Spirit 201
The Spirit 201 was a Formula One and Formula Two racing car designed by John Baldwin and Spirit Racing co-founder Gordon Coppuck which was raced in European Formula Two from 1982 to 1984 and in Formula One in 1983.
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| Category | Formula One Formula Two | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Spirit Racing | ||||||||
| Designer(s) | John Baldwin Gordon Coppuck | ||||||||
| Successor | Spirit 101 | ||||||||
| Technical specifications[1] | |||||||||
| Chassis | Aluminium monocoque | ||||||||
| Suspension (front) | Double wishbones | ||||||||
| Suspension (rear) | Double wishbones | ||||||||
| Axle track | Front: 1,753 mm (69.0 in) Rear: 1,651 mm (65.0 in) | ||||||||
| Wheelbase | 2,654 mm (104.5 in) | ||||||||
| Engine | Honda RA163E, 1,477 cc (90.1 cu in), 80° V6, turbo, mid-engine, longitudinally mounted | ||||||||
| Transmission | Hewland FGB 5-speed manual | ||||||||
| Weight | 580 kg (1,280 lb) | ||||||||
| Fuel | Shell | ||||||||
| Tyres | Goodyear | ||||||||
| Competition history | |||||||||
| Notable entrants | Spirit Racing | ||||||||
| Notable drivers | 40.  | ||||||||
| Debut | 1983 British Grand Prix | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Constructors' Championships | 0 | ||||||||
| Drivers' Championships | 0 | ||||||||
| n.b. Unless otherwise stated, all data refer to Formula One World Championship Grands Prix only. | |||||||||
In Formula Two racing, the car was powered by a 2-litre naturally aspirated engine.
In Formula One, it was powered by the 1.5 litre turbocharged Honda engine. The 201 made its Formula One debut in the hands of Swedish driver Stefan Johansson at the non-championship 1983 Race of Champions at Brands Hatch. There Johansson qualified the car 12th (out of 13, Jean-Louis Schlesser's RAM March didn't record a time but still started). He retired with a blown engine after 4 laps having already moved up to 10th with laps as quick as the leaders, including what was reportedly the most powerful car of 1983, the 650 bhp (485 kW; 659 PS) Ferrari 126C2B driven by René Arnoux.
For the team's World Championship debut at the 1983 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, a modified 201C design was produced, which Johansson qualified in a respectable 15th. But engine problems on race morning forced him to drive the 201 in the race, retiring after 5 laps with a broken fuel system. The 201C eventually only raced at the German and Dutch Grands Prix, with the 201 being driven in the other races. The car's best result was a 7th for Johansson in the Netherlands.
Complete Formula One World Championship results
(key)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Points | WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Spirit Racing | Honda RA163E V6 tc |
G | BRA | USW | FRA | SMR | MON | BEL | DET | CAN | GBR | GER | AUT | NED | ITA | EUR | RSA | 0 | NC | ||
| 201 | Stefan Johansson | Ret | 12 | Ret | 14 | |||||||||||||||||
| 201C | Ret | 7 |
References
- "STATS F1 • Spirit 201C". Statsf1.com. Retrieved 2010-08-23.