Formula One teams and the sport's governing body said on Tuesday that a meeting between the two sides in Geneva had produced "significant" cost savings for 2009 and 2010.
A joint statement by the International Automobile Federation (FIA) and Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) said the 10 teams were also "working urgently on further proposals for 2010 and thereafter".
No details were given, however.
"It was a very constructive meeting," said an FIA spokesman. "We welcomed the teams' proposals and we look forward to taking the discussion forward."
The teams, represented in Geneva by Ferrari and FOTA president Luca di Montezemolo and Toyota's John Howett, were due to meet again at the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix next week before further talks with FIA president Max Mosley.
Mosley said this month that, even without the global credit crunch, the sport had become unsustainable at the current level of spending and faced serious problems if costs were not slashed by 2010.
The FIA announced at last weekend's Chinese Grand Prix that it intended to change the rules to force teams to use a standard engine from 2010, announcing a tender for the contract.
That declaration, seen by many as more of a bargaining position ahead of Tuesday's talks, found little favour with the car manufacturers who dominate the sport and would prefer other measures such as extending engine life from two races to three.
The standard engine, either built by a third party supplier or the manufacturers themselves, was one of the main items on the agenda for the meeting.
However, a more palatable alternative envisaged manufacturers supplying independent teams with a complete powertrain (engine and gearbox) for less than five million euros ($6.60 million) per team per season.
The agenda for the meeting also raised the possibility of using common chassis parts, including standard suspension and wheels and other expensive parts which "add nothing to the spectacle or the public interest of Formula One."
All the teams are agreed on the need to cut costs at a time when car sales have dropped off along with the manufacturers' share prices.
One team, Honda-backed Super Aguri, has already folded this year and Mosley warned that more could follow unless immediate action was taken.
Toyota are widely estimated to spend more than $400 million a year on a team that has yet to win a race.