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FIA clamps down on engine maps

Red Bull's senior team members had to defend their engine map in front of the stewards before the race in Germany © Sutton Images

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• Drivers:
• Christian Horner

• Teams:
• Red Bull

The FIA has issued a technical clarification to the teams in the wake of Red Bull's engine mapping investigation.

The two RB8 cars came under scrutiny in Germany for running engine maps that were not delivering a torque output at mid rpm range that was linear to the throttle input. No action was taken at Hockenheim because the stewards said that while they "do not accept all the arguments of the team, they however conclude that as the regulation is written, the map presented does not breach the text of Art. 5.5.3 of the Formula One Technical Regulations".

As a result of the wording of that statement, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner admitted that he was braced for the FIA to make changes after the race, saying: "The regulations are clear, so there could well be further technical directives that are designed to further clarify those regulations."

The issue was flagged because FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer noticed a difference in the torque output at mid rpm range compared to previous events, but Red Bull argued that the regulation did not state that other events would be referenced and that the engine only had to deliver the maximum torque it was programmed to on that day.

It has now been confirmed to ESPNF1 that the teams have been issued with a clarification surrounding the engine maps, and although the contents of the clarification have not been made public, the BBC reports that a reference map from the opening four races must be supplied to the FIA and that the directive states: "Above 6,000rpm, the maximum engine torque may vary by no more than +/- 2% (from the reference map). And the ignition angle may vary by no more than 2.5%."

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