Failures of Motorsports - Car Designs, Team Mistakes and More

  • Thread starter Panoz
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The Stig Farmer
Or bought it
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You don't just "buy" a ride in NASCAR. If you notice, almost all drivers who've transferred to NASCAR from other forms of motorsport have gone with preexisting teams, and they always have at least decent records in the series they hail from. If you could buy rides in NASCAR, the top three touring series would be riddled with gentleman drivers, and no one wants those.
 
So? It didn't only do four races because it didn't finish any of them. It didn't only do four races because of reliability problems. It only did four races because the dominant racing team had it banned by the sanctioning body.
 
Tornado
So? It didn't only do four races because it didn't finish any of them. It didn't only do four races because of reliability problems. It only did four races because the dominant racing team had it banned by the sanctioning body.
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I initially was trying to just make a point that it didn't finish the four events it did enter. It may have come off wrong. I did know about McLaren griping to SCCA about the 2J's system. The SCCA was left without a choice.

TL;DR: My original comment was posted at 4 AM while half asleep. I may not have remembered everything correctly.
 
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Liquid
That's a pretty large wing they had to add on there.

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Why Chapparal People always thought that bigger is better?

No pun intended
 
LumpiestFish
Well, it was in an era where wings were only just being introduced, so there was a lot to be tried, and a lot that obviously failed. They wouldn't have exactly known how bad it would before they raced it, unlike today.
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Same could be said for the 2E. The system for the 2E worked while all imitations and similar attempts failed. Back then, it was all trial and error.
 
Talking about wings, this deserves a mention:

wing_failure_1968_brabham.jpg

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As you may have noticed, all of these wings are attached directly to the wishbones. The initial logic behind placing them there on a single seater was that the downforce would prove most effective if applied directly to each corner of the car, forcing the tyre down rather than the chassis. As you can probably guess, that wasn't brightest idea, as a wishbone will naturally travel up and down to the undulations of the surface and the forces applied to it. If a wishbone is compressed and a wing is applying an opposite force to it, you end up with two hefty opposing forces putting a lot of strain on a localised area - that meant that wishbone and wing support failures became a common sight (as the first image shows). With most of the failures coming at high speed, several drivers such as Graham Hill and Jochen Rindt walked away from potentially fatal accidents.

The first GP car to feature wings that weren't attached to suspension components was the Ferrari 312 at the 1968 Belgian GP, which was inspired by a makeshift wing constructed from a helicopter rotor that one of Jim Clark's engineers had devised. The tall wings were banned in 1969, and front canards/planes along with bodywork mounted rear wings became the norm.
 
1991 Lamborghini Works Team

Having entered F1 as an engine manufacturer in 1989 under the stewardship of former Ferrari chief Mauro Forghieri, and secured modest success with the Larrousse outfit, the Emillia outfit decided to go full time in 1991 alongside its commitment to customer Ligier engines.

From the pen which gave us the Ferrari 312 series and the Ferrari 126C came the Lambo 291 with the Lamborghini 3512 powerplant (3.5 litres, 12 cylinders). And isn't it an odd looking machine? Rather nice in one regard but the low, low sidepods look like the car has suffered an implosion. Despite the pretty lines it looks very junior league.

As for the team, its initial financial backer Fernando Gonzalez soon disappeared with his promised $20 million and the team were left galloping up Diarrhoea Driveway without a saddle. By the time the season started the team was worried about the potential failure reflecting back on Lamborghini and the team was entered as Modena Team SpA but this didn't fool anyone; the Lamborghini staff, "Lambo 291" car and works Lamborghini engine were noted by press and paddock alike.

The team's best result was 7th on its debut in the USA thanks to Nicola Larini trundling around the track whilst others in front of him fell by the wayside; he finished just outside the points but 5 laps down on race winner Senna. Eric van de Poele was 5th on the last lap at Imola until his fuel pressuriser failed and he fell back to 9th. The rest of the season was a mixture of DNPQ and DNQ. They did not make it to 1992 and Lamborghini reverted to being just an engine supplier before leaving Formula One altogether at the end of 1993.

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Lambo%20lamborghini%20291.bmp
 
TUSCdetroit_01main1.jpg


mazda-6-skyactiv%20cars%20wallpapers%20windows%20xp.jpg


I give Mazda respect on trying to get their Skyactiv diesel engine to perform well in 2014-15. When the ALMS and Grand-Am combined to form the new IMSA Sportscar series, Mazda did the same with programs in both series.

The production based twin turbo four-cylinder diesel engine that was used in the GX-class Mazda 6 in Grand-Am was put into the Lola-built prototype that competed in the ALMS with a gas-powered Mazda engine. The result was the Skyactiv prototype being woefully outclassed in the top-flight P class and at times slower than the PC and GTLM class cars.
 
Panoz
TUSCdetroit_01main1.jpg


mazda-6-skyactiv%20cars%20wallpapers%20windows%20xp.jpg


I give Mazda respect on trying to get their Skyactiv diesel engine to perform well in 2014-15. When the ALMS and Grand-Am combined to form the new IMSA Sportscar series, Mazda did the same with programs in both series.

The production based twin turbo four-cylinder diesel engine that was used in the GX-class Mazda 6 in Grand-Am was put into the Lola-built prototype that competed in the ALMS with a gas-powered Mazda engine. The result was the Skyactiv prototype being woefully outclassed in the top-flight P class and at times slower than the PC and GTLM class cars.
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Someone should do a piece on that GX class for this thread, it was only around for 2 seasons? And only had 2 cars??
 
Hispania Racing Team (HRT)
​

Hispania Racing Team started out in 2009 as Campos Meta 1,a merger of the Campos Racing F3 team and Meta Image, a sports agency helping them break into F1 and managed to do so for the 2010 F1 season, but only due to a buyout of the team by José Ramón Carabante, a move which also saw Colin Kolles become team principal... which is always a reassuring sign.

bsenn_monte_hrt_2010-2.jpg


2010 was met with financial strain, and an underdeveloped and untested car in the form of the F110 which would be piloted by Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok (although Karun was replaced with 9 races to go. Sakon Yamamoto and Christian Klien would stand in for him). To be fair to the Dallara designed and Cosworth powered F110, it actually beat Richard Branson's F1 effort by earning 1 more 14th place than the Virgin cars.

What the team needed was money to develop a much better car for the next season, and that was a problem seeing as they hadn't attracted a new major sponsor for the team. During this difficult time, the team were eying up a Ferrari engine deal, and were in talks with Toyota in order to improve their chances of scoring better results, and thus more sponsorship. These talks led to Toyota giving them the unraced TF110 as the basis of their 2011 car, and access to their technical resources. Huzzah! All is well!

Or not, the deal was signed in the summer of 2010 but by November 2010 Toyota cancelled the deal because HRT couldn't pay them. December didn't look too rosy for the team either, they were kicked out of FOTA for not paying their 2010 membership fee... erm, I mean they left FOTA because of FOTA's bias against smaller teams, yes that's definitely it.

autowp.ru_hrt_f111_9.jpg


Anyway, 2011's car. One of the engineers had claimed he'd had access to Toyota's technical plans of the TF110 for long enough to incorporate them into the F111. Great, right? Nope. New driver Narain Karthikeyan confirmed it was an evolution of the F110, this is most likely due to lack of funds which was so bad the F111 featured a livery littered with many adverts begging for sponsorship.

The delayed launch of the new car meant a lack of testing before the 1st race, which the car didn't qualify for due to being too slow in the hands of Antonio Liuzzi and Karthikeyan. A new nose (which was intended for the first race but failed crash tests) helped find pace in the car, which actually qualified for the Malaysian Grand Prix! Sadly, the cars didn't finish. The season heralded many similar results of either failing to finish or being so far down the order and so many laps behind nobody really cared. Canada was a stand-out performance with a remarkable 13th place from Liuzzi, Karthikeyan would have scored a solid 14th place if he wasn't penalised and regulated to 17th. Still, if that livery worked then sponsors would be ringing the phone off the hook!

hrt-kart-yasm-2012-3.jpg


There were some big changes underway at HRT, Colin Kolles had abandoned ship, Liuzzi was replaced with Pedro De La Rossa and the team was moving to a new facility in Madrid. The team had also scored a few sponsors! Unfortunately, it didn't help. A heavy sense of deja vu came as the team once again failed crash tests, once again missed tests and once again failed to qualify for the 1st race. The rest of the season was a drab one with no real standout performances from either driver, then came the inevitable.

The team was up for sale, and it needed to find a buyer before the 2013 entry fees needed payed. Nobody bought the team before the deadline, and the company was liquidated before 2013 was out. Attempts from a group of Canadian and American investors to buy their 2013 grid slot for their team known as Scorpion Racing failed due to the team's liquidation meaning the FIA closed their entry spot off and they were told to try for 2014 as they missed the 2013 deadline anyway. Nothing has came of that.

So, so long HRT. Although you didn't learn from your mistakes, you did provide the grid with some very pretty chicanes and provided me with a fun drinking game as well.
 
Horrendously underfunded and mismanaged, it's a miracle they even made the grid in 2010. I loved following their story, and I even managed to get myself one of those fan club cards they gave out for people who registered on their website that they managed to have shipped across the pond to my mailbox. It was a real surprise, much like the surprise that they lasted a long as they did and even managed to set up a HQ, albeit little more than an empty office building.

It was reslly disappointing to see them go, but the spirit of the team, and the now defunct Caterham/Lotus will live on in the sole remaining 2010 entrant, Manor, who do an unmatched job of maintaining a two second gap to the next worse car every season.
 
C_R5_575TLR
Hispania Racing Team (HRT)
​

Hispania Racing Team started out in 2009 as Campos Meta 1,a merger of the Campos Racing F3 team and Meta Image, a sports agency helping them break into F1 and managed to do so for the 2010 F1 season, but only due to a buyout of the team by José Ramón Carabante, a move which also saw Colin Kolles become team principal... which is always a reassuring sign.

bsenn_monte_hrt_2010-2.jpg


2010 was met with financial strain, and an underdeveloped and untested car in the form of the F110 which would be piloted by Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok (although Karun was replaced with 9 races to go. Sakon Yamamoto and Christian Klien would stand in for him). To be fair to the Dallara designed and Cosworth powered F110, it actually beat Richard Branson's F1 effort by earning 1 more 14th place than the Virgin cars.

What the team needed was money to develop a much better car for the next season, and that was a problem seeing as they hadn't attracted a new major sponsor for the team. During this difficult time, the team were eying up a Ferrari engine deal, and were in talks with Toyota in order to improve their chances of scoring better results, and thus more sponsorship. These talks led to Toyota giving them the unraced TF110 as the basis of their 2011 car, and access to their technical resources. Huzzah! All is well!

Or not, the deal was signed in the summer of 2010 but by November 2010 Toyota cancelled the deal because HRT couldn't pay them. December didn't look too rosy for the team either, they were kicked out of FOTA for not paying their 2010 membership fee... erm, I mean they left FOTA because of FOTA's bias against smaller teams, yes that's definitely it.

View attachment 528723

Anyway, 2011's car. One of the engineers had claimed he'd had access to Toyota's technical plans of the TF110 for long enough to incorporate them into the F111. Great, right? Nope. New driver Narain Karthikeyan confirmed it was an evolution of the F110, this is most likely due to lack of funds which was so bad the F111 featured a livery littered with many adverts begging for sponsorship.

The delayed launch of the new car meant a lack of testing before the 1st race, which the car didn't qualify for due to being too slow in the hands of Antonio Liuzzi and Karthikeyan. A new nose (which was intended for the first race but failed crash tests) helped find pace in the car, which actually qualified for the Malaysian Grand Prix! Sadly, the cars didn't finish. The season heralded many similar results of either failing to finish or being so far down the order and so many laps behind nobody really cared. Canada was a stand-out performance with a remarkable 13th place from Liuzzi, Karthikeyan would have scored a solid 14th place if he wasn't penalised and regulated to 17th. Still, if that livery worked then sponsors would be ringing the phone off the hook!

hrt-kart-yasm-2012-3.jpg


There were some big changes underway at HRT, Colin Kolles had abandoned ship, Liuzzi was replaced with Pedro De La Rossa and the team was moving to a new facility in Madrid. The team had also scored a few sponsors! Unfortunately, it didn't help. A heavy sense of deja vu came as the team once again failed crash tests, once again missed tests and once again failed to qualify for the 1st race. The rest of the season was a drab one with no real standout performances from either driver, then came the inevitable.

The team was up for sale, and it needed to find a buyer before the 2013 entry fees needed payed. Nobody bought the team before the deadline, and the company was liquidated before 2013 was out. Attempts from a group of Canadian and American investors to buy their 2013 grid slot for their team known as Scorpion Racing failed due to the team's liquidation meaning the FIA closed their entry spot off and they were told to try for 2014 as they missed the 2013 deadline anyway. Nothing has came of that.

So, so long HRT. Although you didn't learn from your mistakes, you did provide the grid with some very pretty chicanes and provided me with a fun drinking game as well.
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I still remember a funny and depressing at the same time interview to Liuzzi, which was very professional and technical when speaking on TV compared to some other drivers, usually talking about the fine tuning he was doing on his car after practice sessions.
This is a few minutes before qualifying at Interlagos, 2011. "Vitantonio, it's starting to rain, we can see all the teams work on their cars to change their setup. Are you thinking about some modifications?" Liuzzi: "No. Dry or wet it doesn't matter, on all circuits basically. We must keep our downforce always at the highest level we have".
 
marco89IT
I still remember a funny and depressing at the same time interview to Liuzzi, which was very professional and technical when speaking on TV compared to some other drivers, usually talking about the fine tuning he was doing on his car after practice sessions.
This is a few minutes before qualifying at Interlagos, 2011. "Vitantonio, it's starting to rain, we can see all the teams work on their cars to change their setup. Are you thinking about some modifications?" Liuzzi: "No. Dry or wet it doesn't matter, on all circuits basically. We must keep our downforce always at the highest level we have".
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Gran Turismo, the real Hispania Racing Team simulator, :lol:
 
I guess you're right, I
marco89IT
I still remember a funny and depressing at the same time interview to Liuzzi, which was very professional and technical when speaking on TV compared to some other drivers, usually talking about the fine tuning he was doing on his car after practice sessions.
This is a few minutes before qualifying at Interlagos, 2011. "Vitantonio, it's starting to rain, we can see all the teams work on their cars to change their setup. Are you thinking about some modifications?" Liuzzi: "No. Dry or wet it doesn't matter, on all circuits basically. We must keep our downforce always at the highest level we have".
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Ouch, that's painful :lol:
 

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