JANUARY 8, 2007

FIA confirms manufacturer commission

The FIA World Motor Sport Council has voted to establish a new motor sport Commission, the Formula One Manufacturers' Advisory Commission. As we reported in December, this will be formed of senior employees or officers from BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Ferrari, Honda, Renault and Toyota. The FIA will be represented when necessary by Max Mosley, Charlie Whiting, Tony Purnell and Peter Wright. Professor Burkhard Goeschel, formerly a top player at BMW and the chairman of the Grand Prix Manufacturers' Association, has been invited to become its chairman.

What is not clear is why this commission exists; what powers (if any) it will have; how it will fit in with the Formula 1 Commission and why FIA people would be involved if the commission exists for the manufacturers. The implication is that the new body is to be a forum where the manufacturers can discuss the matters of the moment with the FIA and that the term "advisory" means that it will only advise rather than initiate legislative measures but all this currently remains unclear.

With most of the teams now run by manufacturers or relying on manufacturers for motive power - as no independent engine companies remain in F1 - these are important questions for the smaller teams which will, no doubt, be worried that their voice may not be heard as much as it has been under the Concorde Agreement.