Honda has unveiled its new power unit ahead of the 2026 Formula 1 season, which marks a new partnership with Aston Martin for the brand.
The RA626H powertrain will feature on the upcoming AMR26 and was designed according to F1’s new engine regulations, which places greater emphasis on electric energy.
The power unit was unveiled alongside a plain green 2026 F1 show car featuring Honda’s new logo, as attention now turns to the opening pre-season test at Barcelona from 26-30 January.
“We've got nine days of track testing before we get to Melbourne, and it will be a challenge to understand the car,” chief strategy officer Andy Cowell said.
“You're trying to understand both reliability and performance, and typically the opening sessions that we run we'll be checking all the systems. There'll be extra sensors on the car and aero rakes, extra sensors on the power unit, to understand the vehicle in its real environment.
“We do lots of testing in Sakura and in Silverstone but the real environment is the race track. But then you need to get into understanding the performance of the car, and that's where the feedback from the driver is key as well as what you read from the sensors.
“We will push and we will learn. We've got a plan already devised but we will adapt day by day based on what we learn.”
Despite its well-documented struggles with McLaren, Honda rounded off F1’s first turbo hybrid era as its second-most successful engine provider with 72 victories.
The Japanese manufacturer achieved this success with Red Bull, but its ephemeral exit from F1 meant it had to part ways with the Milton Keynes-based team as the latter created its own engine project in partnership with Ford.
Additional reporting by Kenichiro Ebii
