During the first half of the 1983 World Championship, while Ferrari was racing the updated 126 C2B, modified to comply with new regulations—a new car was being developed at Maranello: the Ferrari 126 C3. From this season onward, all Scuderia Ferrari racing operations were moved under the "Gestione Sportiva" department to make them as independent as possible from the road car division. For aerodynamic development, Ferrari's engineers began using the wind tunnel at Mirafiori (owned by Fiat), leaving behind the Pininfarina wind tunnel used until then.
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| FERRARI 126 C3, Patrick Tambay Silverstone, British GP 1983 |
The new car was designed entirely by Harvey Postlethwaite, while Mauro Forghieri continued to oversee development of the V6 turbo engine. The British engineer designed a chassis made from composite materials like carbon fiber, Kevlar, and Nomex, along with aluminum honeycomb panels. For the first time on a Ferrari Formula 1 car, the painted chassis also served as bodywork, helping reduce weight. The structure consisted of two semi-shells bonded in an autoclave, reinforced at high-stress points, improving rigidity and significantly increasing crash energy absorption, as shown in new crash tests.
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| FERRARI 126 C3, René Arnoux Monza, Italian GP 1983 |
Given the effectiveness of Forghieri’s previous designs, the 126 C2 and C2B, which achieved great results in the first 8 races of the season, the C3 retained the same mechanical components, optimized for the newly designed flat-bottom chassis. The only mechanical modification was to the front suspension arms, in an effort to reduce abnormal tire wear experienced in early races.
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| FERRARI 126 C3, Patrick Tambay Österreichring, Austrian GP 1983 |
Ferrari’s choice for the C3's sidepods was a compromise between the “arrow-shaped” types seen on Brabham, Toleman, and Tyrrell, and the longer styles used by Renault, Alfa Romeo, and Lotus. Although the original plan was to use very short sidepods, in practice the Maranello engineers had to revert to a layout similar to that of the 126 C2B. Radiators were placed longitudinally along the sidepods and angled at 45°, essentially next to the cockpit, resolving the cooling issues that arose when using more rearward-mounted radiators set perpendicular to the chassis, as seen on Brabham cars. The engine was the Tipo 021/3, a 120° V6 turbo 1496.43 cc, equipped with a controversial water-injection system derived from aerospace technology, introduced by Forghieri in 1981 to combat cylinder wall overheating.
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| FERRARI 126 C3, Patrick Tambay Zandvoort, Dutch GP 1983 |
From its debut, the 126 C3 proved competitive. In the seven races it contested, it achieved 2 wins, 3 second places, and 1 third place. These, added to the results obtained by the 126 C2B earlier in the season, secured Ferrari its eighth Constructors’ Championship. Only tire issues in the last two races prevented René Arnoux from fighting for the Drivers’ title until the end. Nevertheless, he finished third in the standings with 49 points, while teammate Patrick Tambay came fourth with 40.
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