Alf Francis (born Alfons Kowaleski or Alphons Kowalewski 18 June 1918 – 28 June 1983) was a motor racing mechanic and racing car constructor. Francis was born in Danzig but left during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, first for Portugal, then by sea to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

in the UK, where he joined the

Polish 1st Armoured Division The Polish 1st Armoured Division (Polish ''1 Dywizja Pancerna'') was an armoured division of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. Created in February 1942 at Duns in Scotland, it was commanded by Major General Stanisław Macze ...

. After World War II, he changed his nationality to British, and his name to Alf Francis. He became a racing mechanic for Stirling Moss and the Chief Mechanic at

Rob Walker Racing Team Rob Walker Racing Team was a privateer team in Formula One during the 1950s and 1960s. Founded by Johnnie Walker heir Rob Walker (1917–2002) in 1953, the team became F1's most successful privateer in history, being the first and (along with ...

. At

, he maintained many

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

cars including Cooper-Climax and

Lotus 18 The Lotus 18 was a race car designed by Colin Chapman for use by Lotus in Formula Junior, Formula Two, and Formula One. Overview Lotus 18 was the first mid-engined car built by Lotus and was a marked improvement over Chapman's early and only ...

, and helped developing the team's own Formula 1 car called Walker Special. Working with transmission engineer and designer

Valerio Colotti Valerio Colotti (19 April 1925 – 19 January 2008) was an Italian automotive engineer, known for his early work with Ferrari and Maserati chassis and transmission systems. Born in Modena, Colotti joined Ferrari in 1948, working under Aurelio Lam ...

, he became a partner of

Colotti-Francis Colotti Trasmissioni (Colotti Transmission) is an Italian mechanical engineering firm located in Modena, Italy. It specializes in gears, limited-slip differentials and transmission systems for racing cars. History 1958-1979 Valerio Colotti, who is ...

, and moved to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. In 1963 he returned to England, where he was involved in the unsuccessful Derrington-Francis

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

project. He subsequently immigrated to the US, where he built cars for lower racing formulae. He died in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

in 1983. In 1957 he authored his biography ''Alf Francis: Racing Mechanic'' with journalist Peter Lewis.

References

1918 births 1983 deaths Engineers from Gdańsk Polish emigrants to the United Kingdom People from West Prussia Formula One team owners Formula One engineers 20th-century Polish engineers 20th-century British engineers Polish military personnel of World War II Mechanics (people) {{F1-stub