WATCH: The Insane Engineering Behind The First 20,000-RPM F1 Engine

Formula 1 fans have always adored V8, V10, and V12 engines mainly because of the sound - the biblical noise produced as these engines rev sky-high. But even among these high-revolution monsters, only a few have achieved more than 20,000 rpm. One example is the powertrain the Williams F1 team used during the 2006 season.

The YouTube channel337 Speedposted a deep-dive into the Cosworth CA2006, the first F1 engine to reach 20,000 rpm. While modern hybrid V6 engines can easily do the same, they are capped at 15,000 rpm by regulations.

Cosworth's unit produced 755 horsepower at 19,250 rpm and 214 lb-ft of torque at 17,000 rpm. While the power output is impressive, the engine had a lot of reliability issues. Nico Rosberg and Mark Webber battled hard that season, but the best they could do was one fastest lap.

Thehighest-revving enginein a production car these days is also made by... Cosworth. It's the 3.9-liter V12 in theGordon Murray T.50. It revs to 12,100 rpm and produces 701 hp in theNiki Lauda edition. Don't tell us ICE hasn't evolved in over 100 years...

During the 2006 F1 season, the technical regulations for V8 engines were a maximum displacement of 2.4 liters and a maximum bore of 3.85 inches, implying 1.57 inches of stroke at the maximum bore. With this in mind, pushing the engine up to 20,000 rpm was relatively easy for the engineers at Cosworth.

While increasing torque was difficult due to the limited displacement, enabling the engine to rev higher was the key to getting more power.

Titanium alloys were used to make the connecting rods, while forged 2618 aluminum was used for the pistons. This lightweight yet strong material allowed the pistons to run at higher rpm, eventually damaging other engine components.