Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel has slated the sport's new sound, describing it as "shit".
Vettel pulled no punches when asked for his opinion in the paddock at the Sepang International Circuit ahead of this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix.
The 26-year-old gained first-hand experience of the noise from the Red Bull pit wall during the season-opening race in Australia recently following his early retirement.
Vettel was damning in his assessment of F1's new sound
The piercing scream of the old 2.4-litre V8 engines has been replaced by the more textural sound of the new 1.6-litre V6 turbo-charged power units, and it has caused a considerable furore.
When asked for his thoughts on the matter, Vettel said: "It's s***. I was on the pit wall during the race - it's better than in the bar!
Vettel in Malaysia
"That's my opinion and I think for the fans as well.
"Formula One has to be spectacular and the sound is one of the most important things. When I was a small child, I don't remember much, but I remember when I was six years old and we went to see the cars live during free practice.
"The one thing I remember was the sound, how loud they were, to feel the cars through the ground and the whole ground was vibrating.
"It's a shame you don't have that."