Pete05
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- 7,055
- Melbourne, Australia
It is neither rare nor unusual for a group of enthusiasts to band together to build a racing car. It is extremely rare and incredibly unusual for that group's cars to be built for Formula One races within their first eight months. Indeed, until March Engineering was formed in 1970, it was unheard of for an absolutely new and unproven group to succeed not only in running a factory Grand Prix team, but also in selling cars to outside teams for drivers who included the reigning World Champion.
The name March itself is an acronym of the initials of the company's founders. They included the financial director Max Mosley, team manager Alan Rees, production manager Graham Coaker, and designer Robin Herd. Each had experience of racing, both Mosley and Rees as drivers of some note, while Herd had designed McLaren and Cosworth Formula One cars and was widely regarded as a brilliant engineer. It was largely upon Robin Herd's reputation that the success of the venture depended. In the northern summer of 1969, they began by building a pilot Formula Three car which they called the March 693.
That winter they moved into a factory near the Silverstone circuit. There they established a production line for Formula One, Two, Three, 5000 and sports racing cars. In succeeding years March was to produce cars which dominated all international single-seater formulae, apart from Formula One.
March took on two excellent factory team drivers, Chris Amon and Jo Siffert. Andy Granatelli of STP agreed to sponsor the team. Ken Tyrrell wanted new chassis for his World Champion Jackie Stewart. The American STP Corporation agreed to buy another car for their driver Mario Andretti. In that year Amon won the Silverstone International Trophy while Stewart's Tyrrell-entered Type 701, as the new car was known, won both the Brands Hatch Race of Champions and the Spanish GP. After that it was all downhill for the hurriedly developed Cosworth-powered 701s.
In 1971, March produced for Formula One the startling 711 with it's unique elliptical platform wing mounted on a pylon above the torpedo nose. Both Cosworth and Alfa Romeo V8 engines were used in this car which, when driven by the fast-rising Swedish star Ronnie Peterson, placed second in no less than six Grands Prix to give him the runner-up position in the Driver's World Championship.
SPECIFICATIONS
Engine
Cosworth DFV 90 degree V8
Bore / Stroke
85.7 mm x 64.8 mm
Capacity
2993 cc
Fuel feed
Lucas Fuel Injection
Ignition
Lucas electronic
Power
440 bhp @ 10,000 rpm
Transmission
Hewland FG-400 5 speed manual
Chassis
Stressed-skin three-quarter monocoque employing engine and transmission case as structural members at the rear
Front suspension
Double wishbones, inboard coil spring/damper units
Rear suspension
Lower wishbones and links, single top links, twin radius rods and outboard coil spring/damper units
Brakes
Disc; outboard front, inboard rear
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase
2514 mm / 99"
Front & Rear track
1549 mm / 61"
Wheel width
(F) 10" (R) 15",16" or 17"
Weight
544 kg
Tyres
Firestone
http://www.conceptcarz.com/z21550/March-711.aspx
http://www.grandprixhistory.org/mar711.htm
http://www.gurneyflap.com/march711.html
http://www.research-racing.de/march1.htm
http://www.statsf1.com/en/march-711.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_Engineering
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