I think Honda have made a big mistake

[Valve Bounce]

It is impossible for Honda to blame anyone for teh car not winning - they will simply lose face, which is a severe humiliation in Japan.

By the way, Yoong just beat Eddie Irvine in free practice 1.
Jaguar are rubbish. Bring back Bobby.

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[neilap]

I have also wondered about the teams getting the same spec motor. Honda says that they are identical. Even though the chassis are not the same between the teams both cars a built according to the info Honda gave them about the motor. So they each went their way to see what works best.

Owning their own team would definitely be the best way to succeed. Honda would be the sole decision maker. They would choose all the components and staff, including drivers. Right now we know BMW and Mercedes practically own the teams they supply. Maybe I should say its more of a joint ownership. Honda needs to be at least be in this position. No one second guesses Williams for keeping RS. So if Honda hires Sato it will be no ones business. Finally, Honda will have a CAR not a chassis and motor.

[Rambo]

Well, let's hope they do a better job than Ford have with Stewart/Jaguar, eh?

[Stephen Green]

Good point Rambo, it doesn't always work does it?

[neilap]

Well right now they are already better than Jag. I dont see why they would not make that extra step.

[ParkLife]

Firstly, BMW, do not, no matter how far you stretch your imagination 'practically own' Williams.

And all this 'single team is the only way to go' is rubbish. If it's done properly it works VERY well. Just look at Renault in the 90's. And the arguement that it's soooooo different now is not valid. Everything is relative and good engineering is good engineering no matter how you look at it. It is not the implementation that is the weak link in the two Honda cars.

Fair enough. Neither car is exactly front running, but with the exception of the Asiatech, the Honda is by FAR the weakest engine, and it simply doesn't appear to be getting better. And this new engine they have introduced yesterday and today really seems to have helped doesn't it. 18th and 19th for the two Honda better drivers. Yes, congratulations Honda. You've succeded in making neither a reliable, or powerful engine.

[Rambo]

Originally posted by neilap
Well right now they are already better than Jag. I dont see why they would not make that extra step.

Stewart were doing a lot better before Ford turned them into Jaguar. 1 win, should have had a couple more, really. Honda could be an equal disaster. I mean, when was the last time Honda built a real racing car and not just engines?

[neilap]

Williams and BMW share a lot more technology than Honda and its teams. BMW has a lot more say in the way the cars are built. Owership might have been a stretch but I think everyone knows what I meant.
When was the last time Honda built a winning car? Well if we are talking about F1 that was only in the sixites right? Honda has been very active in racing for decades. In fact more active than any other company on the grid. I feel this racing knowledge can and will make them a great and winning team.
The new motor seems to have thrown something off. I dont believe it is lower on power maybe it has thrown off the balance of the cars. None of what I have read says that the motor did not live up. From what I read it is understeer that afflicted all of the teams.

[Valve Bounce]

Up until three years ago, the influence of the black box on chassis design was marginal. Since then, the black box controls anything that moves on the chassis, and the integration of the engine and chassis via blackbox is crucial to a car's performance. Just look at what the black box controls now: gears, clutch, diff, TRAX, launch control, as well as the engine. And I am sure some of you can think of other components controlled that I don't know about. All this must be governed by the one developer and tested and alterred and re-tested and so on, until that extra millisec comes off the lap times. Yeah!! Things have changed, and some teams even employ two experienced drivers to test the cars as well as using the regular race drivers.

A team must work together as a team and right now, even their star driver is at odds with the team manager at BAR.

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[Rambo]

"Honda has been very active in racing for decades. In fact more active than any other company on the grid"

Oh, come on! Mercedes, BMW, Ferrari, Toyota - all have a lot of experience with GT/Prototype cars in recent years. Honda have concentrated on bikes - which is hardly the same thing. When was the last time Honda built a racing car? Who's going to build the chassis for them?

Buying a team isn't a magic solution.