The Mercedes V6 hybrid Formula One power unit is a series of 1.6-litre, hybrid turbocharged V6

racing In sports, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific g ...

engines An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...

which features both a kinetic energy recovery system (MGU-K) and a heat energy recovery system (MGU-H), developed and produced by

Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains (previously known as Ilmor Engineering and Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines) is a Formula One engine manufacturer, owned by Mercedes-Benz. The company supplied Sauber during the season, McLaren f ...

for use in

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

. The engines were in use since the

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

season by the Mercedes works team. Over years of development, engine power was increased from at 15,000 rpm, to at 15,000 rpm. Customer team engines were used by Williams,

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...

, Lotus,

Manor Racing Manor Grand Prix Racing Limited, trading as Manor Racing MRT or Pertamina Manor Racing MRT, was a British Formula One racing team and constructor based in Banbury, Oxfordshire in the United Kingdom. The outfit competed from 2010 to 2016: the te ...

Force India Force India Formula One Team Limited, commonly known as Force India and later Sahara Force India, was a Formula One racing team and constructor based in Silverstone, United Kingdom, with an Indian licence. The team was formed in October 200 ...

Racing Point Force India Racing Point Force India Formula One Team was the title under which Racing Point UK made a late entry into the 2018 Formula One World Championship. The team used the constructor name "Force India", competed under a List of Formula One construct ...

Racing Point Racing Point F1 Team, which competed as BWT Racing Point F1 Team and commonly known as Racing Point, was a British motor racing team and constructor that Racing Point UK entered into the Formula One World Championship. The team was based i ...

and

Aston Martin Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC () is a British manufacturer of Luxury car, luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Headed from 1947 by David Brown (entrepreneur ...

. Their most recent championship victories are in (Drivers') and (Constructors'). Enduring a successful run since the 2014 season, the Mercedes V6 Hybrid engine has become one of the most successful

Formula One engines This article gives an outline of Formula One engines, also called Formula One power units since the hybrid era starting in 2014. Since its inception in 1947, Formula One has used a variety of engine Formula One regulations, regulations. ''Formu ...

of all time. It broke the record for most wins in a season in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

(this record has since been surpassed by

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

with

Red Bull Racing Red Bull Racing, currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing and also known simply as Red Bull or RBR, is a Formula One racing team, List of Formula One constructors#Team's nationality, competing under an Austrian racing licence and based in ...

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

), as well as among many other major constructor and driver F1 records. Notably,

Lewis Hamilton Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver who competes in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari. Hamilton has won a joint-record seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles—tied with M ...

won a record breaking six drivers' championships and the Mercedes factory team won a record-breaking eight consecutive constructors' championships powered by Mercedes V6 hybrid engines.

List of Formula One engines

Statistics

The Formula One regulations in saw Mercedes produce a unique hybrid 1.6-liter turbocharged V6 engine, that could produce a significant amount of power with less fuel consumption compared to

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...

and

Renault Renault S.A., commonly referred to as Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English), is a French Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company curr ...

engines. It also featured the kinetic energy recovery system (MGU-K) and heat energy recovery system (MGU-H). The engine was soon proved to have a clear advantage over other engines, as cars powered by the Mercedes engine scored the majority of points during the 2014 season. Since the introduction of this engine formula, Mercedes-powered cars scored pole position in 140 and won 132 of 238 races (as of the

2025 Canadian Grand Prix The 2025 Canadian Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Pirelli Grand Prix du Canada 2025) was a Formula One motor race which was held on 15 June 2025 at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was the tenth round o ...

), and won 7 drivers' championships and 9 constructors' championships. Season statistics for Mercedes engines * Season still in progress.

Other applications

Mercedes-AMG One

The Mercedes-AMG One production hypercar features a powertrain similar to modern

Formula One car A Formula One car or F1 car is a single-seat, open-cockpit, open-wheel racing car, open-wheel formula racing car used to compete in Formula One racing events. It has substantial front and rear wings, large wheels, and a turbocharged engine mid ...

s. The production version of the car features a modified version of the Mercedes-Benz PU106B Hybrid E-turbo V6 engine, used in the

Mercedes F1 W06 Hybrid The Mercedes F1 W06 Hybrid is a highly successful Mercedes-Benz Formula One racing car designed and developed under the direction of Paddy Lowe, Aldo Costa, Geoff Willis, Loïc Serra, Russell Cooley, John Owen, Mike Elliott and Jarrod Murphy ...

Formula One car. Modifications were done to the engine, resulting in a reduction in idle rpm and redline rpm among many other changes to make it road-legal. The modified internal combustion engine (ICE) produces a maximum power output of . Torque figures were unmeasurable due to the complex powertrain. The internal combustion engine works in conjunction with four

electric motor An electric motor is a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a electromagnetic coil, wire winding to gene ...

s; a MGU-K coupled to the crankshaft, a MGU-H coupled to the turbocharger, and two electric motors in the front axle producing . The One has a total combined power output of . The MGU-K and MGU-H are similar as in use in Formula One cars, which were responsible for recovering energy and improving efficiency during the operation of the car. More specifically, the MGU-K serves to generate electricity during braking, while the MGU-H serves to eliminate

turbo lag In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (also known as a turbo or a turbosupercharger) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake air, forcing more air into th ...

and improve throttle response by keeping the turbine spinning at lower engine high speeds. Two electric motors drive the front wheels and creates an all-wheel drive drivetrain, the sum of these four electric motors contribute of effective power to the total power output figure of the AMG One. The head of Mercedes-AMG,

Tobias Moers Tobias Moers (born May 1966) is a German business executive, who was the chief executive (CEO) of Aston Martin from August 2020 to May 2022. Early years and education Moers was born in May 1966 in Freiburg. He studied mechanical engineering at ...

, claimed that the engine idles at 1,280 rpm and 11,000 rpm at its redline limit. However, the engine will only last for and the owners would have to return their cars for an engine refurbishment costing 850,000 euros. This Formula One inspired powertrain helps the car attain a top speed of . According to Mercedes-AMG, the car can accelerate from 0 to in 2.9 seconds, 0 to in 7.0 seconds and 0 to in 15.6 seconds.

References

{{reflist Mercedes-Benz engines Formula One engines Engines by model Gasoline engines by model V6 engines