Classic Cars & Practical Classics.pdf

TYRRELL 021It was the last of adying breed, buttoday the Tyrrelllives to win again‘Your brain tells you there is no way you can possibly stop within that distance. Butyou do. And there is no way you can get around that corner. But you do’corrective flicks and it straightens up. There’s no hint of a tankslapper, no appreciable squat. The car accelerates cleanly in astraight line and I grab third. Accelerating, the engine note morphsfrom a deep growl into a howling rasp. It’s so exhilarating I wantthat screaming crescendo to last for ever. But the needle is flyingaround the tachometer so I slide the stubby lever forward andacross into fourth gear before the approach to the right-hander. Thecountryside is flying past at a hell of a rate. With the ball of my footon the brake, my heel nudges the throttle and I slip the Hewlandsmoothly into third, then drop down into second, braking hard.The way the car responds on the brakes, the way the gearshiftslips in and out, this car is a driving addict’s delight. The brakingpower is even more dramatic than the acceleration. It takes a whileto get used to the idea that I don’t need to brake for another 100metres as I approach a given corner. It’s bang on the brake, then off,then back on the throttle and through the corner. My brain tries totell me that there is simply no way I can slow within that distance.But I do. And there’s no way I can get around that corner. But I do.Ian reckons I must be experiencing between two and three G; thatmay not sound like much but it certainly feels significant. On everycorner, my torso is pushed forcefully into the side of the cockpitwhile my head stubbornly insists on going straight on. This car’sresponses recalibrate my sense of what a car can do. It’s the mostenjoyable racing car that I have yet driven.Designed by Maurice Philippe and Brian Lisles, the 012 wasused by the factory from the 1983 Dutch GP until the 1985Austrian GP and if not always a front runner, it was reasonablysuccessful in several World Championship grands prix, including asixth for Michele Alboreto at Zandvoort and seventh for DannySullivan at Kyalami in 1983. It was the last points-winning carrunning a normally aspirated Cosworth DFV engine and the lastsuccessful works Tyrrell.Compared to period rivals the Tyrrell 012 was advanced in manyways. As most teams had moved over to turbo engines, Tyrrellcould only compete by having a lighter and more nimble car.Philippe and Lisles designed the car to be light with a small dartshapedfront end. It was the first car with a carbonfibre tub, makingit much stiffer and tighter than earlier aluminium tubs. So itdepended on the circuit as to how competitive the car could be. Itwas at an advantage on the tight and twisty streets of Monaco butstruggled at faster circuits such as Silverstone.The DFV was developed further to give a little more power, butthis was the area in which Tyrrell was running with old technology.The team had fought supremely hard but were by then theunderdogs. After seven 012 chassis it was superseded by theturbocharged Renault V6-engined Tyrrell 014. But the 012 has aspecial place in history – it was the last points-winning car poweredby a normally aspirated Cosworth DFV engine, the final chapter ina glorious story.Thanks to: Curborough Sprint Circuit (curborough.com),Richardson Racing Engines, Kimbolton (geoffrichardsonengines.com), Philip Gee (completemotorsportsolutions.co.uk)TYRRELL 012Engine: Ford Cosworth DFV 2993cc V8 DOHC, Lucas fuel injection;mechanical slide throttle Bore 90mm Stroke 58.8mm. Four valves percylinder Power & Torque 500bhp at 10,000rpm, 270lb ft at 8000rpmTransmission Limited-slip differential, five-speed Hewland/Tyrrell FGBmanual gearbox with oil cooler Steering Rack-and-pinion SuspensionFront and rear: all adjustable Rose-jointed double wishbones, anti-rollbar, inboard coil springs, double adjustable telescopic dampers BrakesVentilated AP Lockheed 279mm x 25mm alloy discs. Two pistons per caliperLength 4080mm Width 1930mm Weight 540kg Performance Top speed166mph to 180mph depending on gearing86