Present in Formula 1 since 1991 and famous for bringing a touch of style and humor to race weekends, Irishman Eddie Jordan founded his own small team, achieving good results right from the start, with three wins, six front-row starts, and eleven podiums in just a decade of activity. Based in Silverstone, Northamptonshire, England, the Jordan Grand Prix factory is located right next to the famous British circuit and is considered by some to be one of the most beloved teams in Formula 1. For the 2002 season, Eddie Jordan aimed to keep the engineering staff in charge of designing the new Jordan EJ12 as unchanged as possible despite some major departures.
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| JORDAN EJ12, Takuma Satō Catalunya-Barcelona, Spanish GP 2002 |
With Mike Gascoyne moving to Renault, the role of Technical Director remained solely in the hands of Eghbal Hamidy, an Iranian engineer who graduated from Imperial College London and had a long career in Formula 1 with Williams, working alongside top engineers such as Enrique Scalabroni and Adrian Newey. Gary Anderson, the trusted designer of all Jordan cars since 1991, apart from a two-year stint at Stewart and Jaguar, returned to Jordan in 2001 and now served as Sporting Director. The role of Chief Designer was taken over by 40-year-old British engineer John McQuilliam, also with a past at Williams and in his first experience as a designer, replacing Mark Smith. Tim Holloway remained Head of Engineering, while Bob Bell and John Iley opted to follow Gascoyne to Renault. The new EJ12 had a completely fresh design, with a monocoque chassis built using new materials and manufacturing techniques to further reduce weight and center of gravity while making it stronger to meet new side crash test requirements.
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| JORDAN EJ12, Giancarlo Fisichella Melbourne, Australian GP 2002 |
The car’s new aerodynamic design featured very smooth shapes and generally fewer sharp edges compared to previous Jordan cars. The new nosecone had a curved shape that dipped downward, contrary to the trend of competitors, and the front wing was now supported by two inverted V-shaped pylons, noticeably shorter and more inclined than before. The sidepods were redesigned and made smaller, despite the more efficient lateral impact structures. On the top of the sidepods appeared chimneys for hot air extraction, although these were removed towards the end of the season, while the exhausts were integrated into the rear of the engine cover, blowing horizontally toward the rear wing. The EJ12 featured push-rod suspension both front and rear, with composite pushrods operating Penske dampers mounted on the chassis together with torsion bars. For the second year in a row, Jordan secured official supply of the powerful Honda V10 engines, updated to the RA002E version capable of delivering 835 hp at 18,200 rpm. The main characteristic of the new Japanese V10 was its 108° V-angle, unlike any other manufacturer, which allowed a significant lowering of the center of gravity. As a result, the entire rear of the car was completely redesigned, as was the cooling system positioned in the sidepods. Even the gearbox, while still a classic longitudinal seven-speed sequential, was completely new, with gears placed as low as possible and a revised, stiffened casing, yet weighing less than the 2001 version. All weight savings were, of course, used for ballast, strategically placed to meet the 600 kg minimum weight required by regulations.
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| JORDAN EJ12, Giancarlo Fisichella Catalunya-Barcelona, Spanish GP 2002 |
The new EJ12 hit the track for the first time on January 22, 2002, with Takuma Satō at the wheel. The Japanese driver, after serving as a test driver for BAR in 2001, was promoted to full-time race driver for Jordan under Honda’s pressure. The team also hired Italian Giancarlo Fisichella as lead driver, returning to the British squad after his time at Benetton. The official team presentation took place on February 22 at Brussels Airport in a DHL hangar, with DHL becoming the main sponsor that season. On the traditional yellow livery, the courier company’s logo (owned by Deutsche Post) appeared, while long-time sponsor Benson & Hedges remained but with a much smaller investment. Despite a good budget, the development of the new EJ12, which was a complete departure from previous designs, brought several problems, resulting in lackluster performance and especially poor reliability. Out of 34 starts, the two EJ12s only saw the checkered flag 18 times, with the 16 retirements mostly caused by electronic failures or engine breakdowns, along with a few driver errors.
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| JORDAN EJ12, Giancarlo Fisichella Spa-Francorchamps, Belgian GP 2002 |
Satō, in particular, struggled to find a good driving feel with the car, showing all the limits of an inexperienced driver and managing a decent result only in his home race at Suzuka, the final round of the season. Fisichella fared only slightly better; despite flashes of competitiveness in qualifying, he achieved just three fifth-place finishes (Austria, Monaco, and Canada) and one sixth place (Hungary). The meager tally of just 9 points allowed Jordan to finish sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, but given the results well below expectations, both DHL and Honda decided to part ways with the team for the following season.
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