Pat,
IMHO it could go either way after the Concorde agreement expires. What sane person would ever have iamgined that F1 audiences would decline in such dramatic fashion over the last 4 years and why is that ? Is it Shumaker's incredibly boring persona? is it the car's specifications? is it the sanitized circuits? is the qualifying satisfactory?
The new rules with the changed aero package, tyres, and engines are going to lead to some interesting 'cheating' because I don't think there has ever been a rule that hasn't been circumvented by the teams. They are good at it and they employ specialists and lawyers to do just that. After Concorde ? I would like to see the 4 Banks doing some sort of deal with the GPWC and leaving Bambino (That's Ecclestone and his very tall wife) which would then include FOH, FOM, and FOA being without any thing to Hold , Manage or Administer. If we get through 2005 and the GPWC increases, rather than diminishes, in strength, then, again IMHO, it's game on for a big shake up and change.
The V8 will only change things for a short period after which the aerodynamicists will claw the deficit back again and I don't think the engines will sound that much different to the current ones. What might be more interesting is who will maintain the start advantage and further more control the tyres for the entire race on a machine with considerably less wing effect and which is considerably more twitchy when cornering. I think I have a clue about the starting but I also know it will all come out in the wash in Melbourne. Rumours - Flavio has stated that Renault will be a major front runner in an interview in the Italian press - apart from that not much else going down at the moment in the run up to the holiday period.
Dave M