Ligier JS37
| Constructor: | Frank Dernie | ||||||||
| Predecessor: | Ligier JS35B | ||||||||
| Successor: | Ligier JS39 | ||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chassis: | Monocoque made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic | ||||||||
| Wheelbase: | 2900 mm | ||||||||
| Weight: | 505 kg | ||||||||
| Tires: | Goodyear | ||||||||
| Petrol: | Eleven | ||||||||
| statistics | |||||||||
| Driver: |
 Thierry Boutsen Érik Comas
|
||||||||
| First start: | 1992 South African Grand Prix | ||||||||
| Last start: | 1992 Australian Grand Prix | ||||||||
|
|||||||||
| World Cup points: | 6th | ||||||||
| Podiums: | - | ||||||||
| Leadership laps: | - | ||||||||
The Ligier JS37 is a Formula 1 vehicle from the French racing team Équipe Ligier , which the team used in the 1992 Formula 1 season . The JS37 was driven by the Belgian Thierry Boutsen and the French Érik Comas . Comas reached four world championship points with him; Boutsen two. In the constructors' championship, Ligier took eighth place behind Footwork . The type designation JS pays homage to the French racing driver Jo Schlesser, who died in an accident in 1968 .
construction
The JS37 was presented on January 16, 1992 at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours . The maiden voyage ended after a few laps due to an electrical fault. Alain Prost also tried the Ligier in the following test drives . However, a mission with him as a regular pilot did not materialize. Even during the test drives, the gearbox of the JS37 was difficult to shift; it was stiff and the gear lever was placed in an awkward position. In addition, Boutsen especially complained about massive turbulence at high driving speeds.
Designer Frank Dernie described his JS37 as a compact vehicle. Gérard Ducarouge , Ligier's Technical Director, described the vehicle as a well thought-out and simple Formula 1 vehicle. According to him, the JS37 was tested in the wind tunnel for more than a hundred hours . As a French team, Ligier was able to benefit from the cooperation with Renault , which provided a V10 RS3 engine for the season. According to FIA regulations, the engine had a displacement of 3493 cm³ and developed around 750 hp (552 kW). This made it one of the most powerful engines of the season. According to a statement by the former Renault racing director Gérard Larrousse, the engines are said to have cost 65 million francs.
The gearbox of the JS37 was an X-Trac six-speed gearbox flanged to the engine. The three-plate carbon fiber clutch was provided by AP. The braking system was supplied by Brembo and the carbon fiber reinforced brake discs by Carbone Industrie. The rack and pinion steering was developed by Ligier. The front and rear suspensions had tension struts. Two Bilstein dampers were located lengthways on the front of the monocoque and on the transmission at the rear. The tank volume was 205 liters.
The tire supplier was Goodyear , the main sponsors being Gitanes Blondes and Elf, who also provided the gasoline mix.
driver
The Belgian Thierry Boutsen and the French Érik Comas were signed as drivers .
Season course
The season was disappointing for Ligier. Despite the Renault engine, the team was only able to score six world championship points. At the Grand Prix of South Africa Comas missed the points with seventh place; Boutsen had broken down after problems with the fuel supply. In Mexico , both drivers crossed the finish line in 9th and 10th place, two laps behind the winner Nigel Mansell . At the Brazilian Grand Prix , Boutsen was eliminated after a collision, Comas due to transmission problems. The team suffered another double loss in Spain . Boutsen retired after engine problems; Comas on lap 55 after a spin. At the San Marino Grand Prix , Comas finished ninth. Boutsen had retired again due to engine problems. Monaco saw both drivers finish the second time this season. Comas was tenth, two laps behind the winner Ayrton Senna ; Boutsen is twelfth with three laps behind. At the Canadian Grand Prix , Comas scored his first world championship point with sixth place. Boutsen came in 10th, two laps behind. At the home Grand Prix of the Ligier team in France , Comas achieved two more World Championship points with fifth place. Boutsen was eliminated after a spin on lap 46.
At the beginning of the second half of the season, the driver duo Boutsen / Comas achieved eighth and tenth place respectively in Great Britain . In Germany at the Hockenheimring , both Ligier drivers crossed the finish line in sixth (Comas) and seven (Boutsen). At the Hungarian Grand Prix on the Hungaroring, Comas and Boutsen were eliminated after collisions. In the qualifying race for the Belgian Grand Prix , Comas lost control of his Ligier in the Blanchimont bend and hit the barricade hard. He lost consciousness from the force of the impact. His car skidded on the opposite side of the track, ricocheted off there and the wreck remained upright in the middle of the lane. Driving behind Comas, Senna passed the vehicle wreck at slow speed, stopped on the right side of the track and hurried to Comas' aid. Comas was uninjured in the accident, but was unable to take part in the race. Boutsen retired on race Sunday after spinning on lap 27. At the Italian Grand Prix both Ligier turned out Comas through a spin and Boutsen by a defect in the gas pedal. In Portugal , Comas retired on lap 47 due to engine problems; Boutsen brought his car home in eighth place, two laps behind winner Mansell. In Suzuka , Boutsen dropped out on the third lap due to transmission problems; Comas followed on lap 36 with engine problems. After a double failure in Japan, the Ligier team traveled to Australia for the season finale . On the Adelaide Street Circuit , Boutsen learned his first two championship points when he was fifth. Comas had already retired on lap four due to engine problems.
Race results
| driver | No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4th | 5 | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14th | 15th | 16 | Points | rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 Formula 1 season |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
6th | 8th. | |
|
Thierry Boutsen
|
25th | DNF | 10 | DNF | DNF | DNF | 12 | 10 | DNF | 10 | 7th | DNF | DNF | DNF | 8th | DNF | 5 | ||
|
Érik Comas
|
26th | 7th | 9 | DNF | DNF | 9 | 10 | 6th | 5 | 8th | 6th | DNF | DNS | DNF | DNF | DNF | DNF | ||
| Legend | ||
|---|---|---|
| colour | abbreviation | meaning |
| gold | - | victory |
| silver | - | 2nd place |
| bronze | - | 3rd place |
| green | - | Placement in the points |
| blue | - | Classified outside the point ranks |
| violet | DNF | Race not finished (did not finish) |
| NC | not classified | |
| red | DNQ | did not qualify |
| DNPQ | failed in pre-qualification (did not pre-qualify) | |
| black | DSQ | disqualified |
| White | DNS | not at the start (did not start) |
| WD | withdrawn | |
| Light Blue | PO | only participated in the training (practiced only) |
| TD | Friday test driver | |
| without | DNP | did not participate in the training (did not practice) |
| INJ | injured or sick | |
| EX | excluded | |
| DNA | did not arrive | |
| C. | Race canceled | |
| no participation in the World Cup | ||
| other | P / bold | Pole position |
| SR / italic | Fastest race lap | |
| * | not at the finish, but counted due to the distance covered |
|
| () | Streak results | |
| underlined | Leader in the overall standings | |
literature
- Mathias Brunner, René Alezra: Well then , cheers - first tests of the Ligier JS37-Renault V10 in Motorsport aktuell, issue 5, year 1992, p. 19.
Racing car from the 1992 Formula 1 World Championship