ATS D6 BMW Turbo

   After designing the ATS D1 and D4 and two stormy “divorces” with Günter Schmidt, owner of the German Auto Technisches Spezialzubehör team, Austrian designer Gustav Brunner returned to ATS for the third time. His task was to design the new D6 car, which the German team brought to the track for the 1983 season.

 ATS D6, Manfred Winkelhock
Montréal, Canadian GP 1983

   By now, Brunner had gained considerable experience designing sports cars and single-seaters in Formula 2 and Formula 1. The result of his work for Schmidt’s team was perhaps the best ATS ever built, despite poor results on the track. The car was well-designed, with great attention paid to adapting the car to the 1983 technical regulations, especially the introduction of a flat bottom. As seen on the McLaren MP4/1C, the D6 also featured the characteristic “coke bottle” rear shape, though in a less extreme form than that of the Woking cars. Brunner’s new chassis used carbon fiber instead of the traditional aluminum honeycomb panels.

 ATS D6, Manfred Winkelhock
Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1983

   For the first time in Formula 1, the D6 used a “naked chassis,” meaning the painted and branded chassis itself acted as the bodywork, resulting in significant weight savings. The D6 had a wheelbase of 2615 mm, weighed 540 kg, used a Hewland gearbox modified by ATS, and was fitted with Goodyear tires for the 1983 season. However, the major innovation for the German team was the use of the BMW M12/13 L4 Turbo engine. BMW, the historic Munich manufacturer, reached an agreement with Schmidt to use ATS as a test bench for their developments before transferring them to their top team, Brabham.

 ATS D6, Manfred Winkelhock
Zandvoort, Dutch GP 1983

   This arrangement gave Schmidt access to one of the most powerful turbo engines available, but unfortunately, this experimental role backfired. While the D6 often performed well in qualifying, it was extremely unreliable, suffering from numerous mechanical failures, mostly related to the experimental development of the engine block.

 ATS D6, Manfred Winkelhock
Paul Ricard, French GP 1983

   As a result, Manfred Winkelhock, confirmed as the team’s driver, qualified in the top five rows eight times but ended the season without scoring any points, finishing only four races. His best result was an eighth place at the European Grand Prix at Brands Hatch.