Finally, the 1996 season came to a close, a transitional year in anticipation of Tom Walkinshaw’s plan to build a competitive team. TWR Arrows dove headfirst into 1997 with renewed strength and, most importantly, with a structure specifically created to return to the top ranks of Formula 1. The new beginning for Arrows was marked by a significant change: the complete exit of Jackie Oliver, the last of the historic Arrows partners, from the team’s shareholding structure, selling all of his shares to Walkinshaw. The team’s new headquarters moved from its old base in Milton Keynes to a newly built facility by TWR in Leafield, in West Oxfordshire, UK, where the entire technical staff worked on developing the new Arrows A18.
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| ARROWS A18, Damon Hill Melbourne, GP d'Australian GP 1997 |
The agreement signed with Bridgestone in 1996 to use the old A17 cars throughout the season to test the new Japanese tires, which from 1997 would share the grid with American Goodyear, paid off for the TWR-Arrows team, which was selected as the leading team among the five supplied by the Japanese giant. Walkinshaw also secured the exclusive supply of the Yamaha OX11C engine, a 72° V10 tuned directly by engine builder John Judd, who managed to boost its power to 710 hp, about twenty more than the previous version used in the Tyrrells in 1996. However, this did not solve the serious reliability issues that would remain Arrows A18’s Achilles’ heel in 1997. The most important novelty for Walkinshaw’s team was undoubtedly the signing of reigning World Champion Damon Hill, who left Williams after disagreements with Sporting Director Patrick Head. Hill’s signing obviously required a significant financial commitment from the “new” British team, a cost partially covered by the personal sponsors of second driver Pedro Paulo Diniz, who was hired thanks to the substantial financial backing he had been bringing with him for several years.
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| ARROWS A18, Damon Hill Spa-Francorchamps, Belgian GP 1997 |
The new A18 was designed under the supervision of Technical Director Frank Dernie who, after his success with Williams in the 1980s, had maintained a close working relationship with Walkinshaw, collaborating with him at Benetton and Ligier in the early 1990s. Working alongside Dernie were Arrows' new chief designer Paul Bowen and young aerodynamicist Simon Jenning, who created a car that was, all things considered, visually appealing. The new high nose was very sleek, shedding the awkward shapes of the previous A17. The sidepods were preceded by the inevitable flow deflectors placed in front of their inlets and featured a harmonious violin-case shape that transitioned well into the bottle-necked rear section. Two aerodynamic elements were placed at the end of the sidepods to direct airflow over the rear wheels. The engine cover blended smoothly with the side protections of the cockpit and tapered gently to the rear wing, creating an elegant silhouette enhanced by the new white and light blue livery chosen by new sponsors Danka, Zepter, and Parmalat.
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| ARROWS A18, Damon Hill Spa-Francorchamps, Belgian GP 1997 |
Underneath, the new A18 featured an entirely new chassis made from honeycomb carbon fiber composite. The new suspension setup included double wishbones in a push-rod configuration both front and rear, designed to make the most of the Bridgestone tires. Paired with the Yamaha V10 was a new six-speed longitudinal semi-automatic gearbox built by Arrows in collaboration with X-Trac. But the beauty of its lines wasn’t enough to make Dernie’s new creation competitive. At the season opener in Melbourne, Australia, Damon Hill qualified only 20th, over 5 seconds off the pole set by his former teammate Jacques Villeneuve. He was forced to retire during the formation lap due to a throttle issue, thus not starting the race. Brazilian Diniz qualified last, 6.6 seconds off the pace, but at least managed to finish, albeit last and four laps down from winner Coulthard. The A18 proved to be slow and, above all, unreliable. The season continued with a seemingly endless string of retirements, only broken at the seventh Grand Prix of the year when John Barnard was hired as Technical Director. Performance improved significantly, and thanks to enhancements to the Japanese V10 by English engine builder John Judd, the A18 quickly began to climb back. It achieved a sixth place at Silverstone and an eighth place in the following race in Germany.
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| ARROWS A18, Damon Hill Hungaroring, Hungarian GP 1997 |
But the most memorable moment for the A18 was undoubtedly the Hungarian Grand Prix, an epic race that saw Hill unexpectedly finish second under the checkered flag. Although remarkable for Walkinshaw’s team, the result had a bittersweet taste. Hill started from third on the grid. At the start, Schumacher’s Ferrari held the lead but struggled with tire degradation after a few laps. Meanwhile, Villeneuve had a poor start and was overtaken by Hill early in the race. The Arrows driver caught up to Schumacher on lap ten and passed him on the pit straight, to the amazement of most observers. The A18 had turned, in the space of an afternoon, from an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan, thanks also to the Bridgestone tires. Unfortunately, just before the final lap began, with Hill seemingly on his way to a historic first victory for Walkinshaw’s team, the car dramatically slowed down due to a hydraulic problem with the gearbox that left the British driver stuck in third gear. Villeneuve caught and passed him, taking the win, while Hill still managed to finish second. After another solid performance in Austria, where Hill stayed in the points all race before being passed by Schumacher’s Ferrari on the penultimate lap to finish seventh, and a fifth-place result by Diniz at the Nürburgring, the season ended with Arrows finishing eighth in the Constructors' Championship with 9 points. Worth noting is that the 1997 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps marked Arrows' 300th Grand Prix in Formula 1 history.
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