BMW forced to remove controversial fins.

The FIA has banned BMW's unique and controversial vertical wings on the nose of their F1.06, after claiming they impaired visibility and therefore presented a safety issue.

BMW Sauber unveiled the invention, intended to provide added front downforce, during testing prior to the French Grand Prix with the 'twin tower' wings, dubbed in homage to the Petronas Towers, one of the world's largest buildings, making their race debut at Magny-Cours, even if their eighth place finish did not represent any significant improvement.

Nonetheless, the FIA has since raised issues about whether they provide enough visibility for the driver, despite the fact that the car passed pre-race inspections in France.

Despite the last-minute change before the team's home race at Hockenheim in Germany, team boss Mario Theissen has accepted the decision, claiming that they will continue to work to learn from this in the future.

"The vertical wings obviously presented a new aero solution within the rules," Mario Theissen told Reuters. "We, however, respect the FIA's decision to ban such elements. The knowledge we gained from this will be included in our future development programmes."

The fins caused a stir at the French Grand Prix, not least because of their oddball appearance, although 1997 World champion Jacques Villeneuve was quick to point out that the new wings did not impair his vision.

Although BMW saw minimal performance gain from the wings in the French Grand Prix, both Ferrari and Williams were rumoured to be studying the invention closely, with possible impetus to copying the innovation on future designs, something that now seems unlikely.