Former Jordan and Toyota technical director Mike Gascoyne has outlined his plans to revamp the F1 Experiences two-seater car, announcing that it will receive an aesthetic overhaul in addition to updated internal components.
Added to a select number of Formula 1 weekends by Liberty Media to improve fan engagement, the two-seater will hit the track at every round of next season’s championship.
The car is based on the 1998 Tyrrell 026 – which Gascoyne designed with the late Dr. Harvey Postlethwaite – before it was purchased and converted into a two-seater by Paul Stoddart during his tenure in charge of Minardi.
Stoddart now fronts the F1 Experiences program, and drafted Gascoyne into the project earlier in the season to provide a more contemporary facelift and update some of the more outdated systems.
“[Paul] got in touch with me and asked me to look over the technical side of the programme” Gascoyne told Autosport. “The fact that I designed the original car, the fact that I’ve driven it, makes it a very complete story.”
“Paul obviously wants to update these cars to give them a more modern look, and there are some things that we’ve got to do from a reliability point of view.
“We’re certainly going to put a modern aero package on it, so a new front wing, bargeboards, and rear wing to reflect the current regulations.
Under the skin, Gascoyne also detailed plans for a new, modern electronics package – doing away with the twenty-year-old technology used in the current car.
The majority of the internal components will remain the same, reducing the number of redesigns that the F1 Experiences engineers will have to produce.
“We’ll also put new electronics on,” Gascoyne added, “because they are probably the weak link from a reliability point of view – they are just not made any more.
“We won’t change all the running gear – if you change radiators or something the knock on effect of all those parts is massive, so there’s a lot you don’t want to change.”
Furthermore, Gascoyne also suggested that the passenger’s cockpit will be updated, adding more modern technology such as displays and camera to improve the experience of the car.
The chassis itself will undergo changes too, in order to improve the passenger’s comfort inside the car.
“We can also put dash displays in for the passengers, so they will be able to see where they are on the circuit.
“What we’re looking at doing is improving the experience for the passenger, what he can see, what displays are available to him, and comfort.
“We’ll improve all of that for the passenger, and also get modern cameras in there, so you’ve got a record.”
