BRITISH RACING SUCCESSES

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31579, 17 January 1968, Page 11

BRITISH RACING SUCCESSES

It is almost history, to those interested in for. mula one racing, that until 1937 Britain had not produced a successful Grand Prix car for more than 30 years. Brave attempts were made by teams like H.w.M. and Alta, but it was the Ger> man and Italian teams who reigned supreme. Momentarily, in October, 1955, a British Connaught, powered by an Alta engine, shocked the motor sporting world by winning the Syracuse Grand Prix. Shocked was no exaggeration; for in “ winning, the car, driven by Tony Brooks, who was com-

peting in his first formula one race, vanquished a four-car Maserati team and broke the existing lap record three times. The result so astonished the organisers that they ordered a complete examination of the car, to ensure that it complied with existing formula one regulations. But these were still early days for British formula one cars. Almost since the end of the Second World War a racing driver-engineer named Raymond Mays had been bursting with the idea of building a formula one car to challenge the world. The car, named the 8.R.M., was designed by a team that had previously designed a famous

pre-war racing car, the E.RAB.R.M. The 8.R.M., fitted with a 16-cylinder supercharged 1.5litre engine, was entered for its first race at Silverstone, almost against the wishes of the B.R.M. team. As French driver Raymond Sommer let in the clutch the transmission failed and the car was wheeled away to the paddock. The team persevered with the 16cylinder engine until the end of the 1955 season when the F.I.A. changed the formula one regulations. . Even under the new formula, when the team developed a new 2.5-litre engine, the car had a very chequered career, and it was not until

1958 that it really began to show any of the promise that it was later to fulfill. The B.R.M. project had been originally financed by a group of backers, largely from within the motor Industry, and it was one of these men— Tony Vandervell—who first put British cars on the Grand Prix map. Vandervell, disappointed by the B.R.M.’s lack of success, decided to “go it alone.” From development work carried out towards the end of the previous formula one on a 4.5-litre Ferraribased “Thinwall Special," he introduced a new formula one ear, called the Vanwall, in 1954. The Vanwall was subject to a great deal of modification before it gained its first success. In 1956 the fourcylinder fuel-injected Vanwall, running on special racing fuel, gained a notable victory against an international field, including Fangio, at Silverstone in the International Trophy. For the 1956 season the car sported a new chassis designed by Colin Chapman, who was later to gain fame as a manufacturer in his own right

ACCLAIM In 1957 the car gained international acclaim with its success in the British Grand Prix at Aintree. It was driven by Tony Brooks and Stirling Moss, who took it over the line after bis own car had dropped out Later Tony Brooks repeated his Syracuse formula one success with a win for Vanwall at Pescara, and Moss continued the winning ways at the extremely fast Italian Grand Prix at Monza. Vanwall development reached its climax during the next season, when the car won six of the 11 Grand Prix events counting towards the world championship. The 1958 season was a truly historic one for Britain. Not only did Tony Vanderveil’s cars win the world championship for manufacturers, but Coopers’ won the formula two world championship, and British drivers

[gained the first three places [in world drivers’ championI ship. However, the start of the 1959 season looked grim; Vanwall was to retire front racing. The news dropped like a bombshell. Although the team announced that they would be entering a car for selected events, because of Tony Vandervell’s I|l health no organised programme of racing was being planned. If nothing else the decision I left two of the world’s best drivers, Tony Brooks and Stirling Moss, without cars for the forthcoming season. COOPERS

Coopers’, as well as winning the formula two world championship, gained two major formula one successes in 1958; the Argentine and Monaco Grand Prix, when privately entered cars of the Rob Walker team, driven by Stirling Moss, gained outright victories. The cars were rear-engined with Coventry Climax power units over half a litre smaller than their competitors. In the next season Coopers’ gained the world constructors’ championship, using a new 2.5litre Coventry Climax engine, winning nine out of the year’s 11 Grand Prix events. The company followed up its success the following year, when once again they gained the manufacturers* prise. From 1957, to 1960,.they were halcyon years for British constructors and enthusiasts, but- the next year, 1961, was to bring disappointment The existing formula one—7soc.c. supercharged or 2.5-litres unsupercharged—had been in force since 1954. The new formula proposed by the F.1.A.—1.5-litre unsupercharged engines—met with little support from the successful British manufacturers, who delayed development on the new cars and engines in an atempt to extend the old formula. Although Coventry Climax had an engine available it did not produce sufficient power to match its foreign rivals. SUCCESS It was In 1962 that B.R.M. achieved success. The successful car was a new design with a V-8 power unit; the previous season the Bournebuilt cars had used Coventry Climax units whilst awaiting their own engine. The car lived up to its promise and won four of the year’s nine Grand Prix events, gained sufficient points to win the constructor’s championship and gain team driver Graham Hill the drivers* award. The new B.RJI. engine powered not only the team cars, but privately-entered cars as welt The new Coventry Climax engine was used in the Coopers and Lotuses, and a car designed by the former world champion driver Jack Brabham, as well as the Lola, designed by Eric Broadley, who was later to be responsible for launching the Ford G.T. cars. With the exception of the French Grand Prix, British cars won every one of the nine events counting towards the world championship. Then 1963 was the year of the Lotus. Colin Chapman had a great deal to do with the

design of the chassis and suspension of the successful Vanwall. His early forays into formula one racing had been with cars bearing a great deal of resemblance to the 1957 Vanwalls. But he followed the lead set by Coopers and intro, duced his first rear-engined car in 1960.

In 1962 the Lotus cars had proved themselves extremely fast but lacked sufficient reliability to rob B.RJU. of the world championship. By the next season the cars had found their form, and after a year of hard-fought battles with 8.R.M., won seven of the year’s 'lO Grand Prix events, giving Colin Chapman the constructors’ title and Jim Clark the driver’s award. The 1964 season brought surprises for the British teams. Lotus and B.R.M. spearheaded the attack, but unreliability and bad luck combined with a strong challenge from the Ferrari equipe cost them both the championship. The last season of the much maligned 1.5-litre formula, which in spite of Its critics had produced close racing, once again proved supremacy of British cars. Lotus won the world championship, team driver' Jim Clark won the drivers’ award and with the exception of the Mexican Grand Prix, British cars took the chequered flag at every one of the year’s events.

NEW FORMULA The new 8-litre formula one started In 1986. In contrast to the 1.5-litre limit, this move was welcomed by most manufacturers, as well as drivers. The Australian Jack Brabham, who had won two world drivers’ championships while with Cooper, won the 1966 championship, his third, and became the first man ever to win the constructor’s award driving his own make or car. Brabham left the Cooper works team to build and race his own cars in 1961 and while his Coventry Climax rear-engined cars had always been a threat to the larger works teams the last year of the 1.5-litre formula had been a disappointing one for the equipe. The start of the 1966 season brought the almost traditional problem of power plants to the British teams. Coventry Climax, who had manufactured the engines for Lotus, Cooper and Brabham, as well as a number of the private entrants, had announced their retirement from motor racing. Of the British teams only 8.R.M., backed by the large Owen Organisation, had the facilities to design and build their own engines. Cooper turned to Maserati for engines. Lotus announced that the Ford Company of Britain were to supply their engines, but until they became available, used one of the old Coventry Climax engines or H-16 engines designed and built by B.R.M. Brabham announced that he was to use an engine developed by the Australian Repco concern. So at the beginning of the season only Ferrari, Cooper, Brabham and B.R.M. looked like being competitive and the relatively low power output claimed from the simple Repco engine had already

caused many people to write off any chance for the Brabham team. Nevertheless the Repco engine coupled with a space frame car and the driving of Jack Brabham was the recipe that won the world championship for both constructor and builder. Last year was the second year of the 3-Iltre formula. Lotus had the new FordCosworth engine, which won the first race for which it was entered, as well as the British G.P. The B.R.M. engine had still to find the necessary reliability, and a new V-12 was used in the McLaren-B.RM-during the last part of the season. Coopers used a new three valve a cylinder head in a search for more power from their Italian-designed engine, and at the British G.P. unveiled a new lightweight car. The Brabham team used a more powerful version of last year’s Repco engine in a space-frame chassis—and won the championship with it