Technology in race cars (6): Ferguson-Climax P99 from 1961 - Four for Formula One

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Technology in race cars (6): Ferguson-Climax P99 from 1961 - Four for Formula One

Created on June 25, 2021

Text:

Gerhard Schütz

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

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Archiv Gerhard Schütz

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Stephan Traber

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Bruno von Rotz

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - The Rob Walker blue looks particularly good on a car that loves the wet road

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - Stirling Moss in 1961 at the Oulton Park Gold Cup on the only winning drive of a four-wheel drive Formula 1 car. The raised wishbones are striking

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - workplace with right-hand twist. On the left a chassis reinforcement with a perforated plate.

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - The drive arrangement

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - drawings show the construction of the formula car

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - The drive unit on the left is clearly visible. The shape of the fuel tank is impressive

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - The rear suspension. Since only half the power goes to one axle, the drive shafts could be surprisingly thin

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - The front axle suspension is set very high

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - British Grand Prix 1961 - Fairman next to Baghetti in the Ferrari 156

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - The four-wheeler in its element - Jack Fairmann at the British Grand Prix in Aintree. The "roll bar" is more reminiscent of an entry and exit aid for senior citizens

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - Peter Westbury at the Loton Park hill climb in 1964

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - Next to the drive shaft is good lying down. Moss during tests in Aintree

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Ferguson-Climax P99 (1961) - Innes Ireland on a demonstration drive at Silverstone in 1969. This year saw a revival of interest in four-wheel drive in Formula 1

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - outwardly almost indistinguishable from other F1 cars of the time

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Ferguson-Climax Project 99 (1960) - in the race for the Richmond & Gordon Trophies at the Goodwood Revival 2012

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Ferguson P99 (1961) at the Retrospective Ollon-Villars 2013

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Ferguson P99 (1961) at the Retrospective Ollon-Villars 2013: four-wheel drive Formula 1 car with front engine

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - Ollon-Villars hill climb 2017

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Cockpit of the Ferguson P99 (1961) at the Retrospective Ollon-Villars 2013

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - front suspension and engine intake side

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - Internal front disc brakes

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - reference to the motorization - Coventry Climax

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - Peter Westbury at the St. Ursanne-Les Rangiers hill climb in 1964

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Ferguson P99 (1961) - Peter Westbury at the 1964 St. Ursanne-Les Rangiers race - shortly after the mountain run

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BRM P67 (1964) - in the special exhibition "F1 Experiments" at the Rétromobile Paris 2017

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Summary

Traction has always been an important factor for success, especially in high-performance motorsport. As a result, four-wheel drive racing cars were created time and again. The Ferguson-Climax P99 was the only four-wheel drive Formula 1 car ever to win an F1 race and also the last front-engined car to win an F1 Grand Prix. This article from the series "Technology in racing cars from 1958 to 1978" looks at the P99 in detail and shows it in historical and current images.

Estimated reading time: 5min

Preview (beginning of the article)

The years 1958-1978 were the two most creative decades in the history of racing technology. This series portrays the most innovative, pioneering and exotic designs of Formula 1, Indy cars, sports cars and CanAm, and at the same time traces the major lines of development that still have an impact today. The series started with Lotus, one of the most important innovation drivers of these two decades. And the series will also finish with Lotus: With the first large-effect Formula 1 car to win a world championship in 1978, the Type 79. But in this episode of "Technology in racing cars 1958 to 1959", we are talking about the four-wheel drive pioneer Ferguson and the Ferguson-Climax P99 monoposto.

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