Cooper T60
The Cooper T60 was a Formula 1 racing car from the Cooper Car Company , which was used at events of this racing formula from 1962 to 1965.
Development history
The Cooper T60 was John Cooper's construction for the 1.5-liter engine regulations of Formula 1 1962. Built was the car whose chassis consisted of a steel trellis frame to the new FWMV- V8 engine of Climax to accommodate . The larger and, above all, longer engine made a longer wheelbase necessary than with the previous models. The body was made of aluminum and the 6-speed gearbox was an in-house design by Cooper. The front and rear suspensions had double wishbones and coil springs.
The first test drives were not very promising. Gearbox damage resulted in constant problems with engine response. These technical deficiencies were largely eliminated by the start of the season. In retrospect, the T60 is described in many publications, if not as a faulty design, then at least as a less than successful car. This assumption is not confirmed by the results of the 1962 works team. The third overall place in the constructors' championship could not be surpassed by Cooper in the further years of the racing history of the British team. In addition, Bruce McLaren's victory with the T60 in Monaco in 1962 was followed by only two Cooper Grand Prix victories with the T81 at the end of the 1960s.
Racing history
Cooper raced the T60 for the first time at the Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort in 1962 , with Bruce McLaren at the wheel. In training, the New Zealander achieved the fifth fastest time and thus proved the competitiveness of the new design, which contradicted the problems mentioned during the test drives. In the race, McLaren drove on the fifth lap with a time of 1: 34.400 - corresponding to an average of 159.903 km / h - even the fastest lap. A gearbox damage prevented a finish. Starting from third place on the grid, McLaren ensured the T60's first race win in the second race of the season, the Monaco Grand Prix . He was already leading the field for the first six laps after the start and in the end benefited from Graham Hills's retirement , who rolled out eight laps before the checkered flag with an engine failure on the V8 engine of his BRM P57 at the edge of the track.
From the Belgian Grand Prix onwards , Cooper had T60 chassis available for both factory drivers. From this race on, Anthony Maggs started with this type in the Formula 1 World Championship. After a double retirement at the Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Francorchamps , Maggs drove his T60 to second place in the final classification at the French Grand Prix in Rouen-les-Essarts . He was only beaten by Dan Gurney , who achieved Porsche 's only win as a manufacturer in a Formula 1 world championship run. Bruce McLaren finished fourth.
More successful races and podium placements followed. McLaren finished third in the Great Britain Grand Prix , which was last held at the Aintree circuit this year . McLaren also finished on the podium of the top three in the races in Italy (third), the USA (again third) and South Africa (second). In South Africa, Anthony Maggs rounded off a great success for the team with third place. As a result, Cooper achieved ten points for the constructors' cup with one race and secured third place in this championship. McLaren finished third and Maggs seventh in the drivers' championship. The South African Grand Prix in East London was the last factory outing of the T60, which was sold to private teams after the end of the season .
In 1963 , Joakim Bonnier competed in a few world championship races with a Rob Walker T60 . Bonnier's best finish was fifth in the Belgian Grand Prix . The two races of the Scuderia Centro Sud T60 with Mário de Araújo Cabral at the wheel did not go well. At the German Grand Prix on the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring , there was a failure due to gearbox damage. At the Italian Grand Prix Cabra failed to qualify.
The T60's last races were at the 1964 Italian Grand Prix and the 1965 World Championship run in Great Britain . In Monza 1964 the Swiss Jean-Claude Rudaz was able to qualify a private T60 for the race; however, it was not possible to participate after an engine failure on Sunday morning. In 1965, the very last official use of this car ended prematurely due to ignition damage on the 38th lap. The car reported by former racing driver Bob Gerard was driven by John Rhodes .
literature
- Adriano Cimarosti: The Century of Racing. Cars, tracks and pilots. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1997, ISBN 3-613-01848-9 .
- David Hodges: Racing cars from A – Z after 1945. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1994, ISBN 3-613-01477-7 .
