Williams FW16

Williams FW16

Category	Formula One
Constructor	Williams
Designer(s)	Patrick Head (Technical Director) Adrian Newey (Chief Designer)
Technical specifications
Chassis	Carbon-fibre and honeycomb composite structure
Suspension (front)	Williams inboard torsion spring, double wishbone, operated by pushboard bellcrank
Suspension (rear)	Williams inboard coil-spring/double wishbone, operated by pushboard bellcrank
Engine	Renault RS6, RS6B and RS6C V10 (67°) naturally aspirated
Transmission	Williams 6-speed transverse semi-automatic
Fuel	Elf
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	Rothmans Williams Renault
Notable drivers	0. Damon Hill 2. Ayrton Senna 2. Nigel Mansell 2. David Coulthard
Debut	1994 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races Wins Poles F/Laps 16 7 7 5
Constructors' Championships	1 (1994)
Drivers' Championships	0

The Williams FW16 was a Formula One car used by the Williams team for the 1994 Formula One season. It was designed by Adrian Newey around a short wheelbase chassis. The car was designed with the major regulation changes that the FIA had introduced in the off-season, banning the electronic devices that had come to dominate the cars' internal management and re-introducing refuelling into the racing.

The number 0 car was driven by Damon Hill for the entire season. The number 2 car was driven by Ayrton Senna. The car proved to be a tricky proposition in early testing and only Senna's skill made the car competitive in the early part of the season. A design flaw was discovered in the car's frontal section before the third race of the season, but there was no time to do a major redesign before the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Senna requested some minor changes to be made, which was carried out by Newey and Patrick Head for the race. That weekend, Senna was killed whilst in the lead.

Williams introduced a B-spec car that was developed by Hill, but the Benetton B194 and Michael Schumacher were dominant in the first half of the season. Rookie test driver David Coulthard shared the second car with former champion Nigel Mansell (who also had IndyCar commitments). The engine was a Renault RS6 3.5 V10. Their main sponsor was Rothmans.

File:WilliamsFW161994.jpg

Ayrton Senna driving the FW16 at TI Circuit Aida.

The FW16 lacked the active suspension and traction control of the previous season's FW15C. Some people theorise, due to the similarities in design between the FW15C and the FW16, that the car was designed with active suspension and traction control in mind, leading to a very twitchy and floaty front end. This can be seen when Senna, pushing to close the gap between himself and Schumacher, spun out of second place during the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Williams FW16B

File:WilliamsFW16B1994.jpg

The revised version during the Belgian Grand Prix.

The car was updated to a 'B' specification for the German Grand Prix. This featured a longer wheelbase, revised front and rear wing and modified sidepods. Hill battled Schumacher for the championship but lost by a single point in the final race in Australia, but Hill's hard work meant that Williams won the constructors' championship that season.

Other

Senna's FW16 was included in the 2001 video game Gran Turismo 3 under the aliases "F094/S" (NTSC) and "Polyphony001" (PAL). Hill's FW16B was also included under the alias "F094/H".

Complete Formula One results

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position)

Year	Team	Engine	Tyre	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Points	WCC
1994	Williams	Renault V10	G		BRA	PAC	SMR	MON	ESP	CAN	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	POR	EUR	JPN	AUS	118	1st
				Damon Hill	2	Ret	6	Ret	1	2	2	1	8	2	1	1	1	2	1	Ret
				Ayrton Senna	Ret	Ret	Ret
				David Coulthard					Ret	5		5	Ret	Ret	4	6	2
				Nigel Mansell							Ret							Ret	4	1