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Formula Ford is a single seater, open wheel class in motorsport which exists in some form in many countries around the world. Open-wheel car (Often single-seater car, in UK English describes cars with the wheels outside the car's main body and in most cases one seat It is an entry-level series to motor racing, in which in the past many drivers aspired to one day reach Formula One (today karting is more likely to be a young driver's entry to serious formula car racing). For other meanings see Kart (disambiguation Kart racing or karting is a variant of Open-wheel Motor sport with

Contents

History

When the formula was first established, it ran on road tyres, used road gearboxes, and a price cap was placed on rolling chassis - the intention was very much to create an affordable form of single-seater racing. John Webb of Brands Hatch, Geoff Clarke of Motor Racing Stables (the circuit's resident race driving school) and Jim Russell were largely responsible for its creation. Brands Hatch is a Motor racing circuit in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland it hosted 12 runnings of the The first Formula Ford car was Team Lotus' 1966 Type 31 which was derived from the Lotus 22 Formula Junior. 1950s Colin Chapman established Lotus Engineering Ltd in 1952 at Hornsey, UK. The Lotus 31 was a Racing car produced by Lotus for the new 1-litre Formula 3 introduced in 1964 replacing the expensive Formula Junior The Lotus 22 was a racing car built by Lotus cars in 1962 and a total of 77 cars were built Formula Junior is a Formula racing class first adopted in October 1958 by the CSI ( International Sporting Commission, the part of the FIA Unlike its great rival as an entry level formula, Formula Vee, the Formula Ford cars use full racing suspension setups. Formula Vee is a popular single-seater junior motor racing formula, with relatively low-costs in comparison to Formula Ford or Formula BMW.

The Formula

Formula Ford racing exists in two main forms: National Series run around the world using the 1600 Duratec engine, (which replaced the heavier but not significantly more powerful Zetec engine in 2006); and a mainly amateur, club-racing series attracting serious enthusiasts using the now elderly 1600 Kent Engine with which the formula ran from mid-sixties to mid-nineties. The Duratec is a range of four, six and twelve -cylinder Gasoline engines used in Ford cars Ford Motor Company used the Zetec name on a variety of Inline-4 cylinder Automobile engines. The car can provide drivers with their first insights into how a racing car feels to drive and how to properly set up a car, or it can provide a relatively inexpensive way for drivers to campaign purpose-built racecars for many years. Many Formula Ford 1600 series exist for drivers of the older Kent powered cars. Formula Ford 1600 is a number of championships which cater to 1600cc Ford Kent powered Formula Ford racing cars

A Formula Ford car is one of the more distinctive-looking open-wheel race cars because it does not have wings to create aerodynamic downforce, one of the reasons the series has persisted for so long in motor racing. Top speeds in the National Class are as high as in the other Junior Formulae of BMW and Renault, but the cornering speeds are lower due to the downforce-producing aerodynamic aids on the other cars. Handling is entirely down to mechanical grip, and the lack of wings ensures that cars following another are not aerodynamically disadvantaged, allowing close racing with plenty of overtaking. Series' rules may permit slick tires or treaded tires. As the rules limit modifications, all cars are relatively equal and close racing results. Still, Formula Fords allow suspension and braking bias changes, if not aerodynamic options like winged cars.

Formula Ford cars weigh 410/420 kg (1000 lb), so their engines, which typically develop about 140/115 hp, are capable of propelling them from 0–100 km/h in less than five seconds, reaching top speeds of nearly 235/220 km/h (150/140 mph). The engine is usually a stressed member of the chassis, as in larger and more advanced Formula cars.

Several famous race drivers have used the formula as a step up to international competitions. For example, David Coulthard and Jenson Button were both British Formula Ford champions; Gerdus Smit; Danica Patrick, the American Indy Racing League (IRL) racer, finished second in the British Formula Ford Festival early in her career. David Marshall Coulthard, often called DC, (born 27 March 1971 in Twynholm, Kirkcudbrightshire) is a British Formula One racing driver Jenson Alexander Lyons Button, often called Jense, (born 19 January, 1980) is a British Formula One racing driver from England Danica Sue Patrick (born March 25, 1982 in Beloit Wisconsin) is an American Auto racing driver competing in the IndyCar Series The Indy Racing League, better known as IRL, is the sanctioning body of a predominantly American based Open-wheel racing series. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Emerson Fittipaldi and Jody Scheckter were both competing in Grands Prix within a year or so of starting Formula Ford in Britain. Emerson Fittipaldi (born December 12, 1946 in São Paulo, Brazil) is a highly successful Brazilian automobile racing driver winning world championships Jody David Scheckter (born January 29, 1950) is a South African former Auto racing driver the 1979 Formula One World Drivers

Many championships are run around the world for Formula Ford including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Asia, and South Africa. Each run instrinsically the same rules and regulations with minor variations for local conditions.

Ford Championships around the world

The Chassis

In order to reduce cost, chassis are steel space-frame, unlike the monocoques found in other types of single seater racing. The Australian Formula Ford Championship has been held annually since 1993 being contested each year over a series of races for racing cars complying with Australian Formula The Formula Ford Junior Championship single seater category is famous throughout the world of motor sport and gives many racing drivers their first step into car racing after Go-karts This page contains a list of champions in the Dutch and Benelux Formula Ford championship Monocoque, from the French for single ( mono) and shell ( coque) is a construction technique that supports structural load by using an object's external The more popular marques are currently Van Diemen, Mygale and the Australian built Spectrum, but smaller manufacturers such as Ray or Vector have had some success. Van Diemen International Ltd is a British Race car manufacturer based in Snetterton, Norfolk, England. Mygale is a French Racing car constructor and contractor that specialises in the production of single seater Chassis for use in Formula In recent years, in the United States, Pipers have also been campaigned with strong results. Historical designers who have made a mark on the series have included: Titan, Lotus, Merlyn, Citation, Swift, Euroswift, Elden, Reynard, Crosslé, Lola, Zink Bowin and Cooper Racing. 1950s Colin Chapman established Lotus Engineering Ltd in 1952 at Hornsey, UK. Reynard Motorsport was at one time the world's largest racing car manufacturer The Crosslé Car Company Ltd is a Racing car manufacturer based in Holywood, Northern Ireland, UK. Lola Racing Cars (also Lola Cars International) is a Racing car Engineering company founded in 1961 by Eric Broadley and based in Huntingdon Bowin Cars an Australian designer and manufacturer of Motor racing cars from 1968 to 1976

The Engine

Formula Ford racing cars can be fitted with different engines. After some very early races with the 1500 cc Ford Cortina GT engine, the formula rapidly adopted the OHV 1600 cc Ford Kent engine, using production blocks with little special preparation. The Ford Cortina is a mid sized family car built by Ford of Britain in various guises from 1962 to 1982 The Ford Kent is an Internal combustion engine from Ford of Europe. In 1994, Ford replaced its Kent block engine with the more modern and more powerful 1800 cc 16-valve Zetec. Ford Motor Company used the Zetec name on a variety of Inline-4 cylinder Automobile engines. The advent of the Zetec created a new class of Formula Ford cars popular in some countries, although the increased weight of the engine was felt to adversely affect the handling of the cars. The formula originally mandated production gearboxes, wheels and tyres (and a maximum cost for the rolling chassis, although this was long since abandoned!), although Formula Fords now use racing gearboxes and, in some championships, slick tyres.

For the 2006 season, the Zetec engine is being superseded by the 1600 cc, DOHC 16v Duratec engine. The Duratec is a range of four, six and twelve -cylinder Gasoline engines used in Ford cars The Zetec was criticized by engineers and designers as less than ideal because of its bulk and weight. The move to Duratecs has brought Formula Ford back to using 1. 6 L capacity motors. Despite the capacity decrease, the new engines are more powerful than the Zetecs, and weigh more than 20 kg less, reducing overall weight and increasing performance significantly.

Unusually for any racing formula, one Minister Racing Engines-built engine became a legend - known as "Patch" after the number of times its cylinder block had been repaired, the same unit won several Formula Ford festivals in different hands. The cylinder block or engine block is a machined casting (or sometimes an assembly of modules containing cylindrically bored holes for the Pistons of a multi-cylinder

Administration

Ford administers some of the national Formula Ford championships around the world, but older cars are very popular with club racers, providing the ground for several organizations to run their own series. Many racing schools offer driver training in Formula Ford cars. However, in many countries, Formula BMW and Formula Renault Campus had superseded Formula Ford as the main entry level class, however 2006/7 have seen the Ford grids outdoing the BMW's and Renault's. Origins BMW has prior experience of junior Formula racing, as a successful engine supplier in Formula Two and more briefly Formula Three in the Formula Renault is a class of Formula racing founded in 1971 It is popular in Europe and other countries In the UK there are many less important regional series aimed at the amateur enthusiast, as well as championships for older Fords.

For many years the highlight of the Formula Ford season was the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch. Brands Hatch is a Motor racing circuit in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland it hosted 12 runnings of the Entries of several hundred cars from all over the Formula Ford world were common into the 1990s, with racers competing in knockout heats to decide the grid for a grand final. Entries have been declining and recent Festivals have struggled to attract more than 40-50 cars, enough for two heats and a final dash; more "historic" FF1600 cars have been turning up for the supporting races than contemporary Zetecs, however in 2006 the Festival saw the Duratec engine for the first time thereby having a final for all 3 marques at one meeting for the first time. The Walter Hayes Trophy now recognises the continuing interest in 1600cc 'Kent' Formula Ford and attracted over 150 entries in 2006, including several drivers more commonly seen in much more senior formulae.

Related Formulae

Reynard Formula Ford 2000 at the Nürburgring in 1985
Reynard Formula Ford 2000 at the Nürburgring in 1985

Formula Ford has given birth to several other categories of racing: Formula Ford 2000 evolved in the 1970s to use a Pinto engine and although it used basically Formula Ford chassis, permitted use of slicks and wings; it was seen as a natural step up from the 1600cc formula and a stepping stone to categories such as Formula Three. The Ford Pinto engine is the unofficial but generic nickname for a 4 cylinder Internal combustion engine built by the Ford Europe. Formula Three, also called Formula 3 or F3, is a class of open-wheel formula racing. Formula Ford 2000 engines and transmissions were married to sports-racing chassis to produce Sports 2000. Sports 2000 is a restricted-rules class of two-seat rear-engined open-cockpit full-bodied Sports-prototype racecar used largely in amateur road racing

Older Formula Fords, with outboard shock absorbers, race in the United States as Club Formula Fords in SCCA and other club racing series.

Formula 100 was an unsuccessful attempt in the late 1960s to create a sportscar category related to Formula Ford but using a 1300 cc Ford engine; despite being extremely pretty, the cars were heavy and slow. The proposed Formula Turbo Ford (an attempt to update FF2000) of the mid-1980s was limited to one Reynard that ran a few demonstration laps.

Formula Ford remains immensely popular at grassroots level in its 1600 cc form, though — the cars are widely raced, sprinted and hillclimbed. Formula Ford 1600 is a number of championships which cater to 1600cc Ford Kent powered Formula Ford racing cars Formula Continental is also a popular choice in the USA and Canada. Formula Continental is a single seater open wheel racing class in Motorsport. The class provides a venue for Formula Ford 2000 as well as the earlier Formula C (1100 cc pure racing engine) and Formula Super Vee (production-based VW engines). Formula Super Vee was a type of Open-wheel motor created to act as a platform for the promotion of VW products playing much the same role in the 1970s as formulae Formula Continental cars employ aerodynamic effects (front and rear wings).

Formula First was a partly successful attempt to get back to the roots of Formula Ford, with a spec FFord-like car running a transversely-mounted Ford engine in a very low state of tune; it was designed as an introductory formula and racing school chassis, and served in this capacity for some years. Formula Vee is a popular single-seater junior motor racing formula, with relatively low-costs in comparison to Formula Ford or Formula BMW.

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