FERRARI 126 CK Turbo

   After suffering the shame of failing to qualify in 1980 with the 312T5, Scuderia Ferrari brought to the track for the 1981 season a new creation by Mauro Forghieri: the Ferrari 126 CK. As per Maranello tradition, the car’s name derives from the engine configuration, a 120° V6 turbocharged unit using Kuhnle Kopp & Kausch turbines, while the "C" stands for "competition."

 FERRARI 126CK, Gilles Villeneuve
Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1981

   In designing the new single-seater, engineer Forghieri remained firm in his belief in using a tubular aluminum frame covered with riveted panels, with some modifications to the rear compared to the previous T5. These changes were due to the smaller size of the turbocharged engine compared to the naturally aspirated flat-12 Boxer. Thanks to the reduced size of the power unit, the 126 CK became the first true wing car built by Ferrari, featuring much larger diffuser tunnels than those seen on the T4 and T5. To further free up space in the sidepods and improve underbody airflow to maximize ground effect, Ferrari engineers placed the turbocharging system above the engine, between the two banks widened to 120°. This layout slightly raised the car’s center of gravity compared to rival Renault, whose 90° V6 engine had its turbochargers mounted in the sidepods, outside the cylinder banks.

 FERRARI 126CK, Gilles Villeneuve
Buenos Aires, Argentinian GP 1981

   The design of the new Maranello car was the work of engineer Antonio Tomaini, who maintained the traditional narrow and elongated nose and large sidepods, typical of early '80s wing cars. Nevertheless, the 126 CK’s aerodynamics showed the delay Ferrari had in studying ground effect, proving less efficient than other top teams' cars. The car measured 4468 mm in length, with a wheelbase of 2718 mm and a hefty weight of 611 kg, mainly due to the outdated tubular chassis and the turbocharging system’s weight.

 FERRARI 126CK, Gilles Villeneuve
Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1981

   To develop the turbo system, both the classic KKK turbo (on the 126CK) and the Comprex (on the 126CX) were tested. The latter, a "pressure wave" mechanical supercharger from Brown Boveri, was connected to the crankshaft, eliminating turbo lag. Despite winter testing before the 1981 season, Ferrari entered the first race without a final decision and tested both versions in the first two Grands Prix. However, it soon became clear that the heavy Comprex drum, originally designed for road cars, could not withstand the racing engine’s rapid accelerations, causing such inertia that it broke the drive belt. Ferrari, lacking the budget in the early '80s to fully develop this system for racing, chose the simpler yet more reliable KKK turbo. The 1496 cc V6 engine delivered 570 horsepower, achieving a top speed of 320 km/h, though this was nullified by the inadequate tubular chassis that couldn’t effectively transfer the power to the ground.

 FERRARI 126CK, Didier Pironi
Dijon-Prenois, French GP 1981

   For the 1981 season, Ferrari retained the aggressive Canadian driver Gilles Villeneuve and replaced Jody Scheckter, who retired at the end of 1980, with the promising young Frenchman Didier Pironi. The season was plagued by issues in fine-tuning the new engine, which suffered many failures. However, Villeneuve managed to take two historic wins on tracks considered unsuitable for turbocharged cars: Monte Carlo and Jarama. He also secured another podium in Canada and a points finish, while Pironi scored four finishes in the points, allowing Ferrari to collect 34 points and finish fifth in the Constructors' Championship. To address the issues shown by the 126 CK at the end of the season, Ferrari hired chassis expert Harvey Postlethwaite, previously behind the successful Hesketh and Wolf cars, who would go on to design aluminum monocoque chassis for the following seasons.