Eifelland was a German Formula One team, named after its owner Günther Hennerici's caravan manufacturing company. The name Eifelland was chosen after the Eifel mountains where Hennerici was born, which are located close to the Nürburgring.

Eifelland as a Formula One chassis constructor
Official name(s)Team Eifelland Caravans
BaseWest Germany
Founder(s)Günther Hennerici
Notable staffLuigi Colani
Formula One World Championship career
EnginesCosworth V8
First entry1972 South African Grand Prix
Last entry1972 Austrian Grand Prix
Races entered8
Race victories0
Constructors' Championships0
Drivers'
Championships
0
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
Eifelland E21 in the 1972 French Grand Prix.

History

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Günther's twin brother, Heinz Hennerici, was a World War II tank commander who lost his left arm in combat.[1] The accident didn't prevent him from becoming a rather successful touring car racing driver, eventually competing in the Nürburgring 24 Hours. The Hennerici brothers were also instrumental in the establishment of the Automobil-Club Mayen. In 1970 Günther married Hannelore Werner [de], one of the few female Formula 2 and Sports car drivers around at the time.[2]

In 1971 Günther Hennerici decided to expand his activities to motor racing and founded his own team, Eifelland. Initially the team competed mostly in Formula Three, with drivers such as Willi Deutsch, Gerd Koppenhauser, Erwin Derichs, Hans Hargarten and Werner herself.[3] In 1972 he chose to graduate to Formula One and field one single car with Rolf Stommelen at the wheel. The car was based on a March 721 Formula One car, redesigned by German designer Luigi Colani in his typical rounded aerodynamic style, and presented some innovative features. An air intake in front of the driver would guide the air around the cockpit to the engine, and one single rear view mirror was mounted in front of the driver. Although reasonably reliable, the car suffered from overheating and scarce downforce. Stomelen's best results were two top-ten finishes at the 1972 Monaco Grand Prix and the 1972 British Grand Prix, and at the end of the 1972 Formula One season the team decided to focus exclusively on Formula Three. After a couple of unsuccessful seasons, in 1974 Hennerici sold the team and his caravan company and retired.

Heinz's grandson, Marc Hennerici, is also a racing driver. He won the 2005 World Touring Car Championship's Independents Trophy.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

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(key)

Year Chassis Engine Tyres Driver 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Points WCC
1972 Eifelland E21 Cosworth V8 G ARG RSA ESP MON BEL FRA GBR GER AUT ITA CAN USA 0 NC
  Rolf Stommelen 13 Ret 10 11 16 10 Ret 15
Source:[4]

References

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  1. ^ "Gunther Hennerici".
  2. ^ "Hannelore Werner (D) - Racing Sports Cars".
  3. ^ "Eifelland – F3History".
  4. ^ Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. p. 363. ISBN 0851127029.
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