Arrows A20

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Arrows A20
Arrows A20 Historacing Festival Ledenon 2012.jpg
The A20
Category Formula One
Constructor Arrows
Designer(s) Mike Coughlan (Technical Director)
Eghbal Hamidy (Chief Designer)
Simon Jennings (Head of Aerodynamics)
Predecessor A19
Successor A21
Technical specifications [1]
Chassis Moulded carbon-fibre composite structure
Suspension (front)Double wishbones, pushrod
Suspension (rear)Double wishbones, pushrod
Engine Arrows T2-F1 72-degree 3.0 L V10
Transmission Arrows carbon-fibre six-speed longitudinal sequential semi-automatic
Power715 hp @ 15,000 rpm [2]
Fuel Elf [note 1]
Tyres Bridgestone
Competition history
Notable entrants Repsol Arrows F1 Team
Notable drivers14. Flag of Spain.svg Pedro de la Rosa
15. Flag of Japan.svg Toranosuke Takagi
Debut 1999 Australian Grand Prix
Last event 1999 Japanese Grand Prix
RacesWins Poles F/Laps
16000
Constructors' Championships0
Drivers' Championships0

The Arrows A20 was the car with which the Arrows Formula One team competed in the 1999 Formula One World Championship.

Contents

It was driven by former Jordan test driver Pedro de la Rosa, a Spanish débutant who brought considerable sponsorship from Repsol, [3] and Japan's Toranosuke Takagi, who moved from the defunct Tyrrell team. Mika Salo was due to stay with the team after a promising 1998 but was dropped just a week before the opening race. [4]

Background and design

The team was short of funds with the lack of a major sponsor (Danka's sponsorship having ended at the end of 1998) and the chassis was a mild update of the A19, which had not been too competitive itself. John Barnard had departed and it was left to Mike Coughlan to develop the car. [5]

After failing to find an alternative supplier, engine builder Brian Hart again supplied in-house engines, but as in 1998, it became clear that his small resources were insufficient to compete in modern F1, and he left the team after an ownership dispute with Tom Walkinshaw. [6]

Malik Ado Ibrahim buyout

At the start of the year a colourful Nigerian prince, Malik Ado Ibrahim, bought a 25% shareholding in the team, and his T-Minus brand appeared on the cars for most of the year. However, he too could not provide sufficient funding. The idea behind the T-Minus brand was that companies and corporations would purchase the rights to use the name and they would be permitted to use the brand to promote their products. [7] Malik stated that he planned to use the brand in conjunction with Lamborghini but a deal never pulled through. An Arrows employee of the time stated 'The T-Minus brand has brought in absolutely no money over the year' and carried on stating 'It was simply a dream in the Prince's head and nothing materialised.' [8] Investment company Morgan Grenfell also bought into Arrows, taking a 50% controlling interest in the team. [9]

Racing history

The year proved to be a disaster, as the cars were slow and unreliable, and the team ended up battling with Minardi at the back of the grid, and arguably got even slower throughout the season to the point that they were being frequently outqualified by their minnow rivals. Its only competitive showing came in the opening race of the season at Melbourne, where de la Rosa finished sixth for a point on his début, with Takagi one place back in seventh. Only this point, and newcomer BAR's poor finishing record, kept Arrows from finishing last in the Constructors' standings. De La Rosa stated that the engine, not the chassis was the problem, commenting favorably on the handling of the car. [10]

While de la Rosa proved promising, Takagi struggled with communication issues as he could not speak English at the time and left at the end of the season; he was replaced for 2000 by Jos Verstappen.

Aftermath

The A20 was extensively refitted in preparation for the 2000 season which saw the team use Supertec engines. De La Rosa and Tom Coronel put in a lot of mileage and posted competitive times. [11] Mark Webber had his first test in a Formula One car aboard an A20 in November 1999, running the Supertec engine and new gearbox. He later said in his autobiography that the A20 was an above average car. [12]

The A20 eventually formed the basis of the AX3 3-seater car which Arrows introduced in 2001, using a modified chassis and the same Hart engine. Two examples were built. [13]

Complete Formula One results

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position)

YearEntrantEngineTyresDrivers12345678910111213141516PointsWCC
1999 Repsol Arrows F1 Team Arrows V10 B AUS BRA SMR MON ESP CAN FRA GBR AUT GER HUN BEL ITA EUR MAL JPN 19th
Pedro de la Rosa 6RetRetRet11Ret12RetRetRet15RetRetRetRet13
Toranosuke Takagi 78RetRet12RetDSQ16RetRetRetRetRetRetRetRet

Notes

  1. ↑ Repsol YPF branding appeared on the A20, but the car used Elf fuel and lubricants. [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 "Repsol And A20 Continue To Paint Picture For Arrow". crash.net. crash.net. 13 February 1999. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
  2. ↑ "Engine Arrows • STATS F1".
  3. ↑ "Arrows Takes Pedro Option". crash.net. 16 December 1999. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
  4. ↑ "Salo replaces Schumacher". The Irish Times. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  5. ↑ "Repsol And A20 Continue To Paint Picture For Arrow". crash.net. 13 February 1999. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
  6. ↑ "Hart". users.telenet.be. Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
  7. ↑ Weeks, Jim (27 March 2017). "The Mysterious Nigerian Prince Who Scammed His Way Into Owning an F1 Team" . Retrieved 20 January 2020.
  8. ↑ "Risky Business: The TWR Arrows Years 1996-2002". F1 Rejects. Archived from the original on 17 May 2014. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  9. ↑ Cassy, John (27 December 1999). "Consortium races for control of Arrows team". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 April 2020– via www.theguardian.com.
  10. ↑ "Toranosuke Takagi". Motor Sport Magazine. 12 June 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
  11. ↑ "Testing Ends at Barcelona". www.atlasf1.com. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  12. ↑ Hassall, David. "Webber hopes to test again". GoAuto. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  13. ↑ Silvestro, Brian (2 July 2018). "Scare the Bejesus Out of Your Friends With This Three-Seat F1 Car". Road & Track. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
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