André de Cortanze (born 30 March 1941) is a French motorsport engineer.

Career

De Cortanze graduated in 1967 with an engineering degree and joined

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

, a car manufacturer, where he drove and designed racing cars. He also experienced success in

Formula Three Formula Three, also called Formula 3, abbreviated as F3, is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One driv ...

and

Formula Two Formula Two (F2 or Formula 2) is a type of open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009–2012 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The name retur ...

and designed a test chassis for Renault's initial foray into

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, ...

. In the 1980s, he moved to

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and the ...

Talbot Talbot was an automobile marque introduced in 1902 by English-French company Clément-Talbot. The founders, Charles Chetwynd-Talbot, 20th Earl of Shrewsbury and Adolphe Clément-Bayard, reduced their financial interests in their Clément-Talbot ...

Sport as Technical Director, enjoying victories in

rallying Rally is a wide-ranging form of motorsport with various competitive motoring elements such as speed tests (often called ''rally racing),'' navigation tests, or the ability to reach waypoints or a destination at a prescribed time or average speed. ...

and

Le Mans Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Man ...

. In , he moved to the new

Sauber Sauber Motorsport AG is a Swiss motorsport engineering company. It was founded in 1970 (as PP Sauber AG) by Peter Sauber, who progressed through hillclimbing and the World Sportscar Championship to reach Formula One in . After operating it u ...

F1 team, where he helped design the

Sauber C13 The Sauber C13 was a Formula One car. It was designed by André de Cortanze and Leo Ress for use by the Sauber Team in the 1994 Formula One season. The car was powered by an Ilmor 3.5L V10 engine badged as a Mercedes-Benz. The development of this ...

and was an engineer at the team during the

1994 Formula One season The 1994 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 48th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1994 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1994 Formula One World Championship for Constructors, which were contes ...

. At the start of the season, he was joined by Tim Wright. Wright was only there for a year.
"Engineering changes at Benetton"
' GrandPrix. Retrieved 10 March 2007 At the end of 1995, he moved to

Ligier Ligier (() is a French automobile and minibus maker created by former racing driver and rugby player Guy Ligier (1930–2015), specialized in the manufacturing of microcars. Ligier is best known for its involvement in the Formula 1 World Champio ...

, but then moved to

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

Europe when the team was sold to

Alain Prost Alain Marie Pascal Prost (; born 24 February 1955) is a French retired racing driver and Formula One team owner. A four-time Formula One World Drivers' Champion, from 1987 until 2001 he held the record for most Grand Prix victories until Mich ...

. He then designed the 1998-1999 Toyota TS020 (GT-One) that entered the

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans (french: link=no, 24 Heures du Mans) is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the town of Le Mans, France. It is the world's oldest active Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance r ...

. In he became the initial Technical Director of the

Toyota F1 Panasonic Toyota Racing was a Formula One team owned by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation and based in Cologne, Germany. Toyota announced their plans to participate in Formula One in 1999, and after extensive testin ...

team, working with aerodynamicist

Robert Choulet Robert Choulet (born 28 February 1935) is a French aerodynamics engineer influential in race car dynamics. Career A disciple of aerodynamics pioneer Charles Deutsch, Choulet worked for Deutsch's Société d'Études et de Réalisations Automobile ...

. He currently is the Technical Director of the

Pescarolo Sport Pescarolo Sport was a motorsport team based in Le Mans, France and founded in February 2000 by French racing driver Henri Pescarolo and his friend and partner, French publisher François Granet. They raced in the Le Mans Series and the 24 Hours o ...

team. In 1978 de Cortanze designed a revolutionary 750cc motorcycle which had no orthodox frame. The engine became the frame, with both wheels and suspension being attached to it."Engine supports a high speed bike", New Scientist, 4 May 1978, p. 284.

References

Footnotes

*Grandprix.co
article
retrieved May 17, 2007. 1941 births Living people Formula One designers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers French racing drivers French motorsport people World Sportscar Championship drivers Renault people 12 Hours of Reims drivers {{F1-bio-stub Porsche Motorsports drivers