Sebastian Vettel caused a stir today by joining in the throng of criticism of the sound made by the 2014 power units.
The German was able to watch the Australian GP from the pits after his early retirement, and thus had a proper chance to form an opinion.
“It’s shit,” said Vettel when asked in Sepang today. “I think we have to [change it]. I was on the pit wall during the race. It’s better than in a bar! That’s my opinion. I think for the fans it’s not good. I think F1 has to be spectacular, and the sound is one of the most important things.
“I remember when I was a small child, I don’t remember much, but the first time I was about five years old, six years old when we went to see the cars live during free practice in Germany. The one thing I remember was the sound, how loud the cars actually were, and to feel the cars through the ground. The whole ground was vibrating. It’s a shame that we don’t have that any more.”
Later when speaking in German Vettel said that he would rather have a V12, and that batteries are for mobile phone, and not F1 cars.
Meanwhile Jenson Button had a few words for any drivers criticising the current rules.
“Go and race something else if you’re not happy,” said Jenson. “As drivers we don’t have an opinion where the cars are in terms of sound and feel. When you’ve crossed the finish line first and you’ve won a Grand Prix, you don’t care what it sounds or what it feels like. You’ve beaten the best in the world, and that’s what you care about.”
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog 
Have to agree with Jenson here, I’m surprised that someone as knowledgeable as Vettel is so dismissive and derogatory of the new engine technology. Yes the sound is muted and I know where people are coming from but the underlying technology is cutting edge and exiting, something that F1 has always been about.
I’m bored of hearing so much negativity about the new engine formula, F1 is more than sound for christ sake! The cars were great to watch twitching about – magnussen off the line for example! When was the last time we saw that!?
I agree with Jenson. F1 needs to be the pinnacle of technology not just flat out speed & Adrian Newey’s aerodynamics. Wonder what Seb would have said if his team was on top of the technology.
No Sebastian, yes Jenson.
Aren’t drivers also subject to being penalized for “bring the sport into disrepute?”
I did also wonder if TV companies need to adjust their sound mixing to better suit the new noise. The TV pit lane reporters & driver/pit feed sounded very loud in Australia & the cars almost whisper quiet as though they were still using the mix perfected for the old engines.
Absolutely, but it’s not the TV companies as such, it’s Bernie-controlled FOM who provide the feed
That whole coverage of the AGP from P1 was of a low standard – every part of it reeked of too much time off.
Now, I think, at last the cat is out of the bag, Bernie is training Vettel to be his successor…. :))
I agree with Vettel. A tiny V6 turbo is not the pinnacle. It is a made up formula that is not used by any real sportscar manufacture. A porsche turbo is much larger.
The battery is at least being used on production super cars, but is a gimmick to make the least environmentally responsible sport sound green.
Sound and feel is huge to the experience. It is a sport, which means it is done for no reson other then for the spectators enjoyment.
I think F1 has 450m plus viewers worldwide, probably less than 1% go to a live race. Not sure how the new sound will affect there viewing experience of the race…
Poor Seb, of course he doesn’t like the sound of the new engines, in particular his own car. After all, how much clatter does a parked F1 car make?
Agree with Jenson as well.
This guy is a poor sportsman and bad reigning Champion. It’s one of the reasons F1 is suffering dwindling viewing figures, when Red Bull have to make a driver do media appearances, and speak to fans. He Vettel thinks he’s above that.
Im certainly no fan of him by a long way but in this case i think Vettel is absolutely right, the spectacle of F1 has now gone completely and the sport is worse off for it.
If the FIA wanted a greener series why not keep the old V8’s and allow makers to develop them (somethin which was banned for some strange reason) and then run them on bio ethanol fuel, this is much cleaner than petrol and would pollute less than even the crap new 1.6L engines.
It seems to me that these new rules and regs were all badly thought out and no consideration for the fans were made at all, the FIA need to remember without the fans F1 is nothing at all.
No spectacle in Bahrain last weekend? Did you watch the race? So they don’t sound as loud. That is the only possible negative compared to what we had before.
F1 has shot them self in the foot with this go green crap. It’s racing, we want to see RACE cars, not slow, sounds like a truck, electrical motor wizard slot cars. Bernie needs to go to the rest home. I want to see a race car with a gasoline V 8 or 10 engine with 20,000rpm , that has too much power for a mere-mortal to drive.
Lets go racing!
I agree with Vettel. Despite my ferrari fans. F1 now has less exciting to watch. Thrill to see formula one on TV and watch directly very different ones. Even more exciting was now is watching Moto GP. Hmm Please Restore F1 like it used to be.
…..To my ears it includes lucky. Since 2002, I’ve never been absent to Sepang. Plus Watch the eighth circuit in other countries. As the audience, I could feel ” the sound of “three periods of regulation of the engine. 3,000 cc V10 Engine (up to 2005), and 2,400 cc V8 engine, and now the 1,600 cc turbo engine.
Saturday last weekend (20/4) I watched live in Shanghai GP, I was able to experience the F1 machine version first heard, 2014. Feel Like?. Me and fellow F1 Mania other feel like ‘ robed ‘ “. We lost the sensation of screaming car sound while on the track straight, even losing the sound of ” beb beb bebbb “when the car slowed down to enter the corner.
The sound also lost ” millions of bees “when F1 cars entering and leaving the garage. I also sent a message to friends in Indonesia: ” disappointed. Far go to Shanghai just as see racing minibus “. Not malignant at all!
The sound of F1 not cool anymore, The Turbo sound like cars that roam the streets, ” .F1 the sound now is defeated by the MotoGP.
Thanks
Can the Monaco GP get any more mundane!