The world of Formula 1 has changed drastically over many years. The engines have evolved dramatically from the very early engines that varied from 4.5-liter engines to 1.5-liter supercharged engines, to the monstrous hybrid power units that are in use today and will be for some time yet. Charting the power evolution of the sport isn’t easy, however, the guys at Driver61 on YouTube have had a go at this and come up with a graph that reveals the most powerful era of the sport, and how the power has changed over the years.

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Not A Steady Incline In Horsepower Over The Years

The team scoured the internet for data, looking at old car dyno runs and collated it together, and put it into a graph. We can see how it is not a steady incline of power, such as when Formula 1 consisted of a lot of Formula 2 cars that ran engines as small as 2.0-liter inline-fours. In the early years of the sport, rules and regulations were all over the place. Power would slowly rise up to the 1960s before restrictions started to enter the sport for the first time.

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The Insane Turbo Era Of The 1980s

F1 Power Graph Full Graph
via YouTube channel Driver61

The power would again rise in the 1970s, with 3.5-liter engines, mostly of V8s such as the Cosworth DFV and the Ferrari 015 flat 12. Then came the insane turbo era of the 1980s. The turbos started with Renault in 1977 with 500 hp and then rose to over 700 hp by 1983. And it would rise further still, with the graph showing a massive spike in blue for when the engines run at full, qualifying power. The turbo boost would be up so high, that engines would last one lap. And they would produce over 850 hp in race trim. The most powerful F1 engine ever was the BMW M12, and reportedly produced well over 1,400 hp.

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Insane Power That Soon Waned

F1 Power Graph 2015 Mercedes W05
via YouTube channel Driver61

Engine power would decrease from 1989 onwards as the sport adopted a naturally aspirated formula. Power would increase again though with the V10 era of the mid-2000s seeing cars reach around 950 hp. The 1980s saw the most powerful era of sorts, but only when the engines were in qualifying trim. The mid-200s would be the most powerful era, on a normal basis, before the turbo-hybrid engines of 2014 appeared. This current era is the most powerful in the sports history when we take out the ridiculous qualifying engines of the 1980s.

Source: YouTube