By Andrew Cutler
February 10 2007

With the start of the 2007 F1 season less than two months away now, the debate over Scuderia Toro Rosso and Super Aguri's plans to use what their rivals feel are "customer" chassis - which is a violation of 2007 FIA regulations - continues unabated, with the threat of legal arbitration looming. STR plans to run a chassis that has been designed and built by Red Bull Technologies, an independant entity from both the Faenza-based squad and it's "sister" team, Red Bull Racing. RBT will also design and build RBR's 2007 challenger. Each team will own the intellectual rights to their respective cars.
STR co-owner Gerhard Berger believes that this arraingment falls within the letter of the FIA's 2007 F1 regulations.

The situation with Super Aguri and their "patron" team, Honda, is roughly similar, although SA wants to use what rivals consider to be a derivative of Honda's '06 chassis.

Rival teams, most notably Spyker, are upset. Team boss Colin Kolles sees this as a "customer car" arraingment, where both teams will be supplied what will essentially be the same chassis. Williams boss Sir Frank Williams and BMW's Mario Theissen are also understood to have expressed their opposition to this situation.

F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has recently tried to mediate between the two sides, but to no avail so far. One proposal was that neither STR or SA would be allowed to score championship points or share in television revenues, but both teams have rejected that idea. Another idea discussed was a renegoitiating of the T.V. revenue sharing arraingment to insure that no teams were left out.

According to FIA regulations, STR and SA are free to run whatever car that they want in preseason tests. Once they take to the track in Melbourne for the first 2007 GP weekend, however, the other teams will be able to issue a formal challenge to try and get a rival car banned. They could also take legal action over the matter if they so wish.

The 2007 f1 season could get of to a very contentious start.