The Coloni C3 (also known as the Coloni FC189) was a
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, ...
racing car
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...
designed by
Christian Vanderpleyn
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
for the
1989 Formula One season
The 1989 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 43rd season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It began on 26 March and ended on 5 November. Alain Prost won his third Drivers' Championship, and McLaren won the Constructors' Championship. ...
. Built to replace the
Coloni FC188 used in the previous season, the C3 used a 3.5-litre
Cosworth DFR
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
V8 engine
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and us ...
. Although not ready for the start of the 1989 season, the C3 made its début at the
1989 Canadian Grand Prix
The 1989 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on 18 June 1989. It was the sixth race of the 1989 Formula One World Championship.
The 69-lap race was won by Belgian driver Thierry Boutsen, driving a Wi ...
in the hands of
Roberto Moreno
Roberto Pupo Moreno (born 11 February 1959), usually known as Roberto Moreno and also as Pupo Moreno, is a Brazilian former auto racing, racing driver. He participated in 75 Formula One Grands Prix, achieved 1 podium, and scored a total of 15 c ...
and
Pierre-Henri Raphanel
Pierre-Henri Raphanel (born 27 May 1961) is a French former racing driver.
He participated in 17 Formula One Grands Prix for Larrousse, Coloni and Rial, debuting on 13 November 1988. He only qualified for one race, the 1989 Monaco Grand Prix, ...
. The C3 was not successful and frequently failed to pre-qualify for races during 1989. It was updated to the C3B for the
1990 season, with the Cosworth DFR being replaced by a
Subaru 1235
The Subaru 1235 was a motor racing engine designed and built by Motori Moderni, and funded by Subaru for the Japanese manufacturer’s Formula One program in 1990. A 3.5-litre boxer-12, it was used by the Coloni team for the first eight races, ...
flat-12 engine
A flat-twelve engine, also known as a horizontally opposed-twelve, is a twelve-cylinder piston engine with six cylinders on each side of a central crankshaft.
Flat-twelve engines are less common than V12 engines, but they have been used in vario ...
; however, this engine was large, heavy and underpowered.
Bertrand Gachot
Bertrand Jean Gachot (born 23 December 1962) is a French former racing driver. Gachot enjoyed some success in the junior formulae, winning titles in Formula Ford before progressing through Formula 3 and Formula 3000, reaching Formula One in 198 ...
,
Coloni's only driver for 1990, failed to pre-qualify in any of the eight races that he drove the C3B. Following a fallout between
Enzo Coloni
Coloni Motorsport, also known as Scuderia Coloni, was an auto racing team from Italy. Formed by Enzo Coloni in 1983, the team participated in Formula Three between 1983 and 1986, before racing in Formula One as Enzo Coloni Racing Car Systems bet ...
and Subaru, the C3C was developed, once again using the Cosworth DFR; although Gachot was usually able to pre-qualify this version, he never managed to qualify for a race. In
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
, the C3C was evolved into the
C4, but results did not improve and Coloni folded at the end of that season.
Design and development
Christian Vanderpleyn
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
designed the Coloni C3 as a replacement for the
Coloni FC188 in
1989
File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...
.
One notable difference from the FC188 was the presence of an
airbox
An airbox is an empty chamber on the inlet of most combustion engines. It collects air from outside and feeds it to the intake hoses of each cylinder.
Older engines drew air directly from the surroundings into each individual carburetor. Modern ...
in place of the older car's
rollbar.
The C3 used a 3.5-litre
Cosworth DFR
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...
V8 engine
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and us ...
.
However, the car arrived late, and was quite underdeveloped; in particular, it was lacking in straight line speed, which was most noticeable at
Monza
Monza (, ; lmo, label=Lombard language, Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po River, Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capit ...
and
Spa-Francorchamps
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (), frequently referred to as ''Spa'', is a motor-racing circuit located in Stavelot, Belgium. It is the current venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix, hosting its first Grand Prix in 1925, and has he ...
.
After Vanderpleyn quit the team, freelancer
Gary Anderson was tasked with extracting some more performance from the C3; he developed a new nosecone and front wing, and this helped the team to its best ever qualifying position at the
Portuguese Grand Prix
The Portuguese Grand Prix (''Grande Prémio de Portugal'') is a motorsports event that was first held in 1951 as a sportscar event, and then intermittently disappearing for many years before being revived again. In 1964 event was held as a spo ...
.
Even with the new configuration, however, the car still lacked straight line speed, and results did not noticeably improve after Portugal.
Following the poor 1989 season,
Enzo Coloni
Coloni Motorsport, also known as Scuderia Coloni, was an auto racing team from Italy. Formed by Enzo Coloni in 1983, the team participated in Formula Three between 1983 and 1986, before racing in Formula One as Enzo Coloni Racing Car Systems bet ...
struck a deal with
Subaru
( or ; ) is the automaker, automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate (company), conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the Automotive industry#By manufacturer, twenty-first ...
prior to the
1990 season to become the Japanese manufacturer's works team.
This deal, where Subaru bought half of the
Coloni team, meant that the Cosworth DFR was replaced by Subaru's
1235
Year 1235 (Roman numerals, MCCXXXV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
* Connacht in Ireland is finally conquered by the Hiberno-Normans, Hiberno-Norman Richard Mór de Bu ...
flat-12 engine
A flat-twelve engine, also known as a horizontally opposed-twelve, is a twelve-cylinder piston engine with six cylinders on each side of a central crankshaft.
Flat-twelve engines are less common than V12 engines, but they have been used in vario ...
.
This engine, which was of Subaru's typical
boxer Boxer most commonly refers to:
* Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing
*Boxer (dog), a breed of dog
Boxer or boxers may also refer to:
Animal kingdom
* Boxer crab
* Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans
* Boxer snipe ee ...
format, was developed by
Motori Moderni
Motori Moderni was a Formula One engine manufacturer from 1985 through 1987. It was established by the experienced Italian engine designer Carlo Chiti.
Chiti, a former Alfa Romeo Formula One chief engineer, formed Motori Moderni to make turbocha ...
, and had originally been intended for
Minardi
Minardi was an Italian automobile racing team and constructor founded in Faenza in 1979 by Giancarlo Minardi. It competed in the Formula One World Championship from 1985 until 2005 with little success, nevertheless acquiring a loyal followin ...
.
However, the engine was not a noticeable improvement over the DFR; it only produced a modest , with Motori Moderni targeting a power output of ,
and it was also overweight, weighing .
Although this was only heavier than the old DFR, the complete engine assembly was actually .
To make matters worse, it would also prove to be unreliable, and prone to failure.
The engine was designed to use a Minardi gearbox.
The C3 was updated to the C3B specification in order to accommodate the new engine, and was actually quite a major change; for example, the airbox was removed, and replaced by two sidepod-mounted air ducts, which led to the sidepods being taller and longer.
The weight of the Subaru engine also caused the C3B to have somewhat unpredictable handling, as the weight balance was quite heavily centred towards the rear of the car.
After just eight races, Subaru and Coloni's relationship broke down; following some political wrangling between the two companies, Subaru pulled out altogether.
Coloni thus reverted to using the Cosworth DFR engine prepared by Langford & Peck in an updated version of the C3, known as the C3C; this chassis had been designed with the Subaru engine in mind, but was much closer to the original C3 than the C3B, with its airbox and low sidepods.
The C3C was a noticeable improvement over the C3B, and, although still unpredictable, it did lead to a modest improvement in the team's fortunes.
For the
Belgian Grand Prix
The Belgian Grand Prix (French language, French: ''Grand Prix de Belgique''; Dutch language, Dutch: ''Grote Prijs van België''; German language, German: ''Großer Preis von Belgien'') is a motor racing event which forms part of the Formula O ...
, an updated engine cover was brought, but it failed to make a major difference to the C3C.
For
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
, the C3C was updated into the
C4.
Racing history
The C3 took a while to be developed, and this led to an updated version of the FC188, the FC188B, being used until the
1989 Canadian Grand Prix
The 1989 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on 18 June 1989. It was the sixth race of the 1989 Formula One World Championship.
The 69-lap race was won by Belgian driver Thierry Boutsen, driving a Wi ...
.
It would prove to be a mixed début for the car;
Pierre-Henri Raphanel
Pierre-Henri Raphanel (born 27 May 1961) is a French former racing driver.
He participated in 17 Formula One Grands Prix for Larrousse, Coloni and Rial, debuting on 13 November 1988. He only qualified for one race, the 1989 Monaco Grand Prix, ...
finished dead last in pre-qualifying, but not only did
Roberto Moreno
Roberto Pupo Moreno (born 11 February 1959), usually known as Roberto Moreno and also as Pupo Moreno, is a Brazilian former auto racing, racing driver. He participated in 75 Formula One Grands Prix, achieved 1 podium, and scored a total of 15 c ...
manage to qualify the car, he managed to complete 57 laps before succumbing to
gearbox
Propulsion transmission is the mode of transmitting and controlling propulsion power of a machine. The term ''transmission'' properly refers to the whole drivetrain, including clutch, gearbox, prop shaft (for rear-wheel drive vehicles), differe ...
trouble. However, neither driver managed to qualify for the following race, which was the
1989 French Grand Prix
The 1989 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Paul Ricard on 9 July 1989. It was the seventh race of the 1989 Formula One World Championship.
The 80-lap race was won from pole position by local driver Alain Prost, driving a McL ...
. Moreno did manage to qualify for the
1989 British Grand Prix
The 1989 British Grand Prix (formally the XLII Shell British Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held at Silverstone on 16 July 1989. It was the eighth race of the 1989 Formula One World Championship.
The 64-lap race was won by Frenchman Al ...
, but only lasted two laps before suffering another gearbox failure. It was not until the
1989 Portuguese Grand Prix
The 1989 Portuguese Grand Prix (formally the XXIII Grande Prémio de Portugal) was a Formula One motor race held at the Autódromo do Estoril in Estoril, Portugal on 24 September 1989. It was the thirteenth race of the 1989 Formula One World Champi ...
that Coloni managed to qualify again;
by then, Raphanel had been replaced by
Enrico Bertaggia
Enrico Bertaggia (born 19 September 1964) is a former racing driver from Italy. He enjoyed success in Formula Three, winning the Italian Formula Three Championship in 1987 and the Monaco Grand Prix F3 support race and the Macau Grand Prix the fol ...
, whilst Moreno qualified 15th in what would prove to be Coloni's best qualifying session ever.
However, after
Arrows'
Eddie Cheever
Edward McKay "Eddie" Cheever Jr. (born January 10, 1958) is an American former racing driver who raced for almost 30 years in Formula One, sports cars, CART, and the Indy Racing League. Cheever participated in 143 Formula One World Championship ...
wiped out the C3 on Saturday, the updated front wing was destroyed, and Moreno struggled until electrical gremlins forced him to retire on lap 11. This would be the last time a Coloni made it onto the grid in 1989.
For 1990, the new-look Subaru Coloni team slimmed down to a single-car effort, driven by
Bertrand Gachot
Bertrand Jean Gachot (born 23 December 1962) is a French former racing driver. Gachot enjoyed some success in the junior formulae, winning titles in Formula Ford before progressing through Formula 3 and Formula 3000, reaching Formula One in 198 ...
.
Things started inauspiciously for the team, when Gachot pre-qualified dead-last for the
1990 United States Grand Prix
The 1990 United States Grand Prix was the opening motor race of the 1990 Formula One World Championship held on March 11, 1990, in Phoenix, Arizona. It was the 32nd United States Grand Prix since the ''American Grand Prize'' was first held in 1908 ...
. In fact, Gachot failed to pre-qualify in each and every race that he drove the Subaru-powered C3B, and also the
1990 German Grand Prix
The 1990 German Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at the Hockenheimring on 29 July 1990. It was the ninth race of the 1990 Formula One World Championship. The race was the 52nd German Grand Prix and the 14th to be held at the Hockenheim ...
and
1990 Hungarian Grand Prix in the new Cosworth-powered C3C.
By the
1990 Belgian Grand Prix, however, things had improved marginally; Gachot pre-qualified a Coloni for the first time in a year, but was still 30th and last in qualifying proper.
From then onwards, Gachot would regularly pre-qualify his C3C, but never once managed to get through qualifying proper, and Coloni finished the season without ever actually competing in a race.
File:C3-1.jpg, 1989 Coloni C3
File:103-C3C2.jpg, 1990 Coloni C3C
Complete Formula One results
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (results shown in bold indicate pole position; results in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
References
{{F1 cars 1990
Coloni Formula One cars