F1 to get its real sound back in 2026

Formula 1 engine noise will increase when new regulations are introduced in 2026, as the MGU-H will be removed.

“The intention is to make sure in the new regulation the engine [noise] itself will be higher because that’s part of our emotion,” F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali told Australian radio station 3AW. “It is really what our fans want to hear and that’s the duty for us to commit to that.”

The new rules agreed for 2026 will retain the current V6 turbos, increase the recovery of kinetic energy by the MGU-K but remove the thermal energy recovery system (MGU-H).

Domenicali insisted there is no possibility of the series moving to much quieter electrical drivetrains as used in Formula E: “No, it’s very clear, no,” he said.

“We need to have a different sound. It’s music for my ears. It’s true that we had the 12 cylinders, it was a different frequency, very loud. And then 10, eight, six – it’s not [going] again down.

“It’s just the situation is different. Of course we need to be a hybrid, we’re going to hybrid for the future.”

“The noise is part of the emotion,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner earlier this year. “It’s part of the DNA of the sport.

“It’s funny how you get used to things because the V6s with the energy recovery systems they currently have are much quieter than the old V10s and V12s or even the V8s. So now when we roll out a show car and you hear a V10 or a V8 engine, all the mechanics put their tools down to go and watch the car.”