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The addition of the halo cockpit protection device could disadvantage heavier Formula 1 drivers in 2018.
To account for the device the FIA has raised the minimum weight of the cars by 6kg for next season, having already upped the weight for 2017.
Teams have found that adding halo mountings and beefing up the chassis to pass the associated load tests has added extra weight even greater than that new allowance.
This will remove scope for teams to use ballast and mean any extra kilos carried by the drivers themselves push the overall weight over the minimum
“We are aware of it, there is talk about it,” said Nico Hulkenberg, one of the taller drivers on the grid.
“It’s a political matter and the teams need to agree to change the weight, but some teams don’t want to, so it’s a bit of a situation.
“For me as a taller and heavier driver it’s definitely going to be a bit of a penalty.
“The team have already told me there might be some overweight issues for me, and asked me if I could go to a diet.
“The answer was no!“
Romain Grosjean said his Haas was already “very much on the limit if not overweight this year“.
He added: “If the Halo is really that heavy, it’s going to be a problem.
“I’m underweight, and I would be heavier if I had the choice.
“There are proposals in the pipeline in the future to solve the problem.”
Halo “ugly” in every way – Force India
Force India technical director Andrew Green said the halo was still posing “a huge challenge“ for teams.
“It‘s massive,“ he said. “It‘s a big headache at the moment, trying to design a car that hits the weight limit and weight distribution target.“
He added that the loading test the chassis needs to pass “will almost destroy the halo“ and described the device as “ugly“ across the board.
Asked about the aerodynamic additions teams will be allowed to put onto the halo, Green replied: “There is only a limited about you can put on.
“It will develop slightly as we get more information as to how the halo interacts with the rest of the car.
“It definitely hurts the car so anything we can do to manage it, will go on.
“It‘s an ugly device aerodynamically, it‘s ugly visually, cost-wise it‘s ugly.
Green said there was “zero“ chance of the halo being dropped before the opening race of the 2018 season, adding it would need “something as big“ as a boycott.
Hulkenberg hinted that he expects the Halo to eventually be abandoned in the long-term.
“I don’t think the Halo will survive very long in F1, to be honest,“ he said.
“I think people will realise it’s not that necessary.”