For the 1977 Formula 1 Championship, the Surtees team was unable to secure additional financial resources and was forced to field the Surtees TS19 once again, the same car used in the previous season. Designed by John Surtees and Ken Sears, the TS19 underwent minor updates, mainly in weight distribution, but retained the proven three-liter Ford Cosworth DFV V8 engine, paired with the Hewland FGA400 gearbox, which from this season featured six gears.
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| SURTEES TS19'77, Vittorio Brambilla Zandvoort, Dutch GP 1977 |
The chassis was an aluminum monocoque, with a wheelbase of 2502 mm and a weight of 580 kg. The distinctive wedge-shaped design of the Surtees TS19, with 45°-angled side pods, remained unchanged from the 1976 version, while the full-width air intake on the nose was replaced by three thinner slots. Additionally, two small aerodynamic fins appeared in front of the front wheels. Despite ongoing updates, the car failed to prove particularly competitive in 1977.
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| SURTEES TS19'77, Hans Binder Long Beach, GP USA Ovest 1977 |
As in the previous season, the team operated two internal squads with identical cars but different sponsors. The TS19 of the Durex Team Surtees was initially entrusted to Austrian driver Hans Binder, who competed until the Monaco Grand Prix before being replaced by various drivers. New Zealander Larry Perkins raced in Belgium, Sweden, and France, where the team also fielded a car for French driver Patrick Tambay. For the next four Grands Prix, the car was driven by Austrian Vern Schuppan, while in Italy, it was the turn of Italian driver Lamberto Leoni. For the final three races of the season, the car was returned to Binder.
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| SURTEES TS19'77, Vittorio Brambilla Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1977 |
The best result achieved by the Durex Team Surtees TS19 was a seventh-place finish by Schuppan at the German Grand Prix, which was held at Hockenheimring for the first time following the abandonment of Nürburgring after Niki Lauda's serious accident in 1976. The second team was sponsored by Beta, a brand associated with Italian driver Vittorio Brambilla, who remained the sole driver for the squad. Brambilla was the only one to score points during the season, contributing six points to Surtees TS19’s 11th-place finish in the Constructors' Championship.
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| SURTEES TS19'77, Vittorio Brambilla Osterreichring, Austrian GP 1977 |
British driver Tony Trimmer also competed in the British Grand Prix with a TS19 entered by the private Melchester Racing team. However, due to the high number of entries (39 cars), a pre-qualifying session was required. Trimmer finished only 12th, more than 3.5 seconds off the fastest time set by Gilles Villeneuve in the McLaren M23, and failed to qualify for the race.
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