Scuderia De Tomaso edit
- This article is about De Tomaso in motorsport. For the road cars manufactured by the same company, please see De Tomaso.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Scuderia De Tomaso was part of the motorsport company, out of which the luxury and sports car manufacturer De Tomaso grew. Founded by Argentinian expatriot Alejandro de Tomaso, the organisation was based in Modena, the motorsport heart of Italy. While the Scuderia was technically only the race entrant, this article also considers De Tomaso's wider involvement in motorsport as a chassis and engine constructor. Although the race team was far from successful, it is in the latter role that De Tomaso is better known, principally as a constructor of Formula One cars in the early 1960s and 1970. However, during this time De Tomaso also built chassis for Formula Junior, Formula Three, Formula Two and sports car racing. It was while driving a De Tomaso 505 F1 car that British driver Piers Courage lost his life at the 1970 Dutch Grand Prix.
Origins edit
Following an uneventful career as a racing driver, Alejandro (often rendered in the Italian spelling, Alessandro) de Tomaso decided to settle in his adopted country, Italy, and start building cars. In its first years the company was funded by de Tomaso's wife, Elizabeth Haskell, a wealthy heiress. The team's Argentine background is reflected in the blue and white stripes of the company's logo, reflecting the stripes on the Flag of Argentina.
Having only started two Grands Prix, for his first vehicle designs de Tomaso stuck to the lower formulae that he knew best. 1959 saw the emergence of de Tomaso's first Formula 2 and Formula Junior cars, both heavily based around modified Cooper T59 chassis. From the start, De Tomaso was strongly aligned with many ex-Maserati figures, employing Alberto Massimino and with engineering links to the Maserati brothers' new compnay, OSCA, de Tomaso himself having driven for the Italians in his last two years of competition.
Formula 1 cars edit
F1 edit
It was OSCA's offer of new 1.5L and 2.0L engines that prompted De Tomaso to uprate his F2/J chassis to Formula One specification. This was achieved with the assistance of Alberto Massimino, the principal designer of the successful Maserati 4CLT of a decade before. The first appearance of a De Tomaso-OSCA in Grand Prix competition was in the hands of privateer team Scuderia Serenissima, at the 1961 French Grand Prix, but the car failed to finish due to engine troubles. A second OSCA-engined chassis was supplied to Scuderia Settecolli, while two further chassis built in 1961 were modified to accept Alfa Romeo engines. One of these also found its way into the Serenissima stable, while the second was retained by De Tomaso and was run by their racing squad, Isobele de Tomaso, named for Madame de Tomaso's married Italian name.
None of the four cars managed to finish, or in some cases even qualify, for a World Championship race, although two cars did finish 4th and 5th in the non-Championship Coppa Italia. The Scuderia Settecolli F1 car also appeared in 1962, after the factory team had moved on to the 801 project, but again met with little success. Following abandonment of the 801, three of the initial F1 cars, joined by a fifth new chassis, were run during 1963, with a variety of OSCA, Ford, Maserati and Ferrari engines. Once again, not a single De Tomaso finished a Championship Grand Prix. After 1963 De Tomaso shifted their focus back onto their more successful F2 and FJ models.
801 edit
Although Alberto Massimino had assisted in the modification of the F1 chassis, for 1962 De Tomaso took the bold step to allow Massimino to design a puropose-built Formula 1 vehicle, complete with a brand new, in-house engine. Massimino decided to build the car around an ambitious, flat-8 1.5L motor, with distinctive, vertical, individual exhaust stubs poking through the top of the bodywork.
At its first event, the 1962 Italian Grand Prix, the car proved to be hopelessly underpowered, and failed to qualify for the race. For the second outing, at the Rome Grand Prix, although driver Nasif Estefano managed to qualify, the engine failed in the race. For its final World Championship entry, the 1962 British Grand Prix, the 801's steel spaceframe chassis was modified to accept a tuned Alfa Romeo engine, although this proved to be no better than the De Tomaso unit, and the Scuderia did not even bother to attend.
505 edit
After two successful Formula 2 seasons in 1968 and 1969, Alejandro de Tomaso decided to re-enter Formula One competition. De Tomaso employed Gian Paolo Dallara, already responsible for the Lamborghini Miura and De Tomaso's 1969 F2 car, to design a new Formula One chassis around the Cosworth DFV engine. The performance of the F2 car convinced Frank Williams to agree to run what was, in effect, De Tomaso's works Formula One entry for 1970.
Frank Williams Racing Cars would receive three new 505 chassis free of charge, but had to fund the engine and maintainance costs. The cars were painted in Rosso corsa in recognition of the Italian team backers. In its first race, the 1970 South African Grand Prix, the De Tomaso 505 proved to be overweight by approximately 50kg. Although Williams' friend and driver Piers Courage managed to qualify the car, suspension failure meant that the 505 did not reach the finishing flag. In its second race,in 1962 Spanish Grand Prix the car suffered an even worse fate, as Courage crashed in the practice session and wrote it off.
Drastic work on the remaining cars meant that by the time Williams arrived at Silverstone for the non-Championship BRDC International Trophy race, one week later, the chassis had shed over 20kg. Before the race, Jackie Stewart tried the car in practice, while Courage was still in transit after having competed in the Monza 1000km. The race itself proved to be the high point in the 505's race career. As he had missed the qualifying session, Courage started from the back of the grid, but managed to fight his way though the field to take third place in both heats, and third overall, by the end of the day.
The Monaco and Spa rounds brought no repeat of this performance, but Courage managed to take 9th place on the grid for the start of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort. Tragically, in the race itself Courage appeared to be driving well, dicing with Clay Regazzoni's Ferrari, before he lost control of the car, possibly due to a component failure caused by the bumpy track. The car shot stright off the track and into the sandy banking, before bursting into flames. Courage died at the wheel.
After this tragedy, De Tomaso withdrew their support for the racing team. FWRC missed the French round, before continuing the season with Brian Redman and Tim Schenken. However, by the end of the season, no 505 had managed to finish a World Championship race. This was to be the last De Tomaso monoposto competition car to race.
Other cars edit
Sports racers edit
At around the same time that the early '60s F1 project was getting off the ground, the first of De Tomaso's sports cars made an appearance. Initially introduced as a racing car, the De Tomaso Spyder models were underpinned by what would eventually be developed into the chassis of their first road car: the Vallelunga. Similar to contemporary Lotus designs such as the Elan, these early cars were constructed with an aluminium spine chassis, with a mid-mounted engine drawn from OSCA stocks. Coachwork was generally by Fantuzzi, but one model was clothed by rival coachbuilder Ghia. It was the Ghia model that paved the way for road car construction to begin, being shown to great acclaim at many European motor shows in 1965. Althouh the factory always claimed that this car was powered by the abortive F1 flat-8 motor, it in fact housed a rather more mundane Ford Kent inline-4. Despite stunning looks, and promising mechanicals, none of the Spyders were ever raced in earnest.
Indianpolis 500 edit
Following De Tomaso's decision to abort their Formula One involvement, de Tomaso decided to try the company's hand in the premier motorsport event in North America: the Indianapolis 500. One car was designed and built for the 1964 event, with some truely innovative engineering features. Although a mid-mounted engine was not unheard of at the Brickyard, De Tomaso's choice of a cast magnesium monocoque is unique to this day. In addition, the monocoque was designed with a double-skin, the void between the two forming the fuel tank. The casting was performed by bicycle component manufacturer Campagnolo, later also famous as a leading producer of alloy wheels. Although the car was certainly built, and shipped to the USA, no further information is available, and the car did not appear at the race.
Junior formulae edit
The Pantera and other road cars edit
References edit
- F1Technical.net
- ChicaneF1.com
- Grand Prix Racing
- GPR - cars
- Autocourse
- 6th Gear
- 8W
- grandprix.com
- detomaso.it
- De Tomaso Registry
- Concept Carz
- Williams involvment
- Alejandro de Tomaso
External links edit
Ferguson P99 edit
| Category | Formula One | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Ferguson Research Ltd. | ||||||||
| Designer(s) | Claude Hill Tony Rolt | ||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||
| Chassis | Steel spaceframe | ||||||||
| Engine | Coventry Climax FPF 1498cc inline 4, naturally aspirated, front mounted | ||||||||
| Transmission | Ferguson constant mesh 5-speed manual, four wheel drive | ||||||||
| Tyres | Dunlop | ||||||||
| Competition history | |||||||||
| Notable entrants | Rob Walker Racing | ||||||||
| Notable drivers |  Jack Fairman Stirling Moss | ||||||||
| Debut | 1961 British Grand Prix Aintree | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Ferguson Project 99, known as the P99, is a Formula One racing car that was designed and built by Ferguson Research Ltd. in 1961. The design team was led by Claude Hill and former driver Tony Rolt. Although it was only ever entered into one Grand Prix, it holds the twin distinctions of being simutaneously the last front engined car and first four-wheel drive car entered for a Formula One World Championship event. It is also the only four-wheel drive car ever to win a Formula One race, taking victory in the rain-hit Oulton Park Gold Cup non-Championship event, driven by Stirling Moss. The P99 was one of the first competition cars to be fitted with an anti-lock braking system, although this were not used during its brief F1 career.
Background edit
Harry Ferguson's company had been installing their four-wheel drive system in agricultural machinery since the early 1950s. After trials in Ferguson's experimental R5 saloon, Ferguson Research were so confident in the efficiency of the design that they decided to build a full Formula One competitor.[1] Previous attempts at incorporating 4WD technology into a top flight racing car had been hampered by the large power losses caused by the extra friction generated by the increased number of mechanical components in the transmission.[2]
Design edit
Race history edit
Notes edit
- driven by Jack Fairman. During the race at Aintree Stirling Moss took over the car and was disqualified for a push start. The car did win an event however when Moss took it to victory in the Oulton Park Gold Cup. In 1963 it appeared in the Tasman series with Graham Hill and Innes Ireland alternating as pilot. A final outing came during trials for the 1963 Indy 500.[3]
- Harry Ferguson Research developed a racing car to demonstrate its four-wheel drive system and as a test-bed for the Dunlop Maxaret anti-lock braking system. The first car enjoyed some success although it was primarily a resarch vehicle. There was just the one Grand Prix in 1961 for this Coventry based outfit. Fairman and Moss made an outing but failed to finish.[4]
- the Tony Rolt/Claude Hill-designed Ferguson Project 99 from 1960/'61, the engine was turned through 180 degrees while the driver position was slightly offset the right to accommodate for a driveshaft running through the left-hand side of the cockpit. The torque was split in the middle, with 50 per cent going to both front and rear. Having been perfected over the years and raced in Indycars by Andy Granatelli, the system was trouble-free ... more also[5]
- ooh, loads and loads[6]
- technical details and links[1]
- The 18 received new bodywork similar to that of the 21 after the start of the season and was often referred to as a '18/21' although it was essentially a cosmetic change, nothing mechanical being actually done to the cars. The team was loaned a 21 for one race when Ireland swapped cars with Moss (Monza). The Ferguson P99 was the concept of Harry Ferguson of Harry Ferguson Research. Ferguson was the leading maker of four-wheel drive systems for farm tractors in the United Kingdom, Ford using the Ferguson in all of its four-wheel drive farm vehicles. After discussion with race driver Tony Rolt, Ferguson had engineer Claude Hill look at an application for four-wheel drive in a racing vehicle. The result was the P99. Although it was originally hoped that the P99 might make it to the grid in 1960, it finally saw the track in 1961. The P99 was front-engined, which make it unusual for a new racing machine at this time. The P99 used the basic Ferguson system, a central differential that fed to two other differentials located at the front and rear. The gearbox was a five-speed design by Ferguson which utilized a constant mesh system to improve the ability of the driver to control the rather unwieldy vehicle. The P99 was a bear to drive. The lack of punch in the 1.5-litre Climax FPF negated much of the potential in the approach. As one driver remarked, "it gives a whole new meaning to the idea of understeer" Indeed, only Stirling Moss ever really seemed comfortable in the P99. When the P99 participated in the forerunner of what was to become the Tasman Series in 1963, the additional litre was helpful and it was campaigned some moderate success. Andy Granatelli used the Ferguson system in the last series of Novi machines at Indianapolis where the four-wheel drive system helped put some the immense power of the Novi on the track. One final interesting thing about the P99: it was equipped with an Anti-lock Braking System developed by Dunlop for use in aircraft. This feature did little to add to the evil handling characteristics of the overweight, underpowered machine.[7]
- images and specs with good history[2]
- chicaneF1[8]
- 4WD racing cars[9]
Footnotes edit
- ^ a b "The Ferguson P99". Ferguson Family Museum. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
- ^ a b "Ferguson P99 Climax". www.Ultimatecarpage.com. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
- ^ a b Blinkhorn, Robert. "Ferguson P99". www.gpracing.net192.com. Retrieved 2007-02-12.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b "Ferguson P99". www.F1technical.net. Retrieved 2007-02-12.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b Diepraam, Mattijs (2000). "A GP fluke, a hillclimb winner". 8W. Retrieved 2007-02-12.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b Diepraam, Mattijs (2001). "The Cosworth F1 car and the history of four-wheel-drive in motor racing". 8W. Retrieved 2007-02-12.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b Capps, Don. "1961: the Season of Low Expectations or Britain Sees Red". Rear View Mirror. Retrieved 2007-02-12.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b "Ferguson P99". www.ChicaneF1.com. Retrieved 2007-02-12.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b "Ferguson P99". www.4WDonline.com. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help)