Tag Archives: British Grand Prix

Failing To Build Momentum – Williams Renault FW35

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The 2013 season was an “annus horribilis” for the Williams Grand Prix Engineering after a promising win at the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix for Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado, seen below at Silverstone.

Maldonado, Williams Renault FW35, British Grand Prix P1, Silverstone

The team simply failed to build any momentum on that success and after finishing eighth in the 2012 Constructors Championship it was not until the tenth round of the 2013 season that Pastor managed to score a single point.

Wolff, Williams Renault FW35, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

Bruno Senna left the teams driving strength at the end of 2012 and was replaced by the teams Finish test driver Valtteri Bottas seen below, with the Williams Teams Executive Directors wife and former German Touring Car Driver Suzy Wolff, nee Stodartt, seen above, taking over the test drivers position.

Bottas Williams Renault FW35, British Grand Prix P1, Silverstone

Mike Coughlan, brought in from Micheal Waltrip Racing as the teams technical director in May 2011, oversaw the development of the teams Renault powered Williams FW35 challenger for the 2013 season.

Maldonado, Williams Renault FW35, British Grand Prix P1, Silverstone

Over 80 percent of the FW35 was new including the gearbox, rear suspension, radiators, floor, exhausts and bodywork.

Bottas Williams Renault FW35, British Grand Prix P2, Silverstone

After the poor performances in the opening few races of the 2013 season there was talk of the team grafting the back end of the previous years car on to the new one in an attempt to improve the handling.

Wolff, Williams Renault FW35, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

The teams 2013 highlights were an eighth place for rookie Bottas at the US Grand Prix and a tenth place finish for Maldonado in Hungary, Bottas also caught the paddocks attention by qualifying 3rd in fickle conditions for the Canadian Grand Prix.

Bottas Williams Renault FW35, British Grand Prix P2, Silverstone

By the end of the season Toto Wolff had left his Executive Directors position at Williams to join Mercedes Benz, Mike Coughlan had been replaced by Pat Symonds and Pastor Maldonado took his Venezuelan sponsorship to join the financially struggling Lotus team.

Wolff, Williams Renault FW35, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

For 2014 Williams have engaged Ferrari refugee Felipe Massa as their senior driver to join the incumbent Valtteri Bottas. Williams have also completed a deal for a supply of Mercedes Benz power trains and Frank Williams daughter Clare set to take on the responsibilities of her father as deputy Team principle. If any team can move on and bounce back from an “annus horribilis” then it is, the racers race team, Williams who have known the all the highs and lows the sport has to offer and know that when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

You can follow developments at Williams on their website linked here and twitter feed linked here.

Thanks for joining me on this “Failing To Build Momentum Edition” of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be giving an overview of The Mobile County Sheriff’s Challenger. Don’t forget to come back now !

Brighton Speed Trials Under Threat of Permanent Cancellation !

In their infinite wisdom, Brighton & Hove City Council are seeking to ban the Brighton Speed Trials from 2014 tomorrow January 23rd.

If you care about speed and or motorsport history, please sign this linked petition to save Brighton Speed Trials in 2014 and beyond.

It’s a faf to Register before signing, but relatively painless compared to loosing the event which has been run with few interruptions since 1905.

You do not need to be resident in Brighton or even the UK to sign.

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Reliability Dividend – Marussia Cosworth MR02

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In 2009 John Booth’s Manor Grand Prix was one of three teams selected to join the Formula One™ Chmpionship series in 2010, by which time the team had change it’s name to Virgin Racing in deference to their principle backer the Virgin budget airline.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

None of the three new teams did particularly well in 2010 and Virgin racing finished the season with the Championships would spoon for scoring a seaoson high two 14th place finishes like Hispania Racing F1 Team (HRT) but with only one 15th place were unable to match the Spanish teams three 15th place finishes.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

In 2011 Russian automobile manufacturer and sponsor Marussia’s increased involvement in the team was recognised by a change of name to Marussia Virgin Racing but the team finished the season with a second consecutive wooden spoon with three season high 15th place finishes unable to match the single 13 th place finish scored by HRT.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, British GP P1, Silverstone

In 2012 the team became known as the Marussia F1 Team as Virgin ceased it’s involvement after two disappointing years. With two season high 14th place race finishes Marussia finally bested HRT who could only manage a season high 15th place race finishes before the Spanish team folded at the season’s end.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, Bianchi, British GP P1, Silverstone

Rookies Jules Bianchi, seen above during Practice Session 1 (P1) of the British Grand Prix and Max Chilton, seen during the Young Driver Test below joined Marussia for 2013.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, Chilton, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

Marussia also hired former Renault Technical Director Pat Symonds to act as a consultant and employed input from McLaren Applied Technologies wind tunnel on their MR02 design.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, González, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

By now Marrusia were the only team still using the most affordable but unfancied Cosworth V8 spec motors, closest rivals Caterham having switched to Renault power in 2011. Venezuelan test driver Rodolfo González is seen driving the Marussia Cosworth MR02 during the Young Driver Test at Silverstone above.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

Despite regularly qualifying behind the Renault powered Caterhams Jules managed not only to regularly out qualify team mate Max but against expectations Max also finished a season high 13th in Malaysia which turned out to be enough to save Marussia from regaining the Formula One wooden spoon in 2013.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

Max meanwhile became the first rookie in the history of Formula One to finish every race of the entire season, Jules had three retirements, a finishing feat only matched in 2013 by seasoned McLaren drivers Jenson Button and Sergio Perez.

Marussia Cosworth MR02, Chilton, British GP P2, Silverstone

For the first time in the teams history Marussia will keep the same driver line up for 2014 while much else changes, Pat Symonds has been snapped up by the, relative to their own Championship winning standards, struggling Williams team.

So far we know that Marussia will employ a Ferrari power train on the 2014 MR03 design, to keep abreast of Marussia’s developments you might try joining the fastest growing Formula One Team facebook page on this link or try Marussia’s official web site here.

Thanks for joining me on this “Reliability Dividend” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a field full of Indiana State law enforcement vehicles. Don’t forget to come back now !

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First Wooden Spoon – Caterham Renault CT03

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In 2010 two budget Airline moguls entered Formula One teams for the first time, one was Malaysian Tony Fernandes who headed a consortium under the Lotus Racing banner with the blessing of Lotus owners Proton and the other was Richard Branson who entered his team under the Virgin Racing banner.

Caterham Renault CT03, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

At the beginning to the 2010 season Fernandes and Branson made a bet that which ever owner finished lowest in the Constructors Championship would join the aircrew of the others airline for a day dressed as a hostess. Richard lost the bet and last year finally got togged up as an Air Aisa Stewardess.

Pic, Caterham Renault CT03, British Grand Prix P1, Silverstone

Fast forward to 2013 and Fernandes team is still on the grid having changed it’s name to Team Lotus in 2011, and then to Caterham in 2012 after Fernandes bought the Caterham Cars company and Proton let the Genii Capital led consortium which runs the old Renault Team use the Lotus name.

Caterham Renault CT03, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

In 2011 Tony’s team managed to secure a supply of Renault motors as used by Red Bull, and the following season Williams in favour of the Cosworth units they had used in their first season. However they finished both the 2011 and 2012 seasons 10th in the championship standings on best finishes, having failed to score a world championship point in their entire history.

van der Garde, Caterham Renault CT03, British Grand Prix P1, Silverstone

Mark Smith was responsible for the design of the Caterham Renault CT03 used by the team in 2013 which was not too dissimilar to the 2012 CT01 designed by Mike Gascoyne.

van der Garde, Caterham Renault CT03, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

Frenchman Charles Pic, see second photo, moved over to Caterham from Richard Branson’s old team, rebranded Marussia in 2012, to be joined by Dutchman Giedio van der Garde, seen above for the driving duties.

Caterham Renault CT03, Young Driver Test, Silverstone

The Caterham team’s highlights in 2013 season were two 14th place finishes at the Hungarian Grand Prix for Giedo and at the Korean Grand Prix for Charles.

Despite not having the slowest car, Giedo qualified a team best ever 14th in Belgium, the Caterham team could not better the 13th place finish recorded by Jules Bianchi driving a Marussia in the 2013 Malasian Grand Prix and so Caterham finished the 2013 season last in the constructors championship with their first wooden spoon.

For 2014 Caterham will again be relying on Renault for their turbocharged primary motors but have yet to make any announcement regarding their drivers at least one of whom is expected to be a well known “star”. You can stay abreast of developments at Caterham on their official website linked here.

Thanks for joining me on this “First Wooden Spoon” edition of “Gettin a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow on the streets of Toronto. Don’t forget to came back now !

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Cobra Caravan Itinerant – Ford GT40 Mk 1 #GT40 P/1084

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So far as I have been able to discern the chassis numbers for the production Ford GT40 Mk1 ran from P/1000 to P/1086, suggesting at least 87 production GT40 Mk1’s were built at Ford Advanced Vehicle facility in Slough, though as we shall see things are not always quite so simple.

Colvill, Ford GT40, Brands Hatch

Today’s featured car is a case in point, known as #P/1084 it has the highest chassis number of those known to have raced in period, though chassis P/1071 did not make it’s race debut until 14 month’s after #P/1084 appeared at Spa in May 1968 with Paul Hawkins and David Hobbs at the wheel.

However it turns out that #P/1084 started life as #P/1004 in 1965, a car that was entered into the 1965 Le Mans 24 hours by RRC Walker Racing and Shelby American for Bob Bondurant and Umberto Maglioli, this car running the #7 qualified third but retired with a leaking head gasket on lap 29, coincidentally the same lap as it’s sister #P/1005 driven by Ronnie Buckum and Herbert Müller retired with the same problem. #GT40 P/1004 then appears to have gone on Carrol Shelby’s promotional tour of America known as the Cobra Caravan.

When the JW Automotive Gulf team, operating from the same factory as Ford Advanced Vehicles had in Slough, needed a car for the 1968 Spa 1000kms they found they were a car short and so they rebuilt #P/1004 to 1968 specification and gave it a ‘new’ GT40 P/1084 identification although the factory records refer to the chassis entered at Spa where Hawkins and Hobbs finished 4th by it’s old number.

Some sources believe that #P/1084 was then shipped, by JW Automotive, to Watkins Glen two month’s later where Hawkins and Hobbs finished 2nd however I believe this is a typo, GT40 über authority Ronnie Spain identifies the car that Hawkins and Hobbs drove at Watkins Glen as GT40 P/1074.

During the 1970’s P/1084 was raced by Paul Wheldon for owner Connaught Engineering founder Rodney Clarke. Martin Colville seen in the #P/1084 here at Brands Hatch in July 1982 where Martin was taking part in a support race on the British Grand Prix weekend bought the car in 1981 and had a bubble fitted to the upper part of the drivers door to accommodated his frame.

Subject to revisions in Ronnie Spain’s much anticipated second edition bible on the subject “GT40: An Individual History and Race Record” this is my best understanding of the car known as #GT40 P/1084. If you know different please do not hesitate to chip in below.

My thanks to David McKinney, Pete Taylor and Ron54 at The Nostalgia Forum for their help in yet another carceology adventure.

Thanks for joining me on this “Cobra Caravan Itinerant” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again for Ferrari Friday tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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1975 Marlboro Promotions Dossier – GALPOT Automobillia

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Thanks to the modest success of Automobillia sales on my ‘lightpress’ e-bay page a friend recently told me about today’s featured 1975 Marlboro Promotions Dossier which he acquired with a ‘boot load’ of books some years ago.

Marlboro Promotions Dossier, GALPOT Automobillia

This dossier issued on July 7th by David Bridgman of Phillip Morris & Company Ltd in Maidenhead details the companies plans for promotion of the Marlboro brand and associated hospitality in the run up to and including the 1975 British Grand Prix, an event sponsored by rival brand John Player Special, at Silverstone on the 19th of July.

Marlboro Promotions Dossier, GALPOT Automobillia

Marlboro became involved in Formula One with BRM in 1972, the partnership lasted two years and resulted in just one Grand Prix victory. After an uncompetitive season in 1973 Marlboro hooked up with former Lotus sponsor Texaco and Emerson Fittipaldi, who won the 1972 World Championship with Lotus, to join forces with McLaren for the 1974 season.

Marlboro Promotions Dossier, GALPOT Automobillia

Emerson won 3 Grand Prix and the World Drivers Championship while team mate Denny Hulme won the first race of the Marlboro McLaren alliance to help McLaren secure the World Constructors Championship in 1974.

Marlboro Promotions Dossier, GALPOT Automobillia

For 1975 Emerson, seen modelling Marboro apparel above, was joined by Jochen Mass after Denny Hulme retired from the top echelon of the sport and as detailed in the Promotions dossier Emerson was third in the championship with Jochen 8th going into the 1975 British Grand Prix.

Marlboro Promotions Dossier, GALPOT Automobillia

John Player had exclusive rights to advertising, promotional and merchandising at Silverstone, so according to the dossier Phillip Morris focused their attentions to promotions at partner Texaco garages and shopping centres particularly at the Bull Ring Shopping Centre where a ‘real’ McLaren racing car was to be put on display.

Marlboro Promotions Dossier, GALPOT Automobillia

A third strand of Phillip Morris activities was customer hospitality before and during the race weekend which included a party for 94 guests and their partners, staying at two hotels along with 4 McLaren personnel with their partners on the Friday evening before the race, held on a Saturday. On race day Phillip Morris guests were to be bussed from their hotels, the dossier includes room numbers for the guests, to the circuit. Morning Coffee, Lunch and Afternoon Tea were to be served at the Marlboro Marquee, after the event guests were returned to their hotel by bus in time for an evening meal.

Marlboro Promotions Dossier, GALPOT Automobillia

On lap 55 a hail storm caused four of the top six runners to crash out of the British Grand Prix and the race was declared one lap later with Emerson Fittipaldi, who took the lead on lap 44, was declared the winner.

The win would prove to be Emerson’s last Grand Prix victory, he came second in the 1975 World Drovers Championship behind Ferrari’s Niki Lauda, another Marlboro sponsored driver, and then made the surprise move to his brothers Copersucar team which proved to be a disaster for his career. James Hunt replaced Fittipaldi and went on to become 1976 World Champion as detailed in Ron Howards latest film ‘Rush’.

If you would like to bid for this dossier you can find the e-bay details on this link.

Thanks for joining me on this “1975 Marlboro Promotions Dossier” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again for look at some of the cars that appeared at the recent Danville Concours d’Elegance. Don’t forget to come back now !

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In Law’s Instrumental Help – Ligier Matra JS17

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At the end of 1978 Chrysler Europe was taken over by Peugeot and almost immediately rebranded the French Simca and British Hillman models as Talbot’s resurrecting a name that had last appeared in Formula One in 1951.

In 1972 MATRA, who were taken over by Simca, withdrew from Formula One to concentrate on a successful sports car program which was itself discontinued at the end of 1974 after MATRA had won three consecutive Le Mans 24 Hour races and two World sports Car Championships under the direction of Gerard Ducarouge.

Laffite, Ligier MATRA JS 17, British Grand Prix, Silverstone

Ducarouge went to work for Ligier to design a Matra powered Formula One car in 1976, the JS5 was quite successful for a new comer and the following year Jaques Laffite won the 1977 Swedish Grand Prix driving a MATRA V12 powered Ligier JS7. MATRA stopped developing their V12 in 1978 and Ligier suffered a consequent dip in their fortunes.

For 1979 and 1980 Ligier opted for the popular Cosworth DFV V8’s and immediately returned to victory lane with two surprising wins for Laffite in Argentina and Brazil with the JS11 model, but the team lost it’s direction did not present the anticipated championship challenge. In 198O Laffite won just one race but the team scored enough points to finish second in the constructors championship.

Tambay, Ligier MATRA JS 17, British Grand Prix, Silverstone

By 1981 Peugeot returned the Talbot name to Formula One by teaming up with Ligier and an updated version of the MATRA V12 was used to power the JS17’s featured today. Laffite was to be teamed up with brother in law, ex Renault refugee, Jean Pierre Jabouille who was recovering from injuries sustained when he crashed his Renault Turbo in the 1980 Canadian Grand Prix.

Jean Pierre Jarrier stood in for Jabouille for the first two races but when Jabouille returned to the cockpit he failed to qualify for two races in five attempts so he was replaced by Patrick Tambay seen at the wheel of the #25 here for the second half of the season, but crucially Jabouille remained with the team acting as an engineer. Patrick qualified for all of the remaining races but did not finish any of them.

Ligier MATRA JS 17, Test Day, Donington Park

Laffite meantime scored a couple of 2nd place finishes in Spain and Sweden along with 3 third place finishes in Monaco, Britain and Germany. Just before the French Grand Prix Gerard Ducarouge was fired by Guy Ligier.

At the Austrian Grand Prix Jabouille was instrumental in helping Laffite choose the correct tyre to suit both the Ligier and the track which resulted in the car qualifying 4th behind two turbo charged Renaults and Villenueve’s turbocharged Ferrari.

Ligier MATRA JS 17, Test Day, Donington Park

During the race after passing Villeneuve and his quick off the grid Ferrari team mate Didier Pironi, Jaques chased down the leading Renaults. Alain Prost in the lead car retired with collapsed suspension before Jacques passed the second Renault for the lead and eventual victory when René Arnoux hesitated over taking a pair of back markers.

Jacques then retired in Holland and Italy before bouncing back with a win from 10th on the grid in Canada to put him 3rd in the championship table, 6 points off the leader, with a slim chance of winning the 1981 Drivers Championship going into the Caesers Palace Grand Prix held in Las Vegas. In the event Jacques qualified just 12th behind Championship leader Carlos Reutemann who was on pole in his Williams and 2nd in standings Nelson Piquet who was 4th in his Brabham.

Reutemann inexplicably choked under the championship pressure during the race to finish 7th out of the points while Piquet salvaged a fifth place finish, one spot ahead of Jacques, enough to win the Championship. Alan Jones won the race in his Williams thereby depriving Jacques of a third place finish in the Championship, so for the third consecutive time Jacques Laffite recorded what would be his career best 4th place finish in the final championship standings.
With only the #26 scoring any points all season Ligier finished the season 4th in the Constructors Championship.

Thanks for joining me on this “In Law’s Instrumental Help” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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It’s Not A Pick Up Truck – Ferrari 150° Italia

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Having snatched World Drivers Championship defeat from the jaws of Victory at the Abu Dahbi Grand Prix in 2010, where Fernando Alonso went into the last race of the season with a 15 point lead over third placed Sebastian Vettel but left 4 points in arrears to the German in the final Championship standings, Ferrari regrouped for 2011 building a new vehicle with the design credited to Aldo Costa and Nicholas Tombazis which was known at its launch as the F150 in celebration of Italy’s 150th unification anniversary.

Ferrari 150° Italia, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

Formula One attracts controversy like flies to jam and a large number of jokes by even the most technical minded Formula One anoraks aside it was not long before Ford objected to Ferrari’s use of the trade marked F150 name and eventually Ferrari settled on the 150° Italia in which the ‘°’ stands for the ordinal cento cinquantesimo or one hundred and fiftieth in English.

Ferrari 150° Italia, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

Technically Ferrari’s 2011 2.4 litre/146 cui V8 powered challenger was caught on the hop having failed to spot the potential handling benefits of off throttle blown diffusers, a failure which echoed Enzo Ferrari’s assertion that aerodynamics are for teams that cannot build engines.

Ferrari 150° Italia, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

As a consequence Alonso was rarely in contention for podium finishes as Red Bull and McLaren who had refined their off throttle blown diffusers, won the opening 8 races of the 2011 season with Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull winning 6 and Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button driving McLarens winning the remaining two.

Ferrari 150° Italia, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

For the ninth race of the season the British Grand Prix Ferrari had managed to persuade all the teams that they should run without off throttle blown diffusers, which basically hooked up an electronic engine programme to wind up the engine speed when the driver was off throttle to force hot air through the exhaust into the diffusers which produced additional downforce when running off throttle through the corners.

Ferrari 150° Italia, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

In the prevalent wet conditions which dried through the race Alonso, starting third, managed to beat the Lewis Hamilton driving a McLaren and Sebastian Vettel in his Red Bull to score the Ferrari teams only victory in 2011.

Ferrari 150° Italia, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

By the next race the teams despite objections from Ferrari and the Ferrari powered Sauber team reverted to running off throttle blown diffusers in anticipation of a ban on these devices for 2012.

Ferrari 150° Italia, Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham

Ferrari ended up a distant third in the manufactures championship behind Red Bull who scored six further victories to take their 2011 total to 12 and McLaren who scored four further victories in the 19 race season.

Fernando finished the 2011 championship 4th behind Vettel, Jenson Button and Mark Webber who scored just one point ahead of the Spaniard. De facto Ferrari number 2 driver Felipe Massa was lucky to keep his Ferrari seat for 2012 after he finished 6th in the championship 99 points behind Lewis Hamilton having failed finish any higher the 5th all season.

Thanks for joining me on this “It’s Not A Pick Up Truck” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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