The motorhomes of F1 teams in 2023: what will they look like?

In 2022, several F1 teams invested in new facilities that were not necessarily larger than before, with a clear trend toward cost reduction. What does 2023 have in store for us?

When the F1 calendar leaves the desert and returns to Europe, a silent convoy of semi-trucks becomes the true backbone of the sport. While the Bahrain Grand Prix sees teams cramming into private homes and drivers sleeping in local hotels—a logistical shortcut that avoids the hassle of trucks and RVs—the real show begins once the paddock reaches the continent.

From Imola onwards, the familiar sight of gleaming motorhomes lines the pit lane, each one serving as a mobile command center for the teams that run the cars. Europe is home to the headquarters of all the manufacturers: Ferrari and AlphaTauri have their main factories in Italy (AlphaTauri also has a factory next to Red Bull's in England), Alpine shares its headquarters between Viry-Chatillon near Paris and Enstone, and the other seven teams are based in the UK. With distances being short, equipment is transported by road rather than by air or sea, and a fleet of five to nine semi-trailers carries everything from spare parts to the imposing motorhomes that house engineers, hospitality suites, and tire stores.

Mercedes, for example, has launched a more compact 2022 motorhome, but one that still features a second-floor terrace for staff and VIPs. The biggest surprise, however, came from the sport's governing body. Last year, the FIA's mobile office was a modest trailer, but this season it arrived as one of the largest structures in the paddock, transforming the regulatory body into a contender for the title of most impressive mobile headquarters.

It proved difficult to see all of these mobile villages. Flooding prevented our photographer from accessing the Imola paddock, and the narrow streets of Monaco left little room for a proper view. It was only in Barcelona that the entire park could be photographed in a single shot. The hierarchy was clear: Red Bull's combined station for its own team and AlphaTauri eclipses all others; Alpine's remains the second smallest, unchanged since the Toyota era in the early 2000s; Haas has the smallest but elegant motorhome with glass walls; Aston Martin, renovated two years ago, shines with its glass facade and rooftop lounge. As for McLaren, Williams, and Sauber, they have kept their long-standing motorhomes exactly as they were.