FIA president believes Mercedes and Ferrari are 'too reliable'

FIA president Jean Todt believes that although the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel performed well this season within their own driving abilities, Mercedes and Ferrari spend far too much on making their Formula One vehicles 'too reliable' and powerful.

Hamilton claimed his fourth world championship this year and became only the third driver to win a title having completed every lap of the Grand Prix season, alongside Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher.

Todt was full of praise for the performance of the Englishman, but believes his win was not only down to his ability, but the reliability and power of his Mercedes vehicle - something which the FIA president thinks the Silver Arrows and Ferrari spend too much of their finances on.

"Hamilton did not make any mistakes, but he also had an incredibly strong car, strong in terms of performance and reliability," Todt told Auto Bild.

"Even if the Mercedes was not always the fastest, Lewis scored points in 20 of the 20 grands prix. The cars are too reliable."

"Ferrari impressed me as well but I stay with what I said: Ferrari and Mercedes were too reliable.

"That costs money. Tests, simulators, it's all too much. We don't need all of that for a good sport. Actually, the contrary."

The new owners of F1, Liberty Media, have proposed plans to implement standardised engines as well as a three-engine limit for upcoming GP seasons - a decision which has been criticised by Mercedes and Ferrari.