16/08/2025 12:55
March 711 (1971) - The Teatray In 1971, March was into its second
season as an F1 constructor, with Max Mosley among the founders of
the team. Its debut season of 1970 had gone well, with reigning
world champion Jackie Stewart even using a customer 701 model to
win in Spain whilst Tyrrell's own 001 was in development. But in
1971, March went radical. Its front wing was mounted on a high
strut above the nose, affectionately earning the 'Teatray' moniker.
The idea was to create smooth airflow over the wings - still in
their early days. And it worked. Ronnie Peterson took five podiums,
including four second-places, to finish as runner-up to Stewart in
the standings. In Austria, a 711 was entered for a local driver
making his debut, one Andreas Nikolaus Lauda... Ligier JS5 (1976) -
The Teapot Ligier's 1976 machine earned the nickname of 'The
Teapot' because of a preposterously sized airbox channelling air to
the mighty Matra V12 engine bolted in the back. The design was
solely for performance reasons, but following the Spanish GP of
that year, rules were changed, and the oversized airbox was
outlawed. In a more conventional-looking car, Jacques Laffite took
three podiums and a pole for the Italian GP at Monza. DMqArCIMdCb
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𝙂𝙞̈𝙪𝙨𝙚𝙥𝙥𝙚 𝘾𝙖̈𝙢𝙥𝙤 🇮🇹 🇧🇷 ☆ (@gashomodel) Tyrrell P34 (1976-1977) -
The six-wheeler There was nothing in the rulebook of the mid-1970s
that said an F1 car had to have four driving wheels. So, Tyrrell
designer Derek Gardner got inventing, and thought: 'If four wheels
are good, then six must be better still.' From the lock-up in
Surrey emerged the P34 with four small driving wheels at the front,
and the usual two at the back. Upon its unveiling, some members of
the press wondered if the machine in front of them was a publicity
stunt, but the P34 was not. And, believe it or not, it won a race.
In Sweden later that year, Jody Scheckter and Patrick Depailler
combined for a one-two, with 10 podiums overall. Rule changes for
1977 rendered the car obsolete. Ensign N179 (1979) - The Cheese
Grater The Ensign N179 was an attempt by a small team to find a
unique solution to cooling problems. Instead of placing the
radiators in the sidepods, they were mounted in the wide, flat
nose. This resulted in a ladder-like front end, which earned the
car the unflattering nickname "the cheese grater." Ironically, the
car suffered from overheating and a lack of downforce. It was a
bold but disastrous experiment. CLMh52VhwrG Dit bericht op
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(@racing_history_by_swassociates) Ferrari F310 (1996) Michael
Schumacher's first Ferrari was perhaps the ugliest he ever drove.
Maranello had come up with a high nose and boxy sidepod design,
which, coupled with the new cockpit head-protection headrests,
created a right eyesore. Schumacher somehow manhandled the car to
three wins, including his iconic first win for the Scuderia in the
torrential rain in Barcelona, as well as in Belgium, and at Monza.
In 1997, the F310 had become a championship-challenger in the F310B
in a more conventional-looking design, until Schumacher got himself
disqualified from the championship for suddenly deciding the side
of Jacques Villeneuve's Williams looked like a target with a big X
painted on it in the finale. Williams FW26 (2004) - The Walrus By
2004, the glory days of Williams were firmly in the past, and in a
bid to bring them back, the team went radical with its FW26.
Perhaps one of the famous cars in F1 history, the team created the
'Walrus nose', with a short and wide nose cone, aiming to channel
air-flow to the rear and create downforce. It didn't work as the
car was twitchy and unpredictable for Ralf Schumacher and Juan
Pablo Montoya, who would go on to win in Brazil in the final race
after the Walrus had been ditched for a more conventional design.
Ferrari F2012 (2012) F1 teams faced a quandary in 2012. The rules
said that the nose of the car had to be lower, but the teams needed
the top of the chassis as high as possible for best airflow. The
result was a series of 'stepped noses' where there was a literal
step from the top of the chassis to the point of the nose. Ferrari
was deemed the worst of a bad bunch, although Marussia and McLaren
avoided it, although Fernando Alonso somehow dragged his
recalcitrant Cavalino Rampante to the cusp of the world title in
the greatest non-title-winning seasons in F1 history. Caterham CT05
(2014) For 2014, F1's rules were changed yet again, with the FIA
keen to improve driver safety by getting the nose as low as
possible. The tip had to be no more than 7.3 inches or 185mm from
the ground - and so the teams got thinking. The Caterham CT05,
which went pointless, was perhaps the most egregious. The team went
bust by the end of the season, having never scored a point. Lotus
E22 (2014) - The double tusk At least Lotus went for something
different with its 2014 design. A 'double tusk' design, the nose
was actually asymmetrical, with one side longer to meet the FIA's
criteria. It also failed, with Romain Grosjean and Pastor
Maldonado only scoring 10 points all season. Force India VJM07
(2014) Although Force India's design for 2014 attracted the common
obsence comparisons, it was actually competitive, with Sergio Perez
banking a podium in Bahrain.