Spyker F8-VII

Racing car
Car_name = Spyker F8-VII / Force India VJM01


Category = Formula One
Constructor = Spyker F1
Designer = John McQuilliam smaller|(Chief Designer/Technical Director) [Until 2007] Mike Gascoyne smaller|(Technical Director) Mark Smith smaller|(Design Director)
Team = Spyker F1
Force India
Drivers = flagicon|Germany Adrian Sutil
flagicon|Netherlands Christijan Albers
flagicon|Germany Markus Winkelhock
flagicon|Japan Sakon Yamamoto
flagicon|ITA Giancarlo Fisichella
Chassis = Carbon-fibre and honeycomb composite monocoque
Front suspension = Unequal length composite wishbones
Rear suspension = Unequal length composite wishbones
Engine name = Ferrari 056H
Designation = 056
Capacity = 2400cc
Configuration = V8,
Turbo/NA = naturally aspirated,
Engine position = mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Gearbox name = Spyker
Gears = 7 forward + 1 reverse
Type = Longitudinal with electrohydraulic sequential gear change
Differential =
Fuel =
Tyres = Bridgestone Potenza
Debut = 2007 Australian Grand Prix | Races = 32
Wins = 0
Cons_champ =
Drivers_champ =
Poles = 0
Fastest_laps = 0
The Spyker F8-VII (subsequently known as the Force India VJM01) is a Formula One car, constructed by Spyker F1 that competed in the 2007 Formula One World Championship. A B Specification Car named the Spyker F8-VIIB was launched at the Italian Grand Prix and used for the remainder of the 2007 season. For the 2008 World Championship Force India will use a slightly modified version of the F8-VII, called the Force India VJM01 named after team owners Vijay Mallya, Jan Mol and Michiel Mol. The F8-VII was the only car constructed by Spyker F1 in their own right after their take-over from the struggling Midland F1 team part way through 2006.

Design

The F8-VII was described by the team as a solid base on which to build, as they had a relatively short period of time to produce the new F1 car. James Key, the technical director of Spyker F1, said, "We also tried to second guess as best we could what the 2007 tyres were going to do, and we worked hard on aero, which is of course always the fundamental thing. That way we could concentrate all our efforts on performance related areas." [cite news| title =The Spyker F8-VII: from concept to design| publisher =Formula1.com| url =http://www.formula1.com/news/5617.html| date =2007-02-05| accessdate =2007-02-05]

Naming

Going against the trend originally started by Jordan Grand Prix and continued by Midland F1, the new car's naming designation relates directly to Spyker's heritage as a car and aircraft manufacturer. When the Dutch company started trading at the beginning of the 20th century it launched car models named A, B and C. When Spyker CEO Victor Muller resurrected the Spyker name in 2000 he wanted to build on that strong history.

"When we launched the first modern line of Spykers, the C8 Spyder, we called it the C line to follow on from the original model rationale," he explained. "The E line will be launched in the near future, so it makes sense for our Formula One car, our latest model, to be the F line."Fact|date=July 2007

The number eight refers to the number of cylinders of Spyker's Ferrari engine – the same rationale as used with road-going Spykers. The VII (7) sub-designation refers to Spyker's days as an aircraft manufacturer where all models were denoted by Roman numerals and stood for the year the aircraft was launched. Hence the F8-VII is the Spyker F line with eight cylinders in 2007. [cite news| title =The Spyker F8-VII: from concept to design| publisher =Formula1.com| url =http://www.formula1.com/news/5617.html| date =2007-02-05| accessdate =2007-02-05]

B Specification Car

A "B Specification" car was launched midway into the F1|2007 season. The F8-VIIB's debut was initially planned for the Turkish Grand Prix, but was delayed to the Italian Grand Prix after the car failed the mandatory FIA crash testing programme. [cite news| title =Spyker delays B-spec car debut | publisher =itv-f1.com| url =http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=40386| date =2007-08-23| accessdate =2007-08-23]

2008 season

Spyker was bought by Vijay Mallya during 2007 and has become Force India for F1|2008. The rebranded team will continue to use the F8-VII chassis for the first part of the season. [cite news| title =Force India sticking with the F8-VII| publisher =uk.eurosport.yahoo.com| url =http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/13112007/13/force-india-sticking-f8-vii.html| date =2007-11-13| accessdate =2007-11-16] However, the car has been rebranded as the Force India VJM01. [cite news| title =Force India unveil VJM01 in Mumbai| publisher =autosport.com| url =http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/65033| date =2008-02-07| accessdate =2008-02-07] With initial 2008 testing being carried out in reliveried F8-VIIBs, the definitive version of the VJM01 - still closely based on the F8-VIIB - made its testing début on February 25 2008. [cite news| title =Force India's VJM01 makes track debut| publisher =autosport.com| url =http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/65298| date =2008-02-25| accessdate =2008-02-05]

Complete Formula One results

() (results in bold indicate pole position)* Season in progress

smallsup|B B-spec. car was used.

References

External links

* [http://www.manipef1.com/news/2007/index.php?id=281 Full list of F8-VII Technical Specifications]