Iconic V16 Formula One car to be raced again at Goodwood

The first brand-new V16 to be finished went on display at Goodwood Revival 2021

The grandson of one of Britain's Formula One pioneers is leading a project to revive an iconic racing car.

The family of Paul Owen, from Cheltenham, owns British Racing Motors (BRM), and has commissioned three new models of the 1950s-specification V16.

The car, fitted with a supercharged 1.5-litre engine, was created using modified airplane parts and known for its distinctive engine noise.

Renowned race car engineer Hall & Hall is building the three new models.

The first new P15 V16 Mk1 car to be finished, which will be kept in the Owen family, was unveiled at Goodwood Revival in 2021, and did a few laps of the track for fans to enjoy.

It is hoped one of the V16s will race at the motorsports event in September to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Graham Hill's 1962 F1 World title win.

British bid to match rivals

The late engineer and industrialist Sir Alfred Owen helped found a consortium put together by pre-war racing driver Raymond Mays to build a world-class racing car.

Eventually Sir Alfred would go on to own the BRM team that pioneered the 1.5 litre, supercharged V16 Formula One engine.

The British Motor Racing Research Trust developed the iconic car

Mr Owen said one of BRM's original aims was to become a world-leader in racing car design, taking on the might of the Italians and Germans driving Ferraris, Alpha Romeos and Maseratis.

"The whole premise of Raymond Mays' vision was to develop British engineering talent," he said.

"That fitted very well with my grandfather's desire for not only a patriotic endeavour, but to showcase the engineering capabilities of the family business."

Juan Manuel Fangio, who won a record five Formula One World Championship titles, often drove the car

One of the most famous drivers to race the V16 was Juan Manuel Fangio, the Argentinian who won a record five Formula One World Championship titles.

It was also driven by Ken Wharton, Stirling Moss, Jose Gonzalez and Jackie Stewart.

It has been a long-held dream for Sir Alfred's family to hear the iconic sound of the classic V16 engine, which developed 600 horsepower, spinning at an incredible 12,000rpm.

Mr Owen said motor racing enthusiasts were thrilled by the car's signature sound.

"It's a truly unique noise. Once heard it's never forgotten. It's just fascinating fans referring to the engine as an 'orchestra' or 'like a behemoth awakened from its slumber'.

"It's one of the reasons we've commissioned the car so that the sight, and particularly that sound, can be shared with others," he added.

Paul Owen (second right) was joined by members of his family and engineers from Hall & Hall at Goodward Revival 2021

The design of the original Type 15 V16 was highly complicated and ambitious and owed a lot to the aerospace industry.

Rolls Royce was involved in scaling down a supercharger from the Spitfire's Merlin engine, while other parts were adapted from a Wellington bomber.

The suspension mechanism was made from aircraft landing gear; the first time that had ever been done in a racing car.

Mr Owen said: "Even these days it would be a pretty impressive achievement, but in 1949/1950 it was just spectacular."

The new models are being painstakingly recreated by the historic racing car specialists, Hall & Hall, based in Lincolnshire.

The new V16s are being hand-built by historic racing car specialists Hall & Hall

One of the partners, Rick Hall, who originally worked for BRM in the 1970s, is overseeing the construction of the first V16s to be built from scratch since 1953.

The company is using the post-war period blueprints to recreate each of the 36,000 individual parts that comprise a P15. The engineers have been helped by 25,000 original drawings of the model, which are still owned by BRM.

The V16 racing car has 36,000 individual components and takes two years to build

"We wanted to do it exactly as the original car, otherwise there was no point," said Mr Hall.

"But the complexity involved then is the same as the complexity now," he added. "We've got modern materials, but the design had to stay the same.

The new V16 gearbox being tested by specialists at Hall & Hall

"Everything on the car is hand-finished and hand-polished. It all had to be made from scratch and there are no shortcuts when you're working to this level of authenticity.

"This engine revs to 12,000 revs, which in period was unbelievable," he said.

Recalling the disastrous debut of the V16 at Silverstone in 1950, he added "We didn't want to repeat history when the first time the car went out, it broke a drive shaft on the start line and never did a lap.

"BRM has been my life, my passion, building an original V16 is what I always dreamed of doing."

It's hoped one of the cars will be tested and ready in time to race at the Goodwood Revival motorsports event in September.

The event will celebrate the 60th anniversary of Graham Hill's success in the 1962 World Championship, when he secured the World Constructors Title for BRM.