Millions of euros for a steering wheel, thousands for a front wing that lasts one race and an engine worth more than a house. We break down piece by piece the price of the most expensive and fastest machine in the world.
Watching a Formula 1 car go by at 300 kilometers per hour is impressive, but what few know is that in front of their eyes is one of the most expensive machines ever built by mankind. Every piece, every screw, every strand of carbon fiber has a price that defies logic, and it's not just the car, it's everything that surrounds it. Get ready to learn about the impossible numbers of the top category.
Let's start with the heart of the car, the current F1 engine, with its hybrid energy recovery system, costs approximately 15 million euros per year per driver: that includes several units because each car uses up to four engines per season to avoid penalties, a single internal combustion block, without the hybrid system, is around 2 million euros. It's an engine that revs to more than 12,000 revolutions per minute and that is designed to last barely 7,000 kilometers, the equivalent of seven races, compared to your car's engine, which can last 300,000 kilometers, the difference is abysmal.
Now let's move on to something drivers touch all the time, the steering wheel: an F1 steering wheel costs between 50,000 and 100,000 euros, it's not a simple rim with buttons, it's a high precision computer with more than 20 buttons, 6 dials and two integrated LCD screens, each button is programmed for specific functions like changing engine maps, electric brake management or radio communication. The steering wheel is handmade with carbon fiber and requires more than 100 hours of work, if you drop it on the ground, you don't pick it up, you call the insurance company.
The wings also have crazy prices, the front wing costs around 150,000 euros, it's the most delicate part and the one that breaks most often in contact between drivers. It's made up of more than 40 carbon fiber elements and its design can take months of development in the wind tunnel: the rear wing is cheaper, about 80,000 euros, but equally complex, between the two wings you're looking at more than 200,000 euros, the price of a high end road car.
The suspensions aren't far behind either, a complete set of front and rear suspensions costs about 400,000 euros: each suspension arm is made of carbon and titanium, lightweight but resistant materials, the front upright, that piece that connects the wheel to the chassis, costs 50,000 euros per unit, if one breaks, that's 50,000 euros in the trash.
The chassis, the monocoque where the driver sits, has a price of approximately 1.2 million euros: it's made of carbon fiber woven in overlapping layers and baked in an autoclave under high pressure, each chassis is unique and has a limited lifespan. A team like Red Bull or Mercedes makes between 6 and 8 chassis per season, which represents an investment of nearly 10 million euros just in the main structure.
The tires seem simple but they're not: a set of Pirelli tires costs about 2,500 euros, which seems reasonable until you find out they last barely 150 kilometers under normal conditions, in a race a driver can use up to three sets of tires, plus those for qualifying and practice. At the end of a Grand Prix, a team spends about 20,000 euros on rubber that ends up being recycled.
The gearbox costs 500,000 euros, it must withstand gear changes in milliseconds and last six consecutive races according to the regulations. It has eight gears and a hydraulic actuation system that costs more than an entire production car.
Let's add it all up: a complete F1 car, not including the engine, is around 4 million euros, with the engine and annual development, the figure jumps to 20 million euros per season per car. That's just the car, then come the salaries of the engineers, transport, hospitality, simulators and damage during races. A big team like Mercedes or Red Bull spends more than 150 million euros a year to put two cars on the grid.
The strangest thing is that this 20 million euro car cannot be bought, F1 doesn't sell its cars to private collectors. When a car reaches the end of its useful life, teams either scrap it or keep it in their internal museums, so the next time you see an F1 car on TV, remember that you're watching 20 million euros in motion at 300 kilometers per hour and if it breaks, it breaks.