James Allison
Allison joins Mercedes after two spells at Ferrari. Getty Images

Mercedes have appointed James Allison as their new technical director as the constructors' champions continue to ring the changes before the new Formula One season. The 48-year-old, who left Ferrari in July, replaces Paddy Lowe who is moving to Williams.

Allison has enjoyed a stellar career in the sport, including two spells at Ferrari, the first of which coincided with Michael Schumacher five straight world titles between 2000 and 2004. Positions with Benetton, where he also began his motor sport career, Renault and Lotus have followed before he returned to the Italian team in 2013.

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Lowe meanwhile played a pivotal role in Mercedes winning the world drivers championship during the last three seasons and is on the verge of completing a move to Williams in time for the 2017 campaign.

"I am very excited to be getting back to work after this time away from the sport," Allison told the official Mercedes website. "It's a massive privilege to be given the trust of a position in a team that has done so spectacularly well in the past three seasons. I am really looking forward to playing my part in helping Mercedes go from strength to strength in the coming years."

Executive director Toto Wolff added: "I am delighted to welcome James to Mercedes and very much looking forward to working with him. Our technical team is extremely skilled at every level and at the top of its game after delivering three world championships in a row.

"It wasn't an easy task to find the right personality who can strengthen our experienced group of engineers, give our talented young team members the space to develop and also bring his own vision to this role. James is a sharp engineer; I think we have found the perfect guy and the right fit with our senior leaders."

The move comes exactly a month after Valtteri Bottas was confirmed as the replacement for Nico Rosberg, who retired after winning the world title in 2016. The Fin will partner Lewis Hamilton at the Silver Arrows when the season gets underway at the Australian Grand Prix on 26 March. Bottas' arrival has also seen Pascal Wehrlein depart to Sauber for the new campaign.