RAM 03

Manfred Winkelhock in RAM 03 during his penultimate Formula 1 race

The RAM 03 was a Formula 1 racing car belonging to the British motorsport team RAM Racing , which was used in the 1985 season . The car gained some fame in Germany due to the fact that Manfred Winkelhock competed in it in his last Formula 1 races. In 1986 the car appeared in Formula 3000 . The RAM 03 did not achieve championship points in any racing series.

background

The racing team RAM Racing, founded in the late 1960s by Mike Ralph and John Macdonald , competed as a customer team in Formula 1 from 1976 to 1980 . In 1981 RAM became an independent designer. For the first two years, RAM had its cars built at March Grand Prix , a company founded by Robin Herd that, regardless of the similarity of its name, had no connection with the traditional racing car manufacturer March Engineering . From 1983 RAM had its own design department, which in the first year developed the unsuccessful RAM 01 equipped with a Cosworth naturally aspirated engine . For the 1984 season , RAM entered into an alliance with the British engine manufacturer Hart Racing Engines , whereby the team received turbo engines for the first time. In the first turbo year RAM did not achieve any world championship points.

For the 1985 season, the team received major financial support from the tobacco company US Tobacco , which advertised the chewing tobacco brand Skoal Bandit on the car. The sponsorship money made it possible for the team to have a completely new car developed by an “excellent designer”, which was supposed to overcome the deficits of earlier models. The Graz engineer Gustav Brunner was hired as the responsible designer . Brunners 03, however, did not fulfill the hopes placed in him. Problematic turbo engines and a budget that was already largely exhausted by the middle of the season stood in the way of greater success.

technology

In addition to Brunner, the Argentine Sergio Rinland and the British Tim Feast were involved in the development of the RAM 03. The 03 bore no resemblance to the previous RAM models. Conceptually, it represented a further development of the ATS D6 that Brunner had designed in 1983 for the German ATS team .

chassis

Like the ATS D6, it had a monocoque made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic that also served as the body. The monocoque was manufactured by Ralston Auto Tech in the UK.

For financial reasons, Brunner was unable to carry out wind tunnel tests for the design of the aerodynamics. He used the experience he had gained at Alfa Romeo and Euroracing last year. Brunner explained in 1985: “At Alfa Romeo I had the opportunity to play in the wind tunnel. But they didn't want to change much during the season, because everything costs a lot of money ”. He designed a slim monocoque that was no wider than the engine block. The rear end followed the so-called bottleneck design, which McLaren had first implemented in 1983 on the MP4 / 1E and which led to an improved air flow towards the rear wing.

The front and rear suspension consisted of double tension struts and wishbones. The rear wishbone was passed through the oil tank.

engine

Like the previous model, the RAM 03 was powered by a Hart 415T engine. Hart Racing Engines developed the four-cylinder turbo engine at the end of 1980 from a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated engine that was based on a Cosworth design from the 1960s. The development of the engine was largely funded by the Toleman team, which had exclusive access to the four-cylinder until 1983. From 1984 Hart also supplied other teams such as RAM and Spirit Racing . RAM had a total of 12 Hart engines available in the 1985 season.

RAM problems 03

The RAM 03 did not meet the expectations of the team management and the designer. Both the chassis and the engine were criticized during the season.

Brunner's focus was primarily on a clean flow to the rear wing in order to optimize downforce. To this end he subordinated the design of the chassis and the arrangement of the technical components. One problem that followed from this approach was insufficient cooling. In its original version, the cooler and vents were too small. The side pods were largely encapsulated and only had a small opening above the gearbox. Brunner expected the airflow at the rear of the car to be strong enough to pull the radiator exhaust out of this opening. The first test drive in February 1985 showed that this concept was unsuitable: the engine of the RAM 03 overheated despite outside temperatures that were close to freezing. RAM countered these problems with additional exhaust air openings in the side pods, which varied in size depending on the race track and temperature conditions. The concept could not be fundamentally changed, however, as the team got increasingly into financial difficulties over the course of the season and no longer had any opportunities for further development. The cooling problems persisted throughout the 1985 season. Engine designer Brian Hart was not happy with Brunner's engine installation and said that the high number of engine failures the team suffered from throughout the season were due to incorrect engine installation.

The performance of the Hart engine and its reliability were also problematic. There are different details about the specification of the motor. Brian Hart claimed in the summer that the engines for RAM were at the same level of sophistication as those for Toleman. Gustav Brunner and John Macdonald opposed this several times. They were of the opinion that the RAM engines were at the level of development from 1984 and that they had a performance deficit of around 120 hp compared to the Toleman versions. This representation can also be found repeatedly in the specialist literature.

In one of his last interviews, RAM driver Manfred Winkelhock blamed the engine for the failure series: “The handling of the cars is really good, the chassis and tires are excellent. The engine is a problem: misfires, turbo damage and no performance ”. John Macdonald said in retrospect that the team had never shown its potential in 1985: "We were constantly busy changing engines."

Races

RAM03

In 1985 RAM registered two cars for the Formula 1 World Championship. The drivers were Manfred Winkelhock and Philippe Alliot . Although Alliot had already contested a full season at RAM the year before, Winkelhock was given the role of the number 1 driver.

The RAM 03 only crossed the finish line three times in 1985. At the opening race in Brazil Winkelhock was thirteenth and Alliot ninth. This was followed by five (Winkelhock) and 12 (Alliot) failures, each of which was due to technical reasons.

After Winkelhock had a fatal accident in a sports car race in Mosport in August 1985, Briton Kenny Acheson took over his RAM cockpit. He was reported three times. He was able to qualify twice but did not finish.

For financial reasons RAM only entered one car for the Belgian Grand Prix and the last European race of the year, the European Grand Prix . Alliot qualified in both races, but also retired here due to engine damage. The team skipped the last two races of the year, which took place overseas.

The team has faced bankruptcy several times since the summer of 1985. A large part of the annual budget was spent on repairing the engines.

1986: RAM 04

For the 1986 season , John Macdonald tried to get his team to start again in Formula 1 with the help of Australian donors. With the only slightly revised 03, RAM took part in the FISA test drives that were held in Rio de Janeiro in February 1986 . The driver was Mike Thackwell . The team again used Hart engines and was the last racing team to use these engines, alongside Team Haas , which was still waiting for the new Cosworth GBA unit to be completed. Thackwell only achieved slow lap times; the Australian sponsors were not ready to provide the team with the funds for a new Formula 1 season.

After the Formula 1 comeback had failed, RAM got involved in Formula 3000 in 1986. Here it reported the RAM 04 , which was one of the 03 models completed in 1985, which was designed for operation with a Cosworth DFV suction engine was converted. The driver here for the first two races of the season was James Weaver ; then Eliseo Salazar took over the car. Neither driver achieved any championship points. The best result was Salazar's 11th place in the second race of the season in Vallelunga . After the seventh race of the season in Pergusa , RAM stopped racing. Salazar switched to the Lola factory team later in the season and was able to achieve significantly better results with the Lola T86 / 50 used there than before with RAM.

Race results

season	No.	1	2	3	4th	5	6th	7th	8th	9	10	11	12	13	14th	15th	16	Points	rank
1985 Formula 1 World Championship																		0	-
M. Winkelhock	9	13	NC	DNF	DNQ	DNF	DNF	12	DNF	DNF
P. Alliot											DNF	DNF	DNF	DNF	DNF
P. Alliot	10	9	DNF	DNF	DNQ	DNF	DNF	DNF	DNF	DNF
K. Acheson											DNF	DNQ	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

• Ian Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. Haynes Publications, Yeovil 1988, ISBN 0-85429-617-4 (English).
• Adriano Cimarosti: The Century of Racing. Cars, tracks and pilots. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1997, ISBN 3-613-01848-9 .
• David Hodges: A – Z of Grand Prix Cars. Crowood Press, Marlborough 2001, ISBN 1-86126-339-2 (English).
• David Hodges: Racing cars from A – Z after 1945. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1994, ISBN 3-613-01477-7 .

Web links

Commons : RAM 03  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Hodges: Racing Cars from A – Z after 1945. 1994, p. 219.
2. ↑ Motorsport news . Issue 7, 1985, p. 6.
3. ↑ ^{a b} Motorsport news. Issue 7, 1985, p. 6.
4. ↑ ^{a b} Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. 1988, p. 105.
5. ↑ Quoted from Motorsport aktuell. Issue 7, 1985, p. 7.
6. ↑ On this Hodges: Rennwagen von A – Z nach 1945. 1994, p. 185.
7. ↑ Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. 1988, p. 93.
8. ↑ Motorsport news. Issue 31, 1985, p. 8.
9. ↑ ^{a b} Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. 1988, p. 100.
10. ↑ To the whole: Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. 1988, p. 106.
11. ↑ Motorsport news. Issue 33, 1985, p. 7. See also Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. 1988, p. 100.
12. ↑ Motorsport news. Issue 33, 1985, p. 7.
13. ↑ Motorsport news. Booklet 20, 1985, p. 8 and Booklet 35, 1985, p. 8.
14. ↑ ^{a b} Motorsport news. Issue 31, 1985, p. 9.
15. ^ We were changing engines all the time. Quoted from Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. 1988, p. 100.
16. ↑ Bamsey: The 1000 bhp Grand Prix Cars. 1988, p. 101.