It was a sobering reminder of just how tough F1 could be. But, plugging on into 1990, once again there seemed reason for optimism. Coloni was getting a multi-cylinder works engine! Japanese manufacturer Subaru was interested in following Honda and Yamaha into F1 as engine suppliers, and in 1989 had subcontracted Italian racing engine company Motori Moderni, run by Carlo Chiti, to build a 180-degree, flat-12, 60-valve unit. Although the engine was originally intended for Minardi, Subaru eventually joined forces with Coloni, buying a half-share of the team.
Subaru's president Yoshio Takaoka became the official head of the team, although Enzo Coloni remained his vice, and in truth it was still he and new team and business manager Alvise Morin who held the reins. Paul Burgess, formerly of Onyx, was hired as chief engineer, and the team increased it staff levels once more. Onyx and Rial refugee Bertrand Gachot was signed to drive as the team pared back to one car and returned to Goodyear tyres. A revision of the C3, dubbed the C3B, was painted in the red, white and green of Fuji, Subaru's parent company.
But from the beginning, the writing was on the wall. Flat-12 engines had been used by Ferrari during their glory years in the mid-70s, and after that by Alfa Romeo in 1979-80. With a low centre of gravity, Chiti believed the engine would have aerodynamic advantages. Called the '1235', it was given its first shakedown in a revised Minardi at Misano in May 1989. Further testing in the dynamometer had registered an output of 417kW, and Chiti's target was 447kW, or 600bhp. By anyone's standards, this was a somewhat modest figure.
Worse still, the engine, to be driven through a Minardi gearbox, weighed in at 159kg. Although this was only 10 kilograms more than the Ford Cosworth V8, when combined with all its accessories including its electronic engine management system courtesy of Magneti Marelli, the whole assembly was some 112kg overweight. Not only did this create a tremendous weight disadvantage, it made for a weight distribution nightmare, as all the additional bulk was towards the rear end. And, needless to say, it made the handling of the C3B anything but friendly.
Carlo Chiti with his pride and joy - the 180-degree, flat-12, 60-valve Subaru engine.
) провели свое собственное исследование на предмет разумности умозаключений этих самых немцев. Кому интересно может с подробностями ознакомится в августовском номере Quattroruote. А для ленивых в кратце могу сказать, что новаторские идеи даже признанных автопроизводителей не всегда являются руководством к действию. Подопытный редакционный Punto 1.9 JTD осилил на топливе, состоящем из 30% солярки и 70% рапсового масла, всего 7300 км, подтвердив, что на таком топливе ездить можно, но недолго. Жаль, что редакция умолчала об авторе этой идеи. Видимо, из дипломатичности и, нежелая обострять и без того натянутые отношения между итальянскими и немецкими автоконцернами.
