Williams FW21

Williams FW21

Alex Zanardi racing in Canada in 1999
Constructor:	Williams
Designer:	Patrick Head (Technical Director) Gavin Fisher (Chief Designer) Geoff Willis (Aerodynamics Chief)
Predecessor:	Williams FW20
Successor:	Williams FW22
Technical specifications
Chassis:	CFRP monocoque
Engine:	Supertec FB01 2,997 cm³, 71 ° V10 naturally aspirated engine
Front suspension:	Double wishbone axle with internal springs and shock absorbers , operated via push rods
Rear suspension:	Double wishbone axle with internal springs and shock absorbers , operated via push rods
Length:	4392 mm
Width:	1800 mm
Height:	0950 mm
Wheelbase:	3020 mm
Weight:	0600 kg
Tires:	Bridgestone
Petrol:	Petrobras
statistics
Driver:	5. Alessandro Zanardi 6. Ralf Schumacher
First start:	1999 Australian Grand Prix
Last start:	1999 Japanese Grand Prix
Starts Victories Poles SR 16 - - 1
World Cup points:	35
Podiums:	3
Leadership laps:	8 over 36.448 km
Status: end of season 1999

The Williams FW21 was the Formula 1 racing cars of Williams F1 for the 1999 season , took part in all 16 races of the season.

Technology and development

The technical director for development was Patrick Head. He was responsible for Gavin Fisher for the construction and Geoff Willis for the aerodynamic shape of the car. Head said in an interview that they took a more radical approach to the redesign of the car and made many small instead of one big changes from last year. The engine was the FB01-V10 naturally aspirated engine from Supertec with a displacement of 2997 cm³ and a cylinder bank angle of 71 °. It weighed about 121 kg and developed about 559 kW (750 hp). This enabled the car to reach speeds of up to 340 km / h. The self-developed semi-automatic transmission had six gears. Bridgestone supplied the tires, Petrobras supplied the fuel and Magneti Marelli supplied the electronics.

Racing history

The car was presented to the world public on January 25, 1999 in Barcelona. With the FW21, Williams was very confident of better results than last year. Despite the weak engines, the team hoped for an increase compared to the previous, disappointing season and the connection to McLaren and Ferrari .

While Ralf Schumacher scored all points for the team with consistently good results, Zanardi fell short of the team's expectations. He had difficulty handling the car and the tires. The Williams FW21 was eliminated fourteen times during the season, six of them failures due to technical defects. The team finished fifth in the constructors' championship at the end of the season; it had made it into the top three three times.

Painting and sponsorship

The basic color of the car was red, the top of the nose and half of the front wing were painted white. There were yellow accents on the tip of the nose, the airbox and on the side box, and part of the engine cover was kept blue. The main sponsor of the team was the Winfield cigarette brand , the logo was placed on the wings, the side pods and on the nose directly in front of the driver. Veltins placed their logo on the airbox; Brother , Sonax and Nortel Networks advertised on the front wing . Other sponsors were the German automobile magazine auto motor und sport , Falke and Komatsu .

At the Grand Prix in France , Great Britain and Belgium there was no tobacco advertising. Instead, the team name Williams F1 was placed in the places of the logos .

driver

All races were driven by two-time Champ Car champions Alessandro Zanardi and Ralf Schumacher , who had swapped teams with Heinz-Harald Frentzen . The Brazilian Bruno Junqueira was nominated as a substitute driver .

Further use of the chassis

Ralf Schumacher's car is exhibited in the Technik Museum Sinsheim .

Williams FW21B

1999 was the last season with the old Renault engines reconditioned by external companies. For the new 2000 season, BMW engines were available that were tested with a modified FW21 during the winter break. The test took place on the BMW test track in Miramas with Tom Kristensen . Michelin , the new tire supplier to Formula 1 from 2001 , tested its newly developed tires with an FW21B and a Stewart SF3B in the spring of 2000 . Williams posted a small team for the Michelin squad to help with the tests.

Results

driver	No.	1	2	3	4th	5	6th	7th	8th	9	10	11	12	13	14th	15th	16	Points	rank
Formula 1 World Championship 1999																		35	5.
A. Zanardi	5	DNF	DNF	11	8th	DNF	DNF	DNF	11	DNF	DNF	DNF	8th	7th	DNF	10	DNF
R. Schumacher	6th	3	4th	DNF	DNF	5	4th	4th	3	DNF	4th	9	5	2	4th	DNF	5

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

Web links

Commons : Williams FW21  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

• Vehicle profile at chicanef1.com
• Vehicle profile at fedef1.com
• Vehicle profile at StatsF1.com
• Vehicle profile at traumautoarchiv.de
• motorsport-total.com Database information on Williams FW21

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} grandprix.com: The Williams FW21. Grand Prix, January 25, 1999, accessed March 26, 2020 . 
2. ↑ fedef1.com: Williams Technical info. fedef1.com, January 1, 2000, accessed March 26, 2020 . 
3. ↑ traumautoarchiv.de: Williams-Supertec FW 21 technical data. Traumauto Archiv, January 1, 2000, accessed March 26, 2020 . 
4. ↑ grandprix.com: New cars everywhere ... Grand Prix, February 1, 1999, accessed April 1, 2020 (English). 
5. ↑ grandprix.com: Michelin on the move. Grand Prix, March 27, 2000, accessed on March 26, 2020 . 
6. ↑ grandprix.com: Michelin test team to be based at Williams. Grand Prix, February 21, 2000, accessed March 26, 2020 . 
7. ↑ grandprix.com: Michelin sneaks closer to Formula 1. Grand Prix, September 18, 2000, accessed on March 30, 2020 (English).