For the 1988 season, Guy Ligier, after ending negotiations and failing to reach an agreement with Arrows for the renewal of the use of Megatron turbo engines, was forced to fall back on the Judd CV engine, whose power was as modest as the team’s budget. As a result, the French team's technical director, Michel Tétu, assisted by engineers Michel Beaujon and Claude Galopin, sought to compensate for these limitations by designing the new Ligier JS31, a rather original car inspired by the Brabham BT55, the famous “skate” car by Gordon Murray known for its low waistline.
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| LIGIER JS31, Stefan Johansson Spa-Francorchamps, Belgian GP 1988 |
A new monocoque chassis made of carbon fiber and Kevlar was developed, following the technology used by Brunner for the chassis of the Ferrari F1-87. This housed the naturally aspirated Judd CV engine, a 3.5-liter V8, paired with a six-speed gearbox entirely built in-house by Ligier. The wheelbase of the single-seater was 2865 mm, slightly longer than that of the previous JS29, also due to the fact that in the JS31 the fuel tank was literally split in two, placing the main section in the classic position behind the driver and a smaller secondary section at the rear of the car, between the engine and the gearbox. Taking advantage of the communicating vessels principle, the French engineers tried to optimize weight distribution to lower the car’s center of gravity, which indeed had a low and sleek appearance. However, this particular design posed serious challenges for German driver Christian Danner, who had initially been chosen to join experienced French driver René Arnoux. The burly Danner simply could not fit into the JS31’s tiny cockpit, and was therefore replaced by the shorter and more slender Swedish driver Stefan Johansson, whose build was more similar to Arnoux’s.
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| LIGIER JS31, Stefan Johansson Monza, Italian GP 1988 |
The JS31’s aesthetics were heavily influenced by the unique positioning of the two fuel tanks, with the radiators being placed very far forward, almost beside the cockpit, in order to balance the weight. This led to very forward and extremely short sidepods, with the rear narrowing beginning practically at the end of the chassis.
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| LIGIER JS31, Renè Arnoux Jacarepaguà, Brazilian GP 1988 |
Unfortunately for the French team, the results were far from expectations. The new JS31 proved extremely difficult to set up and drive, with almost no aerodynamic downforce, so much so that on several occasions the drivers reported feeling as though they were driving “on a wet track” at all times. As expected, the season turned out to be a complete disaster, with René Arnoux and Stefan Johansson not only failing to score any points but also frequently suffering the embarrassment of not qualifying.
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| LIGIER JS31, Stefan Johansson Jerez, Spanish GP 1988 |
The lowest point for Guy Ligier’s team came at their home Grand Prix, held at the Paul Ricard circuit in Le Castellet, not far from their headquarters in Vichy, when both cars failed to qualify, outpaced even by much less prestigious teams such as AGS, Dallara, and the debuting RIAL and EuroBrun.
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