The Hesketh Racing team that lines up for the 1976 season with the Hesketh 308D is completely different from the one founded by Alexander Hesketh three years earlier. Without the eccentric English lord, the flamboyant driver James Hunt, the brilliant engineer Harvey Postlethwaite with his creation, the 308, and, above all, without the glamorous and cool aura that accompanied the team in its first two seasons, the British outfit, now led by new team manager Tony Horsley, must adapt as best as possible to face the season with a very limited budget.
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| HESKETH 308D, Harald Ertl Jarama, Spanish GP 1976 |
For Hesketh Racing, 1976 is considered a transitional year while awaiting the new 308E, planned for 1977. The team enters the new season in a semi-official capacity, primarily to collect financial bonuses distributed by the newly formed constructors' association, led by Bernie Ecclestone, which are granted based on the strong results achieved in the excellent 1975 season. The "D" version of the historic 308 is essentially the same car from the previous season, with only slight updates made by the team's chief engineer, Englishman Nigel Stroud, most notably the removal of the air intake above the driver’s head.
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| HESKETH 308D, Harald Ertl Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1976 |
The 308D still features the classic Ford-Cosworth DFV V8 engine, paired with the old five-speed Hewland TL200 gearbox, and retains the same aerodynamic configuration as in 1975, making it nearly identical to the FW05 used by Wolf-Williams Racing. That team had purchased a 308C from Hesketh at the end of 1975, just as the latter was on the verge of withdrawing from competitive racing. Due to severe financial difficulties, Horsley has no choice but to rely on pay drivers, who take turns driving the only car available to the team.
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| HESKETH 308D, Harald Ertl Zandvoort, Dutch GP 1976 |
After skipping the season opener in Brazil, Hesketh’s sole driver, Austrian Harald Ertl, participates in all subsequent rounds of the championship. However, his season is marked by frequent failures to qualify and races spent at the back of the grid, with his best result being a seventh-place finish at the British Grand Prix.
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| HESKETH 308D, Guy Edwards Paul Ricard, French GP 1976 |
During the season, the team manages to secure enough funds to assemble a second 308D, which is entrusted to the private outfit Penthouse Rizla Hesketh Racing. This team is more famous for its unique livery, featuring a model from the erotic magazine Penthouse painted on the nose of the car than for its actual racing achievements. The Penthouse 308D competes in just eight Grands Prix, driven by Briton Guy Edwards and, on two occasions, by German Rolf Stommelen and Brazilian Alex Ribeiro. However, the best results it can muster are two 12th-place finishes, achieved by Stommelen at Zandvoort and Ribeiro at Watkins Glen International.
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