BAR 003 Honda

   The third Formula 1 season for the British American Racing (BAR) team began under the best auspices, given the steady improvement in performance and reliability shown the previous year by the 002, the second single-seater to come out of the Brackley factory in Northamptonshire. For the 2001 season, the British team produced the new BAR 003. For this project, team founder Craig Pollock promoted Malcolm Oastler to Technical Director, replacing Adrian Reynard. Reynard, owner of Reynard Motorsport, still oversaw the design of the 003’s chassis in 2001. The role of Chief Designer went instead to Andrew Green, the man behind the first Jordans and an engineer with whom Jacques Villeneuve and Craig Pollock had already worked, winning the Indianapolis 500 and the 1995 IndyCar Series. Willem Toet and Andrew Shovlin retained their roles as Head of Aerodynamics and Aerodynamics/Vehicle Dynamics Engineer, respectively.

BAR 003, Olivier Panis
Melbourne, Australian GP 2001  

   The 003 was once again entrusted to Canadian World Champion Jacques Villeneuve, in his third year with the team, and to Frenchman Olivier Panis, hired by Pollock after a year out of racing spent as a McLaren test driver. The team also had four test drivers: Anthony Davidson, Darren Manning, Patrick Lemarié, and Takuma Sato. Officially unveiled in London on January 26, the BAR 003 immediately appeared to be the result of an overly conservative project, without original solutions. Naturally, compared to the 002, the new car was adapted to meet the new regulations, which required much stricter side crash tests and, above all, aerodynamic restrictions on the front and rear wings. A distinctive “spoon” front wing was adopted, with thick, rounded profiles at the junction of the central section. On some occasions, small horizontal fins were added to the nose to clean up airflow toward the rear of the car. These small winglets were not only on the sides of the nose but also between the suspension elements and the steering rods. On top of the nose, the fins had a distinctive rearward-pointing arrow shape, while those positioned between the front suspension wishbones and the steering rods, similar to those on the nose, had forward-pointing tips, which created some difficulties for mechanics working on suspension setup.

BAR 003, Jacques Villeneuve
Melbourne, Australian GP 2001

   The rear wing was redesigned, featuring endplates cut at the top. Due to the new crash tests, the sidepods became even more robust than the already bulky ones on the 002. The air intakes were reshaped into a more rounded and generous form, allowing greater airflow for cooling the new Honda RA001E V10 engine, an evolution of the previous RA000E, still rated at 815 hp but with smoother delivery. The roof-mounted engine air intake was changed from round to triangular, while the exhausts remained in their traditional low position above the diffuser channels.

BAR 003, Jacques Villeneuve
Catalunya-Barcelona, Spanish GP 2001

   In winter testing, the car proved reliable, although Villeneuve found it slower and less stable than the 002. The Canadian’s doubts focused on the excessive stiffness of the rear axle, which compromised stability. Panis, on the other hand, judged the car positively, trusting the team given his recent experience as a McLaren-Mercedes test driver. However, the Frenchman also noted that the Japanese V10 could have used a few more horsepower to fight for top positions. For 2001, the Brackley team once again relied on Bridgestone as their tire supplier, a nearly mandatory choice given the close ties between Honda and the Japanese tire manufacturer. After the two-tone livery of 1999 and the ice-white paint of 2000, BAR’s 2001 colors settled on a strong, classic white. A stripe, mainly black with smaller sections of red and dark khaki, ran along both sides of the car from the nose to the rear axle, incorporating the mirrors. The rear wing endplates and sideplates were painted black, and as in 2000, the main sponsor was Lucky Strike cigarettes, followed by 555, both brands owned by British American Tobacco. For race numbers, Villeneuve unusually chose number 10 instead of 9, leaving 9 to Panis.

BAR 003, Jacques Villeneuve
Imola, San Marino GP 2001

   On the eve of the season, BAR hoped to become the third force in the championship behind the powerhouses Ferrari and McLaren, and perhaps to win a Grand Prix. The more immediate goal was to beat Jordan, who used the same engines, in order to secure exclusive Honda supply, although the Japanese engineers were already providing more technical support to Craig Pollock’s team. Over the season, the car proved reasonably reliable, but in terms of pure performance, results were worse than the previous year, with the 003 generally occupying midfield positions. The BAR 003 especially suffered from poor single-lap qualifying speed due to an engine still plagued by teething problems, forcing the drivers to start too far from the front and negating the car’s relatively solid race pace. Thus, 2001, which many expected to be the year BAR consolidated itself at the top of Formula 1, proved disappointing. The best results were two third places for Villeneuve (Spain and Germany), plus a fourth at Monaco and a sixth at Monza, while Panis managed only a fourth and a fifth (Brazil and Austria). At the end of the season, despite Villeneuve’s prestigious podiums, BAR scored just 17 points in the Constructors’ Championship, finishing sixth and narrowly losing the direct battle with Jordan, also powered by Honda. The BAR 003 was also involved in a terrible accident in Australia with Villeneuve, which caused the Canadian former champion a displaced vertebra and, tragically, the death of a track marshal who was struck by a wheel that came off the car. At the end of the season, Craig Pollock decided to leave the team, although he continued to work as Jacques Villeneuve’s manager.