The 1985 season, contested with the old Alfa Romeo 890T V8 turbo engines, was undoubtedly a step backward for the Osella Corse team compared to previous years. Only in the final race of the season in Australia did the small Piedmontese team manage to secure an encouraging seventh-place finish in view of the 1986 season. To replace the heavy, thirsty, and underperforming Alfa Romeo V8s, Enzo Osella began negotiations at the end of the season with Carlo Chiti to equip the future FA1H with the new Motori Moderni V6 turbo engines, which the Tuscan engineer had developed and refined the previous year for Giancarlo Minardi’s cars.
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| OSELLA FA1H, Allen Berg Brands Hatch, British GP 1986 |
To house Chiti's V6, regular designer Giuseppe Petrotta, using the carbon monocoque chassis mold already employed on the FA1F and FA1G, created a new chassis with updated mounts for the Motori Moderni V6, while also designing a single-seater featuring innovative solutions for the small Italian team. Notably, new double-wishbone suspension systems were introduced at the rear, a significant innovation for Osella cars of the early '80s. Engineer Petrotta also revised the car’s wheelbase: despite the smaller 195-liter fuel tank and the shorter length of the V6 compared to the V8, the wheelbase was extended by about 30 mm to enhance stability on fast circuits.
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| OSELLA FA1H, Piercarlo Ghinzani Paul Ricard, French GP 1986 |
The radiating masses were also repositioned to improve weight distribution, aiming to optimize traction and cornering, though this was naturally hindered by the increased wheelbase. With a new car and engine, Enzo Osella aimed to double the team's effort by entering two cars in the championship, entrusted to the reliable Piercarlo Ghinzani and young German driver Christian Danner. However, for unclear reasons, just as assembly of the new FA1H was underway, the agreement between Chiti and Osella suddenly collapsed, forcing the Volpiano team to revert once again to the old Alfa Romeo 890T turbos and hastily adapt the FA1H to accommodate the outdated engines.
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| OSELLA FA1G, Christian Danner Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1986 |
This unexpected turn of events significantly delayed the car’s development, which was only ready for the French Grand Prix, the eighth race of the season, where it was assigned to veteran Ghinzani. He qualified 25th, six seconds off Senna’s pole position, ahead of only his new teammate, Canadian Allen Berg, who had replaced Danner behind the wheel of the old FA1F. Unfortunately, the FA1H’s racing life was very short: at the following British Grand Prix, the car was driven by Berg, who qualified last and was involved in a multi-car accident at the start, from which the FA1H emerged irreparably damaged. As it could no longer be rebuilt, Osella declared the end of its Formula 1 career, which had lasted just two Grands Prix.
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| OSELLA FA1G, Allen Berg Hungaroring, Hungarian GP 1986 |
The rest of the season continued with Ghinzani and Berg driving the earlier “F” and “G” versions of the FA1. At the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Berg’s car was handed over to Italian F1 debutant Alex Caffi, who qualified last with a lap time over 12 seconds slower than the pole and finished the race in eleventh and last place, six laps down. In the 1986 season as well, the small Osella team accumulated a string of retirements, with only four finishes. The best result was an eleventh place by Ghinzani in Austria. At the end of the season, Osella, with zero points, secured twelfth place in the Constructors’ Championship, ahead of Haas-Lola, AGS, and Minardi only due to better finishes.
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