A ban on in-season testing, major revisions to engine regulations and dramatic cuts in aerodynamic development will see team budgets cut by roughly 30 per cent in 2009. Based on the 10 teams’ spending last season of $3 billion (£2 billion), it should see more than $1 billion lopped off the collective bill at a stroke.

First, a quick-and-dirty rundown of the biggest changes for 2009. If you want more, get all the detail you can handle by downloading the FIA's F1 regs here.

Starting first, KERS. Kinetic energy recovery systems capture some of the energy generated during braking and stores it - either electronically in a battery or capacitor or mechanically in a flywheel - for use at the driver's discretion. Often called "push to pass," the driver could opt to use the added power to accelerate out of a corner or on a straight to pass another car.

KERS is part of FIA boss Max Mosley's campaign to make F1 technology more relevant to road cars. But it's proven such a bear to develop that teams have the option of running it this year. It is supposed to be mandatory next year but the FIA keeps waffling on that. The problem is KERS is bulky, hard to package in the tight confines of an F1 chassis and so far works about as well as Windows Vista. When BMW first tested it in public, it shocked a mechanic hard enough to knock him on his ass. Ferrari says the technology's proven more expensive than expected, and it remains to be seen how many teams run it this year.

This year also sees significant changes to the tires, which arguably are the most important component of any car. This year we say hello to slicks - again - and goodbye to grooved rubber. The FIA banned slicks in 1998 but brought them back this year to improve safety. Slick tires put more rubber on the road, which increases grip, which makes it easier to slow down should things go pear-shaped. It also makes it easer to put down power making for better acceleration and, potentially, more frequent passing.

But the biggest changes have been to aerodynamics. Gone are all the bits and bobs tacked on to the cars in an effort to increase downforce. By the end of last season, the cars had so many winglets, exhaust stacks and other baubles they looked like something that might wash up on the beach. They're all gone this year, as are the barge boards.

What's left is significantly smaller, starting with the rear wings. They're a hell of a lot narrower, and, frankly, look ridiculously out of proportion. At the other end of the car, the front wings are bigger and deeper, yet simpler.

When the rules were announced, everyone feared the resulting cars would be ugly. Turns out they were wrong, based upon the McLaren MP4-24 shown above, the car Lewis Hamilton will use to defend his title. Although that dinky rear wing throws the balance off, the car's overall shape is quite pleasing. The clean, flowing lines of the sidepods are gorgeous, and the entire body appears to be shrunk-wrapped over the components underneath.