Professional Motorsport World
  • News
    • A-E
      • Bodywork
      • Business Services
      • Chassis
      • Circuit News
      • Data Capture
      • Driver Safety
      • Electric Motorsport
      • Engine Technology
    • F-N
      • Karting
      • Legislative
      • Logistics
      • Materials
      • New Competition Car
    • O-S
      • Off Road
      • R&D
      • Race Series News
      • Safety
      • Show News
      • Simulation
      • Single Seaters
    • T-Z
      • Team News
      • Tin Tops
      • Tyres
      • Transmissions
      • Workshop
  • Features
  • Online Magazines
    • October 2024
    • September 2023
    • 2022
    • September 2021
    • Archive Issues
    • Subscribe Free!
  • Opinion
  • Videos
  • Supplier Spotlight
  • PMW Expo
LinkedIn Facebook Twitter
  • Automotive Interiors
  • Automotive Testing
  • Autonomous Vehicle
  • Automotive Powertrain
  • Tire
  • Media Pack
LinkedIn Facebook YouTube Instagram
Subscribe
Professional Motorsport World
  • News
      • Aerodynamics
      • Bodywork
      • Business Services
      • Chassis
      • Circuit News
      • Data Acquisition
      • Driver Safety
      • Electric Motorsport
      • Engine Technology
      • Karting
      • Legislative
      • Logistics
      • Materials
      • New Competition Car
      • Off Road
      • R&D
      • Race Series News
      • Safety
      • Show News
      • Simulation
      • Single Seaters
      • Team News
      • Testing
      • Tyres
      • Transmissions
      • Workshop
  • Features
  • Online Magazines
    1. October 2024
    2. September 2023
    3. 2022
    4. September 2021
    5. April 2020
    6. Subscribe Free!
    Featured
    9th October 2024

    In this Issue – October 2024

    Online Magazines By Lawrence Butcher
    Recent

    In this Issue – October 2024

    9th October 2024

    In this Issue – September 2023

    21st September 2023

    In this Issue – 2022

    4th October 2022
  • Opinion
  • Videos
  • Supplier Spotlight
  • PMW Expo
LinkedIn Facebook Instagram YouTube
Subscribe
Professional Motorsport World
Engine Technology

Honda reveals details of 2021 power unit development

Lawrence ButcherBy Lawrence Butcher23rd April 20215 Mins Read
Share LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email

2020 appears to be the year that Honda’s Formula 1 power unit (PU) has come good. However, the manufacturer is set to withdraw from the sport at the end of the season, though its PU will live on in the hands of Red Bull’s new powertrain operation.

The company described its PU as all-new for this year, with head of power unit development Yasuaki Asaki providing an insight into the development of the unit and the challenges it presented.

“The original plan was to implement this new structure PU this year,” Asaki noted. “But then for a variety of reasons, it was decided not to proceed with a brand-new PU. However, the thinking on this really changed when Honda announced that we would be leaving the sport. I went to President Hachigo, and said to him that we would really like to implement this new structure PU for our last year in the sport. And he kindly accepted that request.

“With the green light given, our engineers got to work on trying to get everything ready for the new season. That was never going to be an easy task, given the scope of the changes being made to the power unit’s architecture.”

Much of the work focused on the top end of the IC engine, with a revised camshaft layout allowing for more compact packaging and reduced CofG. “We’ve also had to change the valve angle. The main point of what we’ve changed was to improve combustion efficiency. To do so, we had to change the valve angle, and to do that we had to change the camshaft,” added Asaki-san. “We’ve also had to make the head cover lower and more compact, which means that the way that air flows over it has become a lot better. And we’ve also lowered the center of gravity of the ICE.”

Honda head of power unit development Yasuaki Asaki

Further improving the engine packaging, the BCD (bore center distance) was reduced, with a knock-on effect on overall engine length. Asaki detailed that “in the old engine straddling the transmission we also had a bank offset whereby the left bank was slightly offset from the right bank. So what we’ve done is reverse this offset on the new engine so that the right bank is forward and the left bank is back. I’m sure you’ll appreciate this is a completely new engine. And we’ve been able to bring it to a point where in just six months we’ve taken it testing without any issues.”

Combustion efficiency and the overall efficiency of the power unit also came in for close attention, Asaki highlighting the balancing act that was involved. “Another point that we’ve had to think about is the fact that combustion efficiency has got better. And the camshaft output has got better. Due to the rules of physics, the amount of energy that can be stored has changed and it meant that the amount of exhaust energy has decreased. So compared with the recovery that we were getting last year, what we’re having to do is increase the amount of crankshaft output, and at the same time ensure that there’s a good level of exhaust output, exhaust temperature as well.”

Even though this development work took place across a very condensed six-month period and required a focus on reliability as well, Asaki said his team was able to ensure all of the significant developments were included in the new design.

“I believe that we were able to implement everything that we have to in order to compete with Mercedes. We had a lot of cooperation from Red Bull, making sure that we could get the most from this new compact engine. Until the summer we were working on the basis that it was going to be the previous, bigger engine.”

To achieve this required collaboration from different departments within the wider Honda company, as well as the power unit team leaning on its past experiences of major development challenges. “This is the first time that we’ve gone as far as changing the structure of the PU itself. But I think the biggest challenge that we’ve had up to this point was back in the McLaren days, when we made big changes to the MGU-H, we changed the positioning of the compressor and turbine in relation to the V bank – I think the biggest challenges were back then,” pointed out Asaki.

He highlighted that input from Honda’s motorcycle arm was of particular importance. “Honda Motor has helped us with various different points, but one of the points I’d like to mention is a cylinder sleeve plating, produced by our plant in Kumamoto – it’s called the Kumamoto plating. The Kumamoto plant is actually a motorbike factory, but within Honda there’s a substantial amount of collaboration between the two-wheel production and four-wheel production areas.”

He also addressed the fact that the company was leaving the sport, and the impact this could have had on the motivation of his engineers. “I had acknowledged in some ways that it was an incredibly challenging target. But I think our engineers have had both the understanding that yes we’ve only got a year left but also we’ve got a full year left and we have to do something with that time, and they’ve worked hard during the time that we have had.”

Share. Twitter LinkedIn Facebook Email
Previous ArticleAirShaper unveils automated aerodynamic shape-optimization tool
Next Article Red Bull Powertrains confirms Ben Hodgkinson as technical director 

Related Posts

Aerodynamics

Hennessey finalizes testing Venom F5 Evolution hypercar

22nd April 20254 Mins Read
New Competition Car

Genesis fires up WRC-derived LMDh V8 for first time

22nd April 20254 Mins Read
Electric Motorsport

IQE and X-FAB sign JDA to create 650V GaN power device platform

14th April 20252 Mins Read
Latest News

Kammanufaktur to present latest 912c restomods in USA and Europe

14th May 2025

WRC Commission’s draft WRC 2027 regulations feature a new bodywork chapter

14th May 2025

Porsche develops TABASKO lightweight construction method

14th May 2025

Receive breaking stories and features in your inbox each week, for free


Enter your email address:


Supplier Spotlights
  • Elite Sensors Ltd
Getting in Touch
  • Contact Us / Advertise
  • Meet The Editors
  • Download Media Pack
  • Free Weekly E-Newsletter
Our Social Channels
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
RELATED UKI TOPICS
  • Automotive Interiors
  • Automotive Testing
  • Autonomous Vehicle
  • Automotive Powertrain
  • Tire
  • Media Pack
© 2025 UKi Media & Events a division of UKIP Media & Events Ltd
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Notice & Takedown Policy

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie records the user consent for the cookies in the "Necessary" category.
elementorneverThe website's WordPress theme uses this cookie. It allows the website owner to implement or change the website's content in real-time.

Advertisement

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

CookieDurationDescription
OAGEOsessionOpenX sets this cookie to avoid the repeated display of the same ad.
OAID1 yearCookie set to record whether the user has opted out of the collection of information by the AdsWizz Service Cookies.
test_cookie15 minutesdoubleclick.net sets this cookie to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE5 months 27 daysYouTube sets this cookie to measure bandwidth, determining whether the user gets the new or old player interface.
YSCsessionYoutube sets this cookie to track the views of embedded videos on Youtube pages.
yt-remote-connected-devicesneverYouTube sets this cookie to store the user's video preferences using embedded YouTube videos.
yt-remote-device-idneverYouTube sets this cookie to store the user's video preferences using embedded YouTube videos.
yt.innertube::nextIdneverYouTube sets this cookie to register a unique ID to store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen.
yt.innertube::requestsneverYouTube sets this cookie to register a unique ID to store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen.

Analytics

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

CookieDurationDescription
CONSENT2 yearsYouTube sets this cookie via embedded YouTube videos and registers anonymous statistical data.
vuid1 year 1 month 4 daysVimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos on the website.
_ga1 year 1 month 4 daysGoogle Analytics sets this cookie to calculate visitor, session and campaign data and track site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognise unique visitors.
_ga_*1 year 1 month 4 daysGoogle Analytics sets this cookie to store and count page views.

Functional

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

CookieDurationDescription
__cf_bm30 minutesCloudflare set the cookie to support Cloudflare Bot Management.

SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by