Aston Martin recently rejoined the Formula 1 grid. However, the brand itself has been a part of Formula 1 for several decades. The team has gone through a performance rollercoaster over the years, moving up and down the grid. So, you might be wondering what engines Aston Martin use in F1.
The Aston Martin F1 team uses Mercedes engines. The British-based team has been a Mercedes customer team for several years, but they have used various other engine manufacturers in the past. The brand even used Aston Martin engines in their first stint in F1 in 1959 and 1960.
Aston Martin has had some difficult seasons, but they have also had some incredibly competitive seasons in the past. Below, we go into more detail about the different engine suppliers used by each iteration of the current Aston Martin F1 team.
Who Makes Aston Martin F1 Engines?
Aston Martin is currently using the Mercedes 1.6 liter V6 turbo hybrid engine. This is the same engine that is used in the works Mercedes team, and it is sent directly to the Aston Martin factory where the Silverstone-based team incorporates the engines into their cars.
Aston Martin has been using Mercedes engines ever since they made their comeback into the sport in 2021. The team has so far scored one podium with the German engine supplier powering their cars, but their performance has been hampered by the most recent 2022 spec Mercedes engine.
The drop in engine performance has come at the worst possible time for Aston Martin, who seemed to have a promising future ahead of them after hiring several engineers from bigger teams such as Mercedes and Red Bull. There is currently an engine freeze in place until 2026, which means that the Mercedes engine is not likely to improve much over the next couple of seasons.
Have Aston Martin Always Used Mercedes Engines?
Aston Martin as a brand might go way back to the late 1950s, but the F1 team in its current form has its roots back in 1995. We might know Aston Martin for being a Mercedes customer team, but they haven’t always used Mercedes engines throughout their team’s history.
The team has been through several different owners, color schemes, and team names. As the years went by, they also changed their engine suppliers in an attempt to find the perfect combination that could drive them towards a victory, or even a World Championship.
Throughout their history, the team never truly got close to winning a World Championship, but they do have a couple of race wins under their belt. The most recent race win came from Sergio Perez at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix when Aston Martin was still Racing Point, just before he left the team to join Red Bull Racing. But let’s take a closer look at the team’s varied history.
Aston Martin Works Team (1959-1960)
Aston Martin’s first stint in F1 came as a works team in 1959 and lasted just two seasons. It was under the team name of David Brown Corporation (with Brown being the man from whom we get the famous ‘DB’ line of Aston Martin cars), with Aston Martin as the constructor and engine supplier. Sadly, there isn’t much to say about this stint, other than that it was very unsuccessful.
Jordan (1991-2005)
The Jordan F1 team was first founded in 1991 by Eddie Jordan. While the team’s name was technically Jordan Grand Prix, it was simply referred to as Jordan, and the cars were easy to spot thanks to their bright yellow livery. The team was based in Silverstone in the UK, where its headquarters remain to this day.
The team started off with Ford-Cosworth engines, but they soon started hopping from one engine supplier to another, and by the time their 15 seasons in Formula 1 came to an end, they had been through a total of seven engine suppliers, including Yamaha, Hart, Peugeot, Mugen-Honda, Toyota and Honda.
The team found most of its success with Mugen-Honda, which is a company that was founded by the son of Soichiro Honda, the founder of Honda. Mugen is a tuning and parts manufacturer who partnered with Honda to supply Jordan’s engines from 1998 to 2000.
During their stint as Jordan Grand Prix, the team racked up four victories, two fastest laps, and 19 podiums. The Jordan F1 team featured some notable drivers, such as Rubens Barrichello, Giancarlo Fisichella, Damon Hill, Michael and Ralf Schumacher, and Jean Alesi.
Midland (2006)
In early 2005 the Jordan team was sold to the Midland Group, but the Jordan name was still used for the 2005 Formula 1 season. In 2006, the team’s name changed to MF1 Racing, along with the iconic color scheme and even the driver lineup, but the Toyota engine remained. The team was registered as the first Russian Formula 1 team because of the owner’s roots.
However, the Midland Formula 1 team did not perform well at all during the 2006 season, getting no points by the end of the year and finishing last in the World Championship. The only team they could truly compete with was Super Aguri, which was not much competition at all.
Close to the end of the 2006 season it was revealed that the team had been sold to Spyker, a Dutch automotive company. Name changes weren’t allowed mid-season, so Spyker made themselves the title sponsor, resulting in the team becoming “Spyker MF1 Racing” for the final three races of the season. In addition, the car’s livery changed once again.
It was revealed that the owner of MF1 Racing, Alex Shnaider, had sold the team for around $106 million because the value of Formula 1 teams had risen significantly. All spaces on the grid had already been filled and no new teams could enter, which pushed the value of the teams on the grid up even more.
Spyker (2007)
With the team changing hands once again, there was a new team name, a new color scheme, and a brand new Dutch competition license. Spyker F1 was born, but the driver lineup of Christian Albers and Tiago Monteiro was kept unchanged, although there would be significant changes to this lineup throughout the season.
Another major change was made in the engine department as the team switched to Ferrari for the 2007 season. Ferrari engines were constantly near the front of the grid, and this was still to be the case in 2007 and 2008. However, the Spyker F1 team was given the 2006-spec Ferrari engines.
The team managed to score just one point throughout the course of the 2007 season through Adrian Sutil at the Japanese Grand Prix. The Spyker cars suffered 14 retirements in 17 races, which truly cost them in terms of their performance in front of big Middle Eastern sponsors such as Etihad Airways.
Force India (2008-2018)
At the end of the 2007 season, it was announced that the team was once again up for sale due to Spyker splitting from its parent company. The team was sold to Orange India, whose owner was Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, who would soon become one of the most famous team owners in the Formula 1 paddock.
For the 2008 season the team was renamed to Force India. They kept the Ferrari engine, as well as their driver Adrian Sutil. Their initial season was disappointing as the team cruised to last place in the 2008 World Championship without scoring any points.
But in 2009 the team made the switch to Mercedes engines and started performing well. Force India’s first ever pole position, podium, and points came from the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix as Giancarlo Fisichella fought to the bitter end of the race with Kimi Raikkonen in his Ferrari. With 13 points on the board by the end of the season, things were looking better.
The 2010 season came along and Force India were now well into the midfield. From 2010 to 2014, the team consistently finished between 6th and 7th in the World Championship, scoring a total of 478 points during those five seasons. They also managed to score one fastest lap in 2012 and 2014 respectively,
With Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez at the wheel, Force India became a stronger team as the seasons went by. In 2015 the team managed to secure fifth place in the constructors’ standings, helped out by Perez’ podium finish at the Russian Grand Prix.
However, things were only getting better for Force India as they managed to secure fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship two seasons in a row in 2016 and 2017, the best results that the Silverstone-based team had experienced since their third place finish in 1999, when they were still Jordan Grand Prix.
In 2018 there was a drop-off in pace, as the team managed to finish just 7th in the Constructors title with Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon as the drivers. This drop in performance coincided with the team going into administration at the 2018 Hungarian Grand Prix, with its future in the sport uncertain beyond the end of the season.
Racing Point (2019-2020)
A consortium led by Lawrence Stroll bought Force India and renamed the team to Racing Point for the 2019 season. The Silverstone headquarters remained, as well as the Mercedes engine which was clearly the dominant force ever since the hybrid era began in 2014.
However, Lance Stroll was brought into the driver lineup alongside Sergio Perez. The team remained in the midfield for the 2019 season and managed to finish in 7th place once again in the Constructors’ Championship. But the tides turned in 2020 as the team brought a questionable challenger to the grid.
Many were accusing the team of copying the 2019 Mercedes that had dominated the previous season. Many felt that the team’s sudden turn-around in performance was a direct result of “stealing” designs from the successful Mercedes car.
Racing Point finished the 2020 season in 4th place, with one victory, one pole position, and 195 points. This was the first time that any form of the team had won a race since Jordan at the 2003 Brazilian Grand Prix. However, the team’s performance was still tainted by the “Pink Mercedes” controversy, for which they were fined and docked points in the constructors’ standings.
Aston Martin (2021-current)
Lawrence Stroll then bought a 25% stake in Aston Martin and rebranded his Racing Point team to bring the legendary British brand back into Formula 1. The Aston Martin name would compete in the pinnacle of motorsport again for the first time since 1960. The team took on four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel in the place of Red Bull bound Sergio Perez.
The team’s performance was decent in 2021 as they managed to secure one podium. But they only managed 7th place in the Constructors Championship with 77 points. In 2022, this downward trend continued, largely as a result of the apparent loss in performance of the Mercedes engine. We’re yet to see Aston Martin on the top step of the podium in F1, but Vettel did get a 2nd place in Baku in 2021.
KEY POINTS
• Aston Martin had a works F1 team in 1959-1960, but they saw no success
• The team has taken on various guises over the years
• The current iteration of the Aston Martin team is yet to score a victory
Does Aston Martin Use Other Mercedes Components?
Aston Martin has an agreement in place with Mercedes to buy their engines every season, likely until at least 2026. Along with the engine, the team also buys parts like the gearbox and the rear suspension. These parts are crucial to the overall design of the car.
Aston Martin is still buying these integral parts from the Mercedes team. As long as they are a Mercedes customer team they will likely need to keep buying these additional parts from the German engine supplier.
Aston Martin F1 Team Engines Over The Years
| Years | Engine Supplier | Wins |
| 1991 | Ford-Cosworth | 0 |
| 1992 | Yamaha | 0 |
| 1993-1994 | Hart | 0 |
| 1995-1997 | Peugeot | 0 |
| 1998-2000 | Mugen-Honda | 3 |
| 2001-2002 | Honda | 0 |
| 2003-2004 | Ford-Cosworth | 1 |
| 2005-2006 | Toyota | 0 |
| 2007-2008 | Ferrari | 0 |
| 2009-Present | Mercedes | 1 |
KEY FACT: Aston Martin’s longest stint with an engine supplier is with Mercedes, with their partnership going strong since 2009 Will Aston Martin Make Its Own F1 Engine?
Aston Martin may make their own F1 engine in the future, with the 2026 regulations set to alter the way the engines are made and work in a massive way. Even though, this would cost millions of dollars to develop a factory for, Aston Martin have suggested they may consider it.
When Aston Martin first joined Formula 1 in 1959 they built their own engines. However, the team only participated in seven Grands Prix between 1959 and 1960, so it’s fair to say that building their own engines to compete in the sport was not that fruitful.
But with the team now based in Silverstone, they are in the hub of British motorsport, and their factory has been under construction with new upgrades. These upgraded facilities include a wind tunnel, simulator, and various new bits of machinery. However, there are no plans for an engine building facility to be opened.
Formula 1 factories need engine facilities if the constructor wants to build their own power units. This can become incredibly costly, especially if the team needs to hire new engineers and invest money into researching and developing the complex engines that modern Formula 1 cars use. With this in mind, it’s unlikely that Aston Martin would build their engines in the near future.
Final Thoughts
Aston Martin uses Mercedes engines in F1, and they also buy additional components from the German automotive giant, including the gearbox and the rear suspension. The Silverstone-based team has had several engine suppliers throughout the years, going back to their time as Jordan from 1991-2005.
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