Favorite Formula One Cars...Ever

[EERO]

For me its the early to mid seventies. I find the late sixties cars a wonderful blend of brute force and grace, the Lotus 49 being perfect, but those wonderful, bizarre shapes from 1971-1975 really boil my juices.

I really adore the BRM P160, elegant in its Yardley livery, still beautiful with a sportscar nose and Marlboro livery two years later.

The Shadow DN-5, Jarier dominate dthe early part of 1975 in this elegant car.

The Lotus 72, the most perfect F1 car ever.

Surtees TS-9B, odd before the addition of the sportscar nose, but quite nicely proportioned later.

Brabham BT42 and BT 44-the former an odd little car, the later, its refined and fast descendant.

[DancingMachine]

anything which is RED.

a few horses will do as well.

[Faster]

Tyrrell 005
Tyrrell P34
Ferrari 156
Lotus 72
Brabham BT44

I love them all, but the first one is my all-time favourite!

[TimD]

Ooh, good choices there.

But just consider for a moment some more...

BRM V-16,
Maserati 250F,
Vanwall VW10

EERO, I share your love of the early seventies. There were some machines then that were so ugly they were appealing. Got to remember the Brabham BT33 "Lobsterclaw", the Hesketh 308 and the Ligier JS5.

[GM99]

My favs are:
Ferrari 312T4
Ferrari 126C2
I wonder if Gilles Villeneuve has anything to do with that?

[riusnow]

I'm thinking mid- 80's. Although for some reason I do like the open non- wing cars of the 50's, 60's.
How 'bout that Tyrrell 6 wheeler? Cool.

[Liz]

I've just bought a 1/12 model of Gilles' 312T4. A beautiful, beautiful model. So complete it only needs a teeny Gilles to drive it.

However, the most perfect car ever made, while it WAS a Lotus, was the John Player Lotus 79. I could just give that one a great big hug! Second place would be any turbo except the early Renaults. Those were really dorky.

[EERO]

Tim, the Lobster claw looked better in the white liveried version Carlos Reutemann drove than the goofy BRG and yellow scheme of Tauranac's final year. Strangely, Gordan Murray's BT's 42 and 44 owed the split radiator design to the Lobster Claw, yet looked so much better.

The BT34's successor the BT 37 substituted a single front-mounted rad and conventional wings and was a distinctly bland car. (Though the first I ever saw driven in anger, and by Graham Hill, to boot)

[SH0077]

Anycar with Manual Gearchanges. Ban TC now!!!!!

[Orange]

Hey, any of you old folks know where a young whippersnapper could find some pics of these cars??

[downforce]

Originally posted by Liz
However, the most perfect car ever made, while it WAS a Lotus, was the John Player Lotus 79

I agree!!

It was the most beautiful livery Ive ever seen!
It was the first F1 car i drew!

Liz,
Am i mixing up things [we're talkin the same Senna machine right?]...but in that case pardon my ignorance, who drove it before him?

One thing tho..i always felt the driver was too upfront!

[TimD]

Downforce, the classic Senna JPS Lotus is the 95T. And I agree, that's a pretty machine too. For me the forward placing of the driver isn't bad aesthetically, but the implications are something else entirely.

The Lotus 79 was the Mario Andretti championship winner.

[TimD]

Oops - slip of the keyboard in my earlier post. EERO is quite right, the Lobsterclaw is the Brabham BT34. The BT33 is a fish of different feather altogether.

But I still like the wacky 1970s colour schemes. Turquoise with yellow wings has to be the best....

[steve nielsen]

The Tyrell P34 and the JPS lotus(does'nt matter what year, that gold and black is so fine)!!, and more recent: the 1994 Ferrari.

[Ray Bell]

You're all a long way out... except Tim with his Brabham... just one car neater, smarter and cleaner than that one ... The original Eagle Weslake V12 of 1967.

[Carla O]

for me it will always be Senna's JPS Lotus... beautiful car... great driver...

[Maxmil]

Without question, the Mercedes Benz 196 S8 of 1954 and 1955. 1955 Constructors' Championship, and Drivers' Championship for Fangio effectively supported by Moss. Were there 3, 1 - 2 finishes? 2 for sure. Fangio also won the DC in 1954. Besides, it's the only F1 car that could impersonate a street car. (For looks that is.)

[angst]

Mercedes got a 1-2-3-4 result at the British GP of '55. My favourite car owuld have to be the Brabham BT45B of '77. Agressive looking, distinctive (and John Watson driving, good lad!). The 312T4 was another, but as with GM99, how much of that was down to Gilles?

[EERO]

Angst, did you ever see "Bobby Deerfield"?, Pacino "drove" a BT45B.

There aren't a lot of racing shots, but that was one purposeful car. I always thought that the Ford engined varient, ythe BT44 looked a little cleaner, but the Alfa Romeo engined version of the BT 45 looked a lot meaner. Its a very cool car.




The attatched image is a Brabham BT 44

Try the following link, its crammed with pictures, though they are not referenced too well.

http://home.wanadoo.nl/the8wteam/



Happy hunting

The attatched image is a Brabham BT 44

[Roy2]

It's "the first fine careless rapture" of the time when we first discover the sport that captures us forever.

For me the mythic cars are those of the early-to-mid fifties, the Alfa-Romeo 158/159, Ferraris 375 & 500, Maseratis A6GCM & 250F, the Lancia/Ferrari D50, and the Mercedes-Benz W196, among all the other beauties, freaks, and monsters of the era.

The cars of subsequent eras were and are beautiful, exciting, faster, but the magic isn't there.

[Bononi]

Originally posted by EERO
For me its the early to mid seventies.
The Shadow DN-5, Jarier dominate dthe early part of 1975 in this elegant car.

The Lotus 72, the most perfect F1 car ever.

Surtees TS-9B, odd before the addition of the sportscar nose, but quite nicely proportioned later.

Brabham BT42 and BT 44-the former an odd little car, the later, its refined and fast descendant.

Precisely. Couldn't say better !

[robert2000]

I notice no one's mentioned the teapot yet

[Tristan]

The Warsteiner Arrows Buzzbomb cigar shaped thingey. I THINK Patrese drove it. Crappy car, lovley to look at!

[SL]

There is no doubt. The best ever is.......

Eagle Weslake 1967 V12. If only they could get the engine to hold together.

SL

[OVERSTEER]

Ok these are my favorite F1 cars for each decade
1950's: Vanwall
1960's: Lotus 49
1970's: 1976 Ferrari (I think it's the 312T1/2)
1980'S: Williams FW11, or the Lotus 97 (1987)
1990'S: 1990 Tyrell, or the BAR 001 (Just for comedy value!!)
2000's: 2000 M01 Minardi