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FormulaNerds spent time with a second team at the Silverstone Festival, learning the secrets behind the 1993 Tyrrell.Â?
The second of the “Modern F1” cars to be demoed at the Silverstone Festival, the Tyrrell Yamaha 021,Â?is another example of simplicity and beauty combined.
A year younger than the Jordan 194, which also demoed at the festival, the Tyrrell was sadly a back-marker car in 1993. Driven by Ukyo Katayama and Andrea de Cesaris, the car failed to score a point all season. Tyrrell’s performances in the early 1990s had steeply declined. Not being classified in the constructors’ championship greatly affected the team. Sweeping changes were made for 1994 that led to a more competitive season.
While a pointless season can be attributed to multiple factors, the Yamaha engine easily took centre stage as one of the leading causes, with three failures for Katayama alone.
Like all classic F1 cars, the 021 has an air of regality when you first set eyes on it. We arrived in the garage to see a treasure trove of classic cars. A 1983 Tyrrell 011 sits at the back of the garage, resplendent in its green Benetton livery.Â? A Williams FW08 sits at the front of the garage, waiting to go out.
History on display
Walking up to the car, we meet the driver of this beautiful piece of history, Jon Constable. Despite his demo run not being scheduled for several more hours, he and the mechanics are already hard at work. Jon is applying polish to the car, while the mechanics work away on their laptops.
Jon allowed us the privilege of sitting in the cockpit and seeing a view that very few get to experience: a race driver’s view in an F1 car. We asked Jon for a tour of the car to give us an insight into how this car drives and feels as a relic of a bygone era. His brother may own the car, but Jon is the one driving today:
“It’s been with us about four years. I’ve driven it on five different occasions. A very physical, noisy, adrenaline-rushed 20 minutes I’ll have today. It’s a fantastic car, very raw in its feel.
“QuiteÂ?high downforce, aÂ?lot of grip, obviously without the traction control or electric shift gearbox. So, it’s all still manual. Towards the back of the Grid in its day, but still an incredible car, a beautiful looking car.”
Constable highlighted the vibrant and emotive soundtrack of the V10 engine, widely regarded as one of F1’s greatest: ” [It has] a V10, which is more to the point, which is probably one of the most gorgeous sounding engines that I think there have been, so it’s still a lovely car to see and hear. Again, a lot of fun to drive, basically”.
Maintaining *that” sound
Unlike the Jordan, which required a complete rebuild, the Tyrrell 021 has been well cared for throughout its new life. We asked Constable how this car is maintained. The Tyrrell and Jordan share a trait however. Both are now using a Judd V10 engine, as the original Yamaha engine is long gone.
Constable told us how understanding the engine’s performance is crucial:
“From a maintenance point of view, it’s really just keeping an eye on the engine. So every time we use the engine, the guys will plug into the Judd V10 to record its performance, effectively the time that it’s run, just to log that so that it gets regularly rebuilt after seven and a half hours.”
Constable also highlighted the bespoke nature of car parts. With 1990s F1 car production much more basic than today’s standards, if anything breaks, it is not a case of just reaching for a replacement in the garage:
“Other than that, the rest is pretty analogue. If something breaks it has to be either remanufactured or repaired if possible. Had few issues really when I’ve I’ve driven it fortunately.”
With Constable and the team needing their cockpit back, we wrapped up our time with him by asking him what he expected from his demo run later that afternoon: “Looking forward to that. It’s dry and not like yesterday, which was wet. T
“That was a very different experience. Still, it did have a lot of grip in the wets. But he did step out on me a few times. So I had to try and keep it within that window so that I could bring it home safely, really looking forward to today. Hopefully be a big crowd, a few friends coming. Looking forward to it.”
Firing up for the run
We returned to the garage to watch the car undergo final checks and be fired up ahead of its run. Constable arrived, ready and raring to go, in Tyrrell race overalls.
As the mechanics worked at pace to ready the car, few people knew this beautiful piece of F1 history was about to roar into life. The starter motor was applied, and the Judd fired up. All present smiled at the sound of this unhinged and unleashed raw power. The car shut down after a thorough test of the tracking and gears.
With only a few minutes left, Constable climbed into the car, his mechanics strapping him into the tight cockpit. Thanks to the team’s speedy work, Constable only needed a ten-second warning before going out.
Pushed to the front of the garage, the Tyrrell prepared to take to a track it had raced on over thirty years before. The signal came, and within ten seconds, the engine had fired up, and Constable pulled away into the pit lane.� Another successful demo of F1’s illustrious and glorious history.
Feature Image Credit: FormulaNerds via James PhillipsÂ?