Red Bull Red Bull Advanced Technologies RB17

[Bridster]

We don't know yet.

I wonder what displacement it is. Could it be 3.5 L?
The whole RB17 line bellow is theory-crafting. I don't have more info than you do. And it's sorted by power per liter of a hypothetical one cylinder version of those engines.

3.5L is too low. It will have to be a 4L at least.

If the peak power was at 14500RPM, and the torque was still at 97.5% of the max (which is not uncommon for race engines, although it could also be much lower), then you would need at least 500Nm of peak torque to get 1000hp. Typically Nm/L, even for unrestricted race engines, doesn't go much above 125Nm/L. So it would have to be at least 4L, possibly a bit more, depending on the exact numbers for the specific torque and torque curve.

As for who is making it... It could even be Red Bull Powertrains in collaboration with Honda. Of course, Cosworth is also a candidate.

 

[Revvd]

As long as it sounds like a 2000s F1, I'll be happy.
It would be pretty funny if they slapped a Ford logo on it, in one of those marketing deals.

 

[Sunny]

Red Bull Powertrains in collaboration with Honda

I thought that partnership is over. Honda is still supplying F1 engines till end of 2025, but RBPT is developing the 2026 powertrain independently/partnership with Ford.

Also given they are just starting out, I doubt RBPT would want to be distracted by a completely different engine formula to the F1 unit. So wouldn't be surprised if they outsource it to Cosworth.

 

[Revvd]

I doubt RBPT would want to be distracted by a completely different engine...

I thought the whole reason why this project exists is essentially to serve as a countermeasure to FIA's budget cap constraints... To keep RBR/RBPT employees less likely to get poached by competition by giving them a cool project to put on their resume, where they would otherwise have to idly sit by.
They can reshuffle the personnel between F1 and RB17. The most important thing is to keep the talent in RBR.

 

[Sunny]

I thought the whole reason why this project exists is essentially to serve as a countermeasure to FIA's budget cap constraints... To keep RBR/RBPT employees less likely to get poached by competition by giving them a cool project to put on their resume, where they would otherwise have to idly sit by.
They can reshuffle the personnel between F1 and RB17. The most important thing is to keep the talent in RBR.

Chassis/aero side - sure. Power train, given they are just starting RBPT from nothing, I doubt they have spare engineers just sitting around. But that is just speculation on my part.

 

[Moctecus]

Christian Horner to Autocar earlier this year:

“It will sound fantastic, like a track car should.” He declined to reveal powertrain details but said the power unit will be produced to “our specification by a third party”, not by the nascent Red Bull Powertrains division, currently gearing up for a post-2025 F1 power unit.

 

[Mistral]

I'm guessing the RB17's motor might be provided by Rimac, just like the valkyrie

 

[Revvd]

...given they are just starting RBPT from nothing...

I wouldn't say it's from nothing.
It's so wild to me that Red Bull is lumped in with Audi under the "newcomer 2026 engine constructor" label and therefore both have to abide by the same budget cap (although they do get extra $10M for 2023 and 2024 and $5M for 2025 vs the old constructors).
The former enjoys established infrastructure, personnel and know-how from the Honda days, while Audi has had to start from scratch on everything. They weren't even building engines for LMP1 at the same facility where the F1 will be built.
But TBF, Audi did manage to negotiate a lot of concessions on the power unit. From what I've read, they are the reason why we say bye-bye to MGU-H and why there's increased minimum weight limits on the ICE bottom end. So fair play to them.

I'm guessing the RB17's motor might be provided by Rimac, just like the valkyrie

Didn't they just provide the battery for Valkyrie?

 

[Moctecus]

Didn't they just provide the battery for Valkyrie?

Correct. The electric motor was supplied by Integral Powertrain, a company founded by Keith Duckworth's son Roger and other Cosworth managers when after Audi bought the company in the late 90s. They are based in Milton Keynes just down the road from Red Bull Racing (and Advanced Technologies).

 

[Jonathan19]

The RB17 Hypercar will be at Goodwood.

https://www.motor1.com/news/718116/red-bull-rb17-hypercar-goodwood-debut-july/

 

[Revvd]

How does Newey keep getting removed from these projects?
Quit avoiding backlash for how these cars turn out, lol

 

[Chimaera]

Adrian Newey said in the official Red Bull podcast a few months ago that 2024 was rig testing, 2025 was track development and 2026 would start the production (see vid). I'm not sure how much Newey would be involved with track testing but since he is leaving Q1 2025 it's basically zero now. I wonder how the how the people feel who ordered both a Valkyrie and this.

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[Revvd]

One more week till the reveal

 

[Jonathan19]

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[Jonathan19]

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[leylandi]

RB17

Red Bull RB17 revealed with atmo V10 and F1 tech | Autocar

The V10-powered 217mph two-seat RB17 is the final Red Bull project from engineer Adrian Newey

www.autocar.co.uk

 

[RacingLover]

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[Centurion]

£5million is a bargain price.

-The car has been designed by one of the best aerodynamic engineers to ever exist.
-It's reliable enough to run for 24hours straight.
-It doesn't have electric motors and big batteries that add weight and requires engineers on speed dial everytime you want to start the car.

 

[Bridster]

This is very much the best and the worst of Newey - both being the result of his long ingrained F1 way of doing things. On one hand, this single-minded focus results in a brilliantly optimized car, especially aerodynamically, where every millimeter gets make use of. On the other, it also interferes, or makes him unable to recognize, what the car should actually be and how it's gonna be used.

Some comments Newey makes are quite bizarre. He says it's gonna have a "luggage space" for overalls and helmets - but it's a car that's gonna be transported to a track on a trailer anyway! He should have allowed for luggage on the Valkyrie, now it doesn't matter! He also talks about how the car should be "accessible to non-F1 drivers" - forgetting that even a GT3 car would be too much for the average person buying this sort of machine. Just a week ago we got a track review of the Mclaren Solus GT (which is, at least on paper, not anywhere close to this on performance) by Jethro (who is a really fast driver with a lot of racing experience), and he wasn't able to even get close to the limits of the car! Now imagine this much faster car and even a worse driver! I really do get a distinct impression that Newey is quite out of touch, in his F1 Ivory Tower somewhere, but what do I know.

That the car has a 15k RPM V10 is amazing, but we also know that these high strung racing engines have very short lives - a few thousand km - and if this revs to 15k, then it might be even less. Then he also talks about the car having three tire options... Who is gonna do the deciding and switching? And the gearbox is the same philosophy as F1 too. This all means a huge support team having to follow you everywhere!

As for the performance targets - we'll see. We got the exact same targets from the same man with the Valkyrie and those weren't even remotely realistic. Although now, with a car that doesn't need to follow any regulations, those targets are more achievable, he really should have learned his lesson in not talking big before the car had been anywhere close to finished.

 

[Centurion]

This is very much the best and the worst of Newey - both being the result of his long ingrained F1 way of doing things. On one hand, this single-minded focus results in a brilliantly optimized car, especially aerodynamically, where every millimeter gets make use of. On the other, it also interferes, or makes him unable to recognize, what the car should actually be and how it's gonna be used.

Some comments Newey makes are quite bizarre. He says it's gonna have a "luggage space" for overalls and helmets - but it's a car that's gonna be transported to a track on a trailer anyway! He should have allowed for luggage on the Valkyrie, now it doesn't matter! He also talks about how the car should be "accessible to non-F1 drivers" - forgetting that even a GT3 car would be too much for the average person buying this sort of machine. Just a week ago we got a track review of the Mclaren Solus GT (which is, at least on paper, not anywhere close to this on performance) by Jethro (who is a really fast driver with a lot of racing experience), and he wasn't able to even get close to the limits of the car! Now imagine this much faster car and even a worse driver! I really do get a distinct impression that Newey is quite out of touch, in his F1 Ivory Tower somewhere, but what do I know.

That the car has a 15k RPM V10 is amazing, but we also know that these high strung racing engines have very short lives - a few thousand km - and if this revs to 15k, then it might be even less. Then he also talks about the car having three tire options... Who is gonna do the deciding and switching? And the gearbox is the same philosophy as F1 too. This all means a huge support team having to follow you everywhere!

As for the performance targets - we'll see. We got the exact same targets from the same man with the Valkyrie and those weren't even remotely realistic. Although now, with a car that doesn't need to follow any regulations, those targets are more achievable, he really should have learned his lesson in not talking big before the car had been anywhere close to finished.

The RB17 is a "director's cut" of Newey's ultimate track car rather than the best track car ever.

However it's not gone full fantasy on us by designing a single seater that only a 170cm adult at 65kg can fit in. He will also have received some input from prospectice customers. The luggage space is neat and simplify logistics: Prized suit or helmet stored in the car is a clean and neat solution during transport versus putting the belongings in a big duffle bag on the passanger seat.

I'm curious about the staggered seating arrangement as a way to manage the width of the car. I wonder if it's feasible for other car manufaturers.