Haas is one of the newest additions to the F1 grid, arriving on the scene in 2016. It’s currently the only American team in Formula 1, and despite struggling in recent seasons, they have started to find some solid form. You might be wondering what engines are used by the Haas F1 team.
Haas uses Ferrari engines in F1. The American team has been using Ferrari engines ever since their debut in F1. Haas have developed a strong relationship with the Italian engine manufacturer. Haas is set to continue their engine partnership with Ferrari for the years ahead.
With Ferrari as their engine supplier, Haas has had some good results in the past, especially during the seasons where Ferrari were able to build strong engines. Below, we will take a closer look at Haas’ relationship with Ferrari and what the team’s future looks like.
Does Haas Use Ferrari Engines?
Haas does use Ferrari engines, and has done ever since their debut in Formula 1 for the 2016 season. The American team has a deal in place with Ferrari where they buy their engines, gearboxes, and some other internal components to use within their Formula 1 cars.
This means that Haas don’t have to build their own engines, which has saved them millions of dollars in terms of their initial investment to join Formula 1. If Haas were to build their own engines, they would need to invest in the technology and in an engine building facility at their factory.
A Good Start
Haas F1’s very first race was at the 2016 Australian Grand Prix. The team was off to a solid start with Romain Grosjean finishing in sixth place and scoring eight points. This made Haas the first constructor since Toyota in 2002 to score points on their F1 debut.
The following race in Bahrain yielded yet another good result, where Romain Grosjean finished in fifth place. However, after this, the rest of the season was relatively average. The team only managed to score points on three more occasions that year.
The 2017 season held even more promise as the team secured their best qualifying result with a sixth place grid start at the Australian Grand Prix. In addition, they also scored their first ever double-points finish at the Monaco Grand Prix, with the cars finishing in eighth and tenth place. The team finished eighth in the constructors’ standings with 47 points.
Haas-Ferrari Controversy
2018 was Haas’ strongest season so far. However, the team turned up to pre-season testing with a car that looked very similar to the previous season’s Ferrari SF70H. Team principal Gunther Steiner insisted that all the parts that were purchased from Ferrari were legal and approved by the FIA, which meant that the team could proceed with the car that they built.
At the season opener in Australia, the American team experienced their best-ever qualifying result, with their cars setting lap times fast enough for fifth and sixth place on the grid. During the race though, both cars retired just one lap after their respective pit stops as a result of cross threaded wheel nuts, which left the entire team, and Steiner frustrated.
The team’s strong form continued, and by the ninth round in Austria, they had already surpassed their points total from the 2017 season. The Singapore Grand Prix also resulted in Haas’ first ever fastest lap, which was set by Kevin Magnussen. Haas finished fifth in the 2018 constructors championship, just one point short of scoring double the number of points they had in 2017.
Sponsorship Controversy
The 2019 season brought even more drama to the American F1 team as they went through the Rich Energy sponsorship debacle. While the team still performed reasonably well with their Ferrari engines, their season was overshadowed by the controversy caused by their title sponsor Rich Energy, who unexpectedly ended their partnership with the team halfway through the season.
The German Grand Prix was the team’s best result of the season with the cars finishing in seventh and eighth places. The team finished ninth in the constructors’ standings with just 29 points.
Turbulent Seasons
Following the 2019 season, Haas suffered with a poor performing 2020 Ferrari engine, managing to score just three points during the entire season. The Haas was one of the slowest cars on the grid, consistently struggling toward the back end of the midfield. At the Bahrain Grand Prix, Romain Grosjean suffered a life-threatening crash but remarkably walked away with just burns on his hands.
In 2021, Haas changed their driver lineup to Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin. However, the team’s struggles continued as the Ferrari engine showed very little signs of improvement. All Ferrari powered cars, including the works team, were struggling for pace throughout the 2020 and 2021 seasons, as the power unit was not up to standard.
In order to survive the season financially, the team chose to stop developing their 2021 car and focus on the massive aerodynamic rule changes that were implemented in 2022. The team continued to struggle with the car as there were no upgrades being brought for the team to become more competitive over the course of the season.
2021 was the team’s worst ever season, scoring no points and finishing last in the constructors’ standings. But shifting their focus onto the 2022 car paid off as the team significantly improved their performance in the following season.
Positive Future
Right off the bat, the Haas VF-22 was a more competitive car than the previous season. The strong Ferrari power unit that was developed for 2022 played a pivotal role in this upturn in performance. All Ferrari powered cars performed well out of the gates in 2022, with Ferrari taking a victory, Magnussen finishing fifth for Haas, and Alfa Romeo finishing in sixth and tenth.
Halfway through the 2022 season, the Haas team had scored more points than all but two of their previous seasons points totals. With the engine freeze in place, Haas could have a promising future ahead of them with Ferrari as their engine suppliers.
Will Haas Continue To Use Ferrari Engines?
Haas are likely to continue using Ferrari engines for the foreseeable future. The initial good results and high performing engine in 2022 played into the American team’s hands as their car managed to benefit from some excellent straight line speed.
The Haas is no longer the slowest car on the grid, but it has made its way into the midfield instead. The car is still not strong enough to compete for podium positions, but the strong performance from the Ferrari power unit has been convincing enough to keep Haas on as a customer team for the Italian manufacturer.
The Best Engine?
Following the first couple of races of the 2022 season, the Haas drivers and the team principal Gunther Steiner all had high praise for the Ferrari engine, stating that it is ahead of all the other power units on the grid, including the Mercedes engine which dominated the hybrid era since 2014.
Considering the fact that there is now also an engine freeze in place, Haas is more likely to stick with Ferrari as their engine supplier. The engine freeze will prevent the manufacturers from significantly upgrading their engine’s performance until the end of the 2025 season. This means that the Ferrari engine is likely to be the best power unit for the foreseeable future.
KEY POINTS
• The Haas F1 team has used Ferrari engines since their first race in 2016
• They have enjoyed mixed success over the years
• Haas will probably continue to use Ferrari engines in the future
How Does Haas’ Engine Compare To Other Manufacturers?
The Ferrari engine that Haas uses is one of the strongest on the current grid. The Ferrari engine is the most powerful of the four manufacturers, although it hasn’t been the most reliable. These engines perform particularly well on power circuits which allows these cars to overtake others more easily.
Ferrari, Gunther Steiner, and other teams have confirmed that Ferrari have the best power unit, which gives them and their customer teams a significant advantage going into the engine freeze in the next couple of seasons. However, reliability will need to improve if they are to take advantage of the engine’s performance.
Best Of The Rest
Red Bull Powertrains have the second strongest power unit going into the engine freeze, and it’s been estimated that they are around 10 horsepower down on the Ferrari power unit. These engines are used by Red Bull and the AlphaTauri team. Red Bull have been significantly faster in a straight line because of their aerodynamic advantage rather than sheer engine power.
The Renault engine used by Alpine is a close third as it produces a lot of power and gives the cars a great top end speed. However, it has proven to be somewhat unreliable over the course of the season, with some failures and power blips causing the drivers issues.
Mercedes have developed the poorest performing engine for the 2022 season and beyond, which is surprising considering how dominant they were since the start of the hybrid era in 2014. This is further backed up by the fact that two Mercedes customer teams (Aston Martin and Williams) have been performing poorly for the entirety of the 2022 season.
Will Haas Ever Build Their Own Engines?
It’s unlikely that Haas will ever build their own F1 engines. The team is still under immense financial pressure and trying to focus all of their efforts on improving their on-track performances. Ultimately, building their own engines would cost Haas an immense amount of money.
The team would need to invest in an engine facility, as well as invest resources into developing the technology needed to build Formula 1 engines. All of this is currently provided by Ferrari through their engine facilities in Italy.
In addition to building an engine department, Haas would also need to invest in hiring many new engineers to build, develop, and fine-tune the engine. Currently these staff members are also provided by Ferrari as a part of their deal with Haas as a customer team.
US Headquarters
One of the factors that would make it incredibly difficult for Haas to build their own engines is their unique setup, which is different to any other team on the grid. Haas has their main headquarters in the Kannapolis, North Carolina, United States. It’s difficult to run a Formula 1 team from the US alone though, so the team had to invest in premises in Europe.
Haas bought a factory in Banbury in England that previously belonged to the Marussia F1 team. This is the factory that is responsible for supplying the team with spare parts, upgrades, and general maintenance of the cars. However, this facility does not have an engine department, and would require significant investment in order to build one.
Big Investments
Red Bull Racing have recently started building their own engines after establishing their Red Bull Powertrains department. This has been the Austrian energy drink company’s biggest investment since buying Jaguar Racing in 2005. Despite all of their championships and success, the team had to invest more money than ever before just to start building their own engines.
Even so, Red Bull have kept on some of the Honda staff members, and they are currently still using the Honda facilities to build their engines because Honda left the sport at the end of 2021. If Haas were to do the same, Ferrari would not let their engineers go, and they would also not let Haas use their factories since they would become direct competitors rather than having a partnership.
KEY POINTS
• The Ferrari engine that the Haas F1 team uses is arguably the strongest on the grid
• However, it is not the most reliable
• Haas is likely to continue using Ferrari engines, rather than invest in their own engine development
Final Thoughts
Haas have been using Ferrari engines ever since their debut in Formula 1 during the 2016 season. The American team has built up a strong relationship with Ferrari. The current engine freeze means that Haas has one of the strongest power units on the grid for the foreseeable future.