To recount the 1986 season of the Williams Grand Prix Engineering team, one must start with a newsworthy event that occurred just before the season began. In March, on a small road in Le Castellet near the Paul Ricard circuit, Francis Owen Garbett Williams (known as Frank) was involved in a serious car accident that resulted in a spinal cord injury and the subsequent paralysis of his lower limbs. The British team was dealt a heavy blow, but fortunately managed to recover quickly by transferring team management to Frank’s trusted partner, Patrick Head.
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| WILLIAMS FW11, Nelson Piquet Hungaroring, Hungarian GP 1986 |
For the 1986 season, Williams hired two-time World Champion Nelson Piquet and confirmed the exuberant Englishman Nigel Mansell. However, without Frank Williams at the helm, Head's inability to manage the two drivers influenced the outcome of the championship. As a consequence, relations with Honda deteriorated, affecting the future exclusive supply of Honda engines, which would in fact go solely to McLaren starting in 1988. Nonetheless, Patrick Head continued to serve as technical director, and alongside designer Sergio Rinland and aerodynamic engineer Frank Dernie, developed the new Williams FW11, a completely new car, significantly different from the previous FW10, yet incorporating concepts already seen in the FW09 from 1984. That car, despite finishing few races, had shown great competitiveness, hindered only by the unreliability of the new Honda turbo engine, which debuted that season in the British single-seaters.
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| WILLIAMS FW11, Nelson Piquet Monza, Italian GP 1986 |
The two subsequent years allowed Honda to strike an excellent balance between reliability and performance. With that, the Williams engineers chose to build a rather conventional car, emphasizing a simple yet highly functional aerodynamic layout instead of chasing performance at all costs. The decision proved to be the right one, and the FW11 achieved an enviable level of performance and reliability, with only eight retirements throughout the season and scoring points in every race it finished. The bodywork of the new FW11, featuring the classic white/yellow/blue colors, was smooth and rounded to ensure better aerodynamic penetration and reduce fuel consumption, with a distinct tapering at the rear. The chassis was made entirely of composite materials, the suspension was of the push-rod type with deformable wishbones, the carbon brakes were from Hitco with Lockheed calipers, the wheelbase measured 2,794 mm, and the weight hit the minimum allowed by regulations at 540 kg.
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| WILLIAMS FW11, Nelson Piquet Spa-Francorchamps, Belgian GP 1986 |
The engine powering the FW11 was the 1.5-liter biturbo Honda RA 166E V6, with a 60° V configuration, dual overhead camshafts, four valves per cylinder, and dry sump lubrication. Japanese engineers had worked extensively to make the power unit more flexible than in the past, delivering smoother power. After resolving several turbo-lag issues, the Japanese V6 reached a peak output of 800 hp at 12,000 rpm in race mode, while exceeding 1,000 hp in qualifying. The transmission was a six-speed manual Hewland gearbox, mechanically revised by Williams technicians to handle the Honda turbo's immense power. As mentioned, the FW11 proved to be highly reliable, with most mechanical failures during the season being attributed to the drivers’ always-on-the-limit driving style, as they constantly battled each other for dominance within the team.
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| WILLIAMS FW11, Nigel Mansell Hockenheimring, German GP 1986 |
Indeed, even though Williams had the best car on the grid throughout the 1986 season, achieving 9 wins (5 with Mansell and 4 with Piquet), 5 second places, and 5 third places, and winning the Constructors' Championship with 141 points, they still let the Drivers' Championship slip away. It was claimed by Prost with McLaren, who managed such consistent results that he stayed ahead of both Williams drivers. The return of Frank Williams to the paddock at the ninth race in Great Britain, although in a wheelchair, did little to change the course of the season.
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