jordan-Ford deal - details

[bosch!]

Hope this clears up a few things :confused:
http://www.planet-f1.com/news/articl.../ENG?ref=10186

Ford Yet To Confirm Jordan Deal Is Done

Though Jordan expect that an announcement will be made before the Belgian Grand Prix
22/08/02

MORE DETAILS are emerging about the deal Eddie Jordan has signed with Ford Europe for the supply of engines to his team from 2003 onwards.

It turns out that the Jordan team were told as early as February that if they wanted to use Honda engines in 2003 they would have to pay for them, and that the customer deal would cost the team in excess of £15m.

The news set Eddie Jordan looking for a new engine supplier and though he talked to Ford as early as March about getting the manufacturer's backing, he also tried to persuade Toyota to supply him with a power plant.

The complex deal that was finally thrashed out on the Saturday Night of the Hungarian Grand Prix has many elements and implications.

* Jordan will receive a subsidised Cosworth engine in 2003. This will be branded as a Cosworth RS to fit in with Ford's marketing strategy for the high performance offshoot of Ford.

* The estimated £12m cost of the engine will be paid by Ford Europe and Jordan's sponsors

* In return, Ford will get to put their famous Blue Oval badge on the car, the first time it has appeared since 1999, the last season of the Stewart F1 team.

* The engine Jordan gets in 2003 will be an evolution of the current CR4 engine used by the Jaguar team this season. Jordan's engineers think this is more suitable to the 2003 car they have planned.

* Jaguar will get a new, wider V-angled engine, thought to have a 90 degree V-angle. All things being equal, Jordan would get this in 2004, providing the new FIA engine rules don't make it uncompetitive.

* As a result of keeping a manufacturer engine for 2003, Jordan can retain the services of Giancarlo Fisichella. Fisi had a get-out clause in his contract should the team have opted for a customer engine, though this might still prove to be a grey area.

* Honda-backed driver Takuma Sato would seem to be out on a limb unless Honda can pay for a drive for the Japanese in 2003. Eddie Jordan has stated that Sato will be with the team in 2003, but this may involve a payment from Honda of £5m or more.

Though these details have emerged from Jordan, Ford have yet to confirm them. On Sunday at the Hungaroring Niki Lauda announced that there would be a Cosworth press release issued on Tuesday, but so far this has yet to materialise.

The move by Ford Europe to back Jordan has profound implications for Lauda's Jaguar team and its future.

[Valve Bounce]

Thanks for the news. I have already stated that FORD will get much better value out of this deal with Eddie than Jaguar/Ford gets from the factory Jaguar team. If Sato is out, then I think Eddie has a couple of good drivers to choose from like HHF, Irv, Panis, Massa (if he get's the Sauber boot), or even Webber (if he hasn't signed yet with Toyota.) I think success in this team will lie in the development of the chassis together with the engine and other running parts via the electronic management system. Team Jordan-Ford have a lot of work ahead of them.

Valve

[Jukebox]

I think Ford sees that potential in collaborating with the Jordan. As witnessed Jordan is doing better than BAR in many occasions and the fact that Lauda's Jaguar team are making Ford look like incompetent suggests that if Jordan is able to achieve greater achievements than Jaguar, it all makes sense to dissolve the Jaguar team by 2004.

Even Jaguar will be using a new wide angled V shape powerunit, it'll be interesting if Jordan were able to perform better in the current engine that Jaguar is using.