Gulf GR7
The Gulf GR7 was a sports car prototype that was used in the 1974 World Sports Car Championship . It was the successor to the Mirage M6 .
With the type designation, the team management of the Gulf Research Racing Company Ltd. bow to the wishes of the sponsor Gulf Oil and name the car Gulf . The previous racing cars of this team were named Mirage. In the start and result lists, the car was also referred to as the Gulf-Mirage GR7 or the Mirage GR7 .
technology
Externally, the GR7 was hardly distinguishable from the M6. However, a new material was used: aluminum was replaced by titanium . This change resulted in a significant reduction in weight. Empty, the GR7 weighed just over 700 kg. The disadvantage of the titanium was that many parts had to be replaced after a short time because they could not withstand the stresses of racing. The power unit was the 8-cylinder DFV engine from Cosworth .
The first tests were run in Le Castellet in February 1974 . The drivers Vern Schuppan , Derek Bell and Mike Hailwood complained about the poor road holding of the GR7. It was difficult to convert the not-too-high output of the 3-liter V8 engine (around 445–450 hp at around 10,500 rpm) into propulsion with the light car - a problem that could not be eliminated throughout the season.
Racing history
At the 1000 km race in Spa , Bell and Hailwood came in second behind Jacky Ickx and Jean-Pierre Jarier in their Matra MS670 C. In the 1000 km race at the Nürburgring in 1974 (shortened to 750 km this year), the future Formula 1 world champion James Hunt was a guest driver. Together with Schuppan and Bell, he finished fourth, one lap behind. The second Gulf of Bell and Hailwood, who was faster in training, was eliminated on lap 13 due to an accident.
The team's main goal was the Le Mans 24-hour race . The Swede Reine Wisell joined the three regular drivers . Despite the titanium, it turned out that the Matras with an empty weight of 678 kg were a lot lighter than the GR7. The Schuppan / Wisell-GR7 already failed after 49 laps due to a defect on the drive shaft. Despite a few unscheduled pit stops, the Bell / Hailwood GR7 crossed the finish line in fourth place overall. It was the best result of a racing car with a Cosworth engine in the 24-hour race to date.
Despite some good races and the commitment of top drivers as guest drivers - as Jacky Ickx drove in the 1000 km race in Paul Ricard - second place in Spa remained the best result of the season. In the sports car world championship, the team achieved second place overall behind the Matra works team.
For the 1975 season, the team built a new car, the GR8 . The GR7 were sold. The German entrepreneur and racing team owner Georg Loos bought two for his Gelo Racing Team . Loos paid £ 44,000 for the two cars and used them in national races in Germany and in the Interseries in the late 1970s . The American Harvey Cluxton bought a third car in the summer of 1974, who built up his own racing team.
Loos brought his two GR7s to the Nürburgring in 1975 to use them in the 1000 km race . The GR7 with chassis number 702, with John Watson and Tom Pryce at the wheel, broke down early due to an accident. Howden Ganley and Tim Schenken in the GR7 with chassis number 704 achieved second place in the overall standings at the end of the race thanks to a clever pit strategy, a strong performance for a private team.
Technical specifications
| Gulf GR 7 (1974) | |
| engine | Eight-cylinder V-engine, cylinder bank angle 90 ° ( mid-engine ) |
| Displacement | 2993 cc |
| power | 445 hp (332 kW) at 10,500 rpm |
| maximum torque | 339 Nm at 8500 rpm |
| Valve control | 2 overhead camshafts, 4 valves per cylinder |
| transmission | 5-speed gearbox (ZF or Hewland DG300) |
| wheelbase | 2426 mm |
| Track width front / rear | 1448/1401 mm |
| Dimensions L × W × H | approx. 3500 mm × 1885 mm × 744 mm |
| Weight | approx. 700-740 kg |
literature
- John Horsman: Racing in the Rain . Bull Publishing Ltd., Phoenix 2006, ISBN 1-893618-71-4 .
Web links
References and comments
- ↑ Tech racing cars . Retrieved May 21, 2018.
- ↑ Note: The length of 2972 mm given in the source is unlikely. According to the drawings, it must be around 3500 mm.