherwise be spent for something better and actually beneficial.
The rest is right and what I've been saying since 2015, glad more people are saying what's just so obvious.
Jackles-UK wrote: ↑19 Dec 2018, 04:30
Mercedes (and I’d assume Ferrari & Renault to some extent too) had been working on their Turbo-Hybrid PU’s from as far back as 2012 I believe - it was this early knowledge that convinced Hamilton to move to Mercedes from McLaren.
Honda were parachuted into the F1 circus at least one year earlier than expected (at the request of Ron Dennis) and were therefore trying to compete with engines three or four years into their development cycle, with only one team to run tests on their engine and with a list of specifications as long as your arm from McLaren as to what it should entail!
As some have said, the deal itself would have been a master stroke if it had worked out. Being paid huge sums of money by Honda to have free engines built for them to McLaren’s design to specifically match their chassis? What’s not to like? Just a shame that issues that arose from both sides were insurmountable.
Merc Fer Ren have been working on PU practically since 2010.
Honda participating in F1 in 2015 rather than in 2016 or even 2017 was decision made by Honda and McLaren having assessed all the pros and cons, not such simple thing as at the request of one individual in Dennis. People have so short memory, remember that initially this PU reg was on yearly development freezing scheme and token system, so the later you enter the less areas for development and at that time there was zero sign zero talk about removing this freeze and token scheme. So really they had to enter as early as possible even by sacrificing one or few years. Only in the latter half of 2015 the F1 community started to realize that this freeze and token system is flawed before eventually deciding to scrap it altogether from 2017 season in early 2016.
Actually having only one team is advantageous, a booster for development in primary stages of development, they can concentrate on one car and be aggressive in introducing new components either update or exchange due to trouble without holding back like Renault had to. Honda has always been reluctant about 2nd team supply because it stretches their logistics capacity way too much (manufacturing capability, supply chain capability and race staff number). This "double mileage data" that has been suggested a lot can only be of some advantage when you have stable and established foundation in every aspects.
