Williams FW11

Williams FW11
Williams FW11B

Williams FW11 (1986). Williams FW11B (1987).
Category	Formula One
Constructor	Williams
Designer(s)	Patrick Head (Technical Director) Frank Dernie (Chief Designer)
Predecessor	FW10
Successor	FW12
Technical specifications
Chassis	Moulded carbon composite monocoque
Suspension (front)	Double wishbones, pushrods
Suspension (rear)	Double wishbones, pullrods
Engine	1986: mid-engine, longitudinally mounted, 1,494 cc (91.2 cu in), Honda RA166-E, 60° V6, turbo 1987: mid-engine, longitudinally mounted, 1,494 cc (91.2 cu in), Honda RA167-E, 60° V6, turbo 1987: 4.0 Bar turbo limited
Transmission	Williams / Hewland 6-speed Manual
Fuel	Mobil
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	Canon Williams Honda Team
Notable drivers	5. Nigel Mansell 6. Nelson Piquet 5. Riccardo Patrese
Debut	1986 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races Wins Poles Fastest laps 32 18 16 17
Constructors' Championships	2 (1986, 1987)
Drivers' Championships	1 (Nelson Piquet 1987)

The Williams FW11 was a Formula One car designed by Patrick Head and Frank Dernie as a serious challenger to McLaren and their MP4/2 car. The car took over from where the FW10 left off at the end of 1985, when that car won the last three races of the season. The FW11's most notable feature was the Honda 1.5 Litre V6 turbo engine, the most powerful in F1 at the time producing 800 bhp at 12,000rpm and well over 1,000 bhp in qualifying. Added to the engine's power were the aerodynamics, which were ahead of the MP4/2 and the Lotus 97T. That and its excellent driving pairing of Nelson Piquet and Nigel Mansell made it a force to be reckoned with. The car was an instantly recognisable product of the turbo era of F1.

In 1986, the car won first time out in Brazil with Piquet, before Mansell laid down a title challenge with four wins. Williams were shaken by the near fatal road crash of Frank Williams which demoralised the team, but Head stepped up and managed the team until Williams returned late in the season. This may have caused the in-fighting between the two team mates, and the lost points helped Alain Prost take his second world championship. That and Mansell's spectacular blow out in the final race in Australia where all he had to do was finish third to win the title. The points built up between Piquet and Mansell were enough for Williams to take the constructors' championship, however.

The FW11 was updated slightly for 1987 to become the FW11B, and the team made no mistakes in wrapping up both championships. Honda were now supplying Lotus with the same engine supplied to Williams, which helped Ayrton Senna challenge consistently, but the FW11's superiority told, and Piquet finished in the points (mostly on the podium) in every race other than Spa, Imola (where he had a terrible crash at Tamburello during Friday practice, and he emerged with only a sore ankle, and he wanted to start the race but was prevented from doing so by Sid Watkins) and Adelaide, and he was champion. As for Mansell, he scored six victories including a memorable win at the British Grand Prix. He scored twice as many wins as Piquet, but also had the lion's share of bad luck and unreliability. Piquet's third championship was assured after Mansell had a major crash during practice for the Japanese Grand Prix. The team tested and developed its own active suspension for the first time with the FW11B and Piquet found the car to be superior to the conventionally suspended FW11B. He first used it in competition at the Italian Grand Prix where it proved much faster allowing him to run with less wing and record the highest speed of the 1987 season when he was speed trapped at 218.807mph (352.135km/h), some 5mph faster than Mansell could manage in the conventional suspension car. There were also plans in 1987 to introduce a semi automatic transmission, but this never came to pass.

The FW11 was not a technical showcase by any means, but solid engineering, the engine's outright power and Piquet and Mansell helped the car take 18 wins, 16 pole positions and 278 points over two seasons of racing.

An interim car that was tested before the FW11's successor FW12 was finished, the FW11C was used for the Judd V8 engine powering the FW12 in 1988. It was only built for testing purposes and it never raced.

Other

Mansell's FW11 was featured in the Japanese and American versions of the 2001 game Gran Turismo 3 under the alias F686/M. It was the most powerful Formula One car in the game, producing 939 PS (926 hp) (with an oil change it has 973 hp). It was also featured in the game Formula One 05 as an unlockable car. Piquet's FW11B was featured in the game Toca Race Driver 3.

Complete Formula One results

(key) (results shown in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team/Chassis	Engine	Tyres	Driver	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Pts.	WCC
1986	Williams FW11	Honda RA166-E V6 tc	G		BRA	ESP	SMR	MON	BEL	CAN	DET	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	AUT	ITA	EUR	MEX	AUS	141	1st
				Nigel Mansell	Ret	2	Ret	4	1	1	5	1	1	3	3	Ret	2	1	5	Ret
				Nelson Piquet	1	Ret	2	7	Ret	3	Ret	3	2	1	1	Ret	1	3	4	2
1987	Williams FW11B	Honda RA167-E V6 tc	G		BRA	SMR	BEL	MON	DET	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	AUT	ITA	POR	ESP	MEX	JPN	AUS	137	1st
				Nigel Mansell	6	1	Ret	Ret	5	1	1	Ret	14	1	3	Ret	1	1	DNS
				Nelson Piquet	2	DNS	Ret	2	2	2	2	1	1	2	1	3	4	2	15	Ret
				Riccardo Patrese																9

References

Awards
Preceded by Williams FW10B	Autosport Racing Car Of The Year 1986	Succeeded by Jaguar XJR-8