Arrows A18

The Arrows A18 was the car with which the Arrows Formula One team used to compete in the 1997 Formula One season. It was driven by Damon Hill, the reigning Champion who had made the surprising move to the team after being dropped from Williams, and Pedro Diniz, who had moved from Ligier.

F1|1997 marked a new beginning for the team, with two new drivers, a new engine supplier in Yamaha and new tyres supplied by Bridgestone. The year also marked the first full season for Tom Walkinshaw's outfit TWR in running the team, as the Scotsman had bought it from one of its founders, Jackie Oliver during F1|1996.

After a disastrous start to the season which saw the cars almost fail to make the grid in Australia, the team improved, hiring John Barnard as Technical Director. Hill scored a point at Silverstone, but the highlight of the year came at the Hungarian GP, where he qualified third and led for most of the race. Unfortunately, the failure of a throttle linkage component saw him drop behind Jacques Villeneuve on the final lap, although second place was still a great success for the team. Diniz also scored two points at the Nürburgring.

The team eventually finished eighth in the Constructors' Championship, with nine points.

Complete Formula One results

() (results in bold indicate pole position)

References

*"AUTOCOURSE 1997-98", Henry, Alan (ed.), Hazleton Publishing Ltd. (1997) ISBN 1-874557-47-0