Revving Engines and Reverberant Sound: Noise in Formula 1
Written by Clio Reid
Edited by Courtney Squires
In April of 2022, Formula 1 received a lawsuit from a group of residents of Miami Gardens, Florida claiming the roar of Formula 1 engines could cause hearing damage.1 This lawsuit, however, was not the only attempt to block Formula 1 from racing in Miami. In 2021, the Miami-Dade City Council voted against a street race, fearing the noise would violate city and county law. Motorsport has a unique sonic atmosphere, with fans loving the noise and surrounding communities tolerating it—or in the case of the Miami Grand Prix, filing lawsuits attempting to stop it. This is a prime example of the complicated acoustemology of one of the most internationally popular sports. Noise in Formula 1 is reaching a breaking point where pleasing both fans and host communities may not be possible anymore.
The roar of a Formula 1 engine is the keynote sound of a race. When the engines rev, fans leap from their seats, eager to catch a glimpse of the vehicles pushing the limits of speed for over two hours of high-intensity driving. Everything else that happens during a race is reliant on that sound and the accompanying vibrations; if it stops, so does the race. This reliance means the soundscape of Formula 1 cannot be contained. Formula 1 may attempt to mark its sonic territory, but it is hard to define interiority and exteriority when considering the pure power of the decibels. Inevitably, engine noise and the roar of fans leak from the boundaries of the circuit. Races reach around 140 decibels just based on the twenty cars racing, not including the roar of crowds that usually number in the hundreds of thousands. Unlike a hockey or basketball game, Formula 1 takes place outdoors; and unlike football or baseball, the industrial hum of motorsport cannot be contained within the bounds of a stadium.
This year, I attended two Formula 1 races, the Canadian Grand Prix and the Spanish Grand Prix. The Spanish Grand Prix, held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Montmeló, Barcelona hosted a Formula 1 race along with races from the feeder series’ Formula 2, 3 and W Series. The circuit was about a thirty-minute walk from the nearest transit station. This packed calendar meant there was often no more than an hour between events, and one could tell when events were starting without a watch, and without even being at the circuit. The walk up to the circuit was punctuated with engine sounds, an example of Feld’s concept of acoustemology, or knowing through sound.2 There was little need for a GPS, all one had to do was walk towards the sound. Some fans can even tell what event was going on based on the sound. On the second day, I heard a man walking up the hill complain how loud the feeder series cars were. To my untrained ear, all I knew was that it was not Formula 1 cars, and that was mostly because I had timed our journey from central Barcelona so we would get to the circuit with an hour to spare. Lo and behold, I checked the schedule on my phone and it was Formula 3’s qualifying session. That man did not need the schedule or an announcer, he knew just based on the engines coming from a mile north that the event was F3 qualifying.
That weekend, I developed a similar knowledge. Like David Novak and R. Murray Schafer’s experiences learning through sound, I learned more about engine technology through one weekend of immersing myself in the sounds of motorsport than weeks spent on research rabbit holes on Formula 1 and its feeder series.3 The atmosphere at the circuit was electric that weekend, but not every weekend is a Formula 1 race weekend. Max Jack’s description of atmosphere as fluid and “contingent on the physical space and the actors within, wed to the politics of the particular moment” feels particularly apt.4 Most days living in the municipality of Montmeló do not revolve around the electrifying experience of Formula 1, but for three days each year, Montmeló as a quiet neighborhood ceases to exist, going from a community of eight thousand people to a teeming city of 278,000. The noise does not only consist of the cars, but of the environment stretched to its limit, working to accommodate a population increase of 3375% for three days.
Formula 1 is a sport characterized by noise. While noise is generally considered different from other sounds because of its lack of aesthetic value, the mechanical screams of Formula 1 engines are valued aesthetically by fans.5 There are continual debates over what engine iteration sounds the best, or what sonic aspects of each car is ideal, so denoting engine noise as negative feels disingenuous. The sound of a specific engine evokes emotion in many Formula 1 fans. Just as everyday sounds evoke emotions in people, the sound of specific engines can be nostalgic to many Formula 1 fans, as a reminder of certain eras or drivers. It is hard to hear a V10 or V12 engine and not be reminded of Michael Schumacher’s legacy, or to watch a Sebastian Vettel highlight reel and not reminisce on the V8 era. To superfans, the sound of engines is not just noise, but memories. If you tune into an F1 race muted, it feels like you are missing a vital part of the experience. r/F1Technical, a Reddit community focused on Formula 1 engineering with over 192,000 users, lists Power Unit (the mechanical category that includes the engine) as the fifth most popular post flair on the sub. Most of the posts under the flair are community members discussing engine noise. Engines are F1’s soundmark. They work as identifiers and community calling cards. Formula 1’s subculture relies on this noise as cultural knowledge, and Formula 1’s identity hinges on this sonic extreme. The amount of noise, the quality of noise, the reception of the noise are all vital parts of motorsport.6
Starting in 2014, Formula 1 entered the turbo hybrid era, an era marked by the limitation of engine noise. The switch from naturally aspirated engines to turbocharged engines is what makes Formula 1 engines quieter than their feeder series engines. The exhaust muffles the engines, resulting in quieter racing. For longtime fans, the turbo hybrid era means faster cars, but also the loss of the engines that has now become a hallmark of Formula 1 racing. The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the governing body that sets the Formula 1 regulations, is working to find a middle ground between the beloved engines of the past and the reality that in some cases, circuit homologation depends on the host community’s expectations of quieter engines.
While it is apparent that noise is a major part of the appeal for Formula 1 races, even to the biggest fan, it can be intolerable. David Novak writes that “simple loudness is another factor: at the right decibel level, anything, regardless of its original source, can become noise[,]” and even for superfans, there is a limit.7 Many tracks sell F1 branded noise-muffling headphones and earplugs. Messages flash on televisions around the circuit reminding spectators to protect their ears. Engineers and team members working in the pit lane wear large headsets, both to protect their hearing and to transmit and receive radio messages. Based on pure decibel level, Formula 1 is noise—and an extreme one at that—but this noise is valued.
The FIA has a unique problem on its hands. The inherent noise level of motor sport must be addressed with both sides in mind: a fanbase that considers this noise not only a benefit, but crucial to the sport, and a calendar of host communities that do not share the same passion for the road of turbo-hybrid engines. Year after year, the governing body struggles to please all parties to the best of their abilities. As an international sport, the regulations must placate upwards of two dozen host communities each year, as well as the millions of fans that attend the events. When they cannot reach a consensus with local communities, they must be prepared to fight lawsuits or absorb the costs involved with cancelling a race. This balance between fans and host communities plagues motorsport. Tomi Hahn gives an example in her article on monster truck rallies from an interview with driver Robbie Dawson, who built an exhaust to quiet down his truck for a Disney World parade, but took it off upon testing the truck and finding it too quiet. Part of the draw for vehicles like monster trucks and formula cars is the noise.8 Similarly to how the spectacle of a monster truck rally relies on noise for its performance, Formula 1 cannot exist without its noise.
Long-time F1 fans have been clamoring for engines like the roaring V10 from the 1990s as manufacturers have attempted to build quieter cars through the start of the turbo hybrid engine era in 2014. Former Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo mourns the noise of older engines and says that the fan experience is not the same without them.9 This regulation change, primarily meant to placate host communities and make Formula 1 more accessible to new fans and better for host communities, also alienated lifelong fans. Just like Robbie Dawson objected to quieting his monster truck, Formula 1 fans object to quieting their sport.
Circling back to the Spanish Grand Prix, how far does the sonic territory of an F1 race stretch? The distance from the exit of the Montmeló train station to the closest circuit entrance is 1.5 miles, and the sound reaches the train station clearly. As much as I enjoyed Formula 1, I understand the Miami residents who sued for the right to quiet. If acoustemology is based on the assumption that life is shared with others, Formula 1 and the motorsport community must recognize that it exists within a global community that does not value the sound of engine noise as much as it does.10
The judge in the recent lawsuit surrounding the 2022 Miami Grand Prix ruled that there were no grounds for a case until the event had taken place and accurate decibel readings had been recorded. He specified that residents were welcome to try again after the inaugural Grand Prix, and with the Miami circuit having a ten-year deal with Formula 1, it looks likely that next spring there will be another case.11 In the short term, Formula 1’s engines will entertain an estimated 135,000 fans in Miami each spring for the next decade. In 2026, the FIA plans to introduce a new era of engine specifications, another attempt to find a middle ground between too loud and loud enough. Whether it will placate the upset residents of Miami Gardens, or the fans that miss the scream of the V10 engines from the 1990s remains to be known, but the central role of sound in Formula 1 will remain constant.
Endnotes
Pryson, Mike. “Miami Residents Fearing Hearing Loss File Suit to Stop F1 Miami Grand Prix.” Autoweek, April 22, 2022. autoweek.com/racing/formula-1/a39796921/miami-residents-fearing-hearing-loss-filed-suit stop-f1-miami-gp.
Feld, Steven. “Acoustemology.” Essay. In Keywords in Sound. Durham: Duke University Press, 2015.
Novak, David. “Noise.” Essay. In Keywords in Sound. Durham: Duke University Press, 2015; Schafer, R. Murray. “Introduction.” Essay. In The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World. Rochester: Destiny Books, 2006.
Jack, Max. “The Crowd in Flux: Atmosphere and the Governance of Public Affects at FC Union Berlin.” Ethnomusicology 65, no. 3 (January 2021):512. doi.org/10.5406/ethnomusicology.65.3.0497.
Novak, “Noise,” 126.
Hahn, Tomie. “‘It's the Rush’: Sites of the Sensually Extreme.” TDR/The Drama Review 50, no. 2 (2006): 88. doi.org/10.1162/dram.2006.50.2.87.
Novak, “Noise,” 126.
Hahn, “It’s the Rush”, 92.
“Why 'Wow Factor' F1 Engine Noise Isn't Coming Back.” The Race, December 13, 2020. the-race.com/formula-1/why-wow-factor-f1-engine-noise-isnt-coming-back.
Novak, “Noise,” 127.
Southwell, Hazel. “Miami F1 Grand Prix Still on for May 8, Judge Won't Block Race.” The Drive, April 21, 2022. thedrive.com/accelerator/miami-f1-grand-prix-still-on-for-may-8-judge-wont-block-race.
Bibliography
Eisenberg, Andrew. “Space.” Essay. In Keywords in Sound. Durham: Duke University Press, 2015.
Feld, Steven. “Acoustemology.” Essay. In Keywords in Sound. Durham: Duke University Press, 2015.
Hahn, Tomie. “‘It's the Rush’: Sites of the Sensually Extreme.” TDR/The Drama Review 50, no. 2 (2006): 87–96. doi.org/10.1162/dram.2006.50.2.87.
Jack, Max. “The Crowd in Flux: Atmosphere and the Governance of Public Affects at FC Union Berlin.” Ethnomusicology 65, no. 3 (January 2021): 497–518. doi.org/10.5406/ethnomusicology.65.3.0497.
Novak, David. “Noise.” Essay. In Keywords in Sound. Durham: Duke University Press, 2015. Pryson, Mike. “Miami Residents Fearing Hearing Loss File Suit to Stop F1 Miami Grand Prix.” Autoweek. Autoweek, April 22, 2022. autoweek.com/racing/formula 1/a39796921/miami-residents-fearing-hearing-loss-filed-suit-stop-f1-miami-gp.
Schafer, R. Murray. “Introduction.” Essay. In The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World. Rochester: Destiny Books, 2006.
Southwell, Hazel. “Miami F1 Grand Prix Still on for May 8, Judge Won't Block Race.” The Drive, April 21, 2022. thedrive.com/accelerator/miami-f1-grand-prix-still on-for-may-8-judge-wont-block-race.
“Why 'Wow Factor' F1 Engine Noise Isn't Coming Back.” The Race, December 13, 2020. the-race.com/formula-1/why-wow-factor-f1-engine-noise-isnt-coming-back.