First look: New Honda power unit for the F1 2026 season
Honda has entered a technical partnership with the Aston Martin team after a highly successful stint with Red Bull
Aston Martin engine partner Honda has released the first images of its new power unit for the F1 2026 season.
Honda has entered a technical partnership with the Aston Martin team ahead of the new season after its stint as Red Bull’s engine supplier came to an end at the close of 2025.
Honda reveals first images of F1 2026 engine as Aston Martin partnership looms
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust
The Japanese manufacturer will be one of five engine manufacturers on the F1 2026 grid along with Mercedes, Ferrari and newcomers Audi F1 and Red Bull-Ford.
As reported by PlanetF1.com, Honda became the first 2026 engine manufacturer to publish audio footage of its 2026 power unit last month.
And the marque has followed that up by revealing the first images of its new powertrain (below).
In addition to the still image, Honda produced a short clip of the power unit in its entirety, albeit with a heavy silhouette effect.
The video, which was shown to attendees of the Tokyo Auto Salon event, is accompanied by the noise of the Honda engine charging up through the gears in sync with a heartbeat sound effect.
A video has also circulated of images of Honda’s power unit alongside its engine note. pic.twitter.com/RZ73hoQ2ft
— PlanetF1 (@Planet_F1) January 9, 2026
The first look at the new Honda power unit comes ahead of the Japanese marque officially launching its new engine later this month.
As reported by PlanetF1.com last month, Honda will hold a rare engine-launch event in Tokyo on January 20.
The event will fall six days before the start of F1’s first pre-season test in Barcelona, which is to be held behind closed doors.
The Aston Martin AMR26, driven by Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, is set to make its on-track debut at the Barcelona test, where teams will be permitted to take to the track on any three days between January 26 and January 30.
Aston Martin will then hold an official launch for the AMR26 on February 9 ahead of the final two tests in Bahrain.
F1 2026: Formula 1’s season of change
F1 2025 v F1 2026: Nine key questions ahead of huge regulation changes
F1’s secret battleground revealed amid preparations for 2026 revolution
As reported by PlanetF1.com on Thursday, the new-look Audi team is set to become the first team to take to the track with its 2026 car on Friday.
Audi will hold a filming day in Barcelona today (January 9), more than two weeks before the start of pre-season testing.
Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.
You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!
Read next: Exclusive: How Alpine F1 company document could impact Christian Horner F1 return option
