By 1975, FIA rules limited the width and height of front air dams leaving the front wheels in normal configuation, outside and above the dam. The Tyrell team calculated that to keep the wheels behind the front end, the largest wheel would be only 10". A 10" wheel wouldn't provide a proper footprint for steering and braking. So, double up and you have the first 6 wheeled F1 Car. The first prototype had to be redesigned when the FIA banned overhead air boxes, so the first Elf Team Tyrrell P34 made its debut in 1976 with enough success that Tyrrell had three more built. In 1977, they were ready to hit the tacks in earnest with their two drivers, Jody Scheckter and Patrick Depailler, who, at the Swedish Grand Prix placed first and second with Scheckter being the only driver to win in a 6-wheeler. On smooth tracks, the P34 was deadly, but in bumpier tracks like Brands Hatch and the Nurburgring, it was hard to keep more than one wheel on the ground.While Depailler loved the car, Scheckter called it "a piece of junk" and then left the team. Tyrrell hired Ronnie Peterson as a replacement. For the following year, the P34 had to be structurally redesigned for aerodynamics as well as Peterson's height. The resultant P34B weighed 190 lbs more and its performance suffered. Widening the front suspension for better handling brought the tires outside the dam negating any benefit from having 4 driven wheels, so for 1978, Tyrrell went back to 4 wheels. He kept Scheckter's frame and sold the rest. Other manufacturers began toying with the 6 wheel configuration so the FIA banned the 4 driven wheels concept in 1983.
There are slew of P34 models on the market in scales from 1/43 to 1/12, but for my money, the venerable Exoto beats them all. The replication of the 3.0 liter Ford-Cosworth DFV V8 and the car's intricate suspension is just a thing to behold.
By 1975, FIA rules limited the width and height of front air dams leaving the front wheels in normal configuation, outside and above the dam. The Tyrell team calculated that to keep the wheels behind the front end, the largest wheel would be only 10". A 10" wheel wouldn't provide a proper footprint for steering and braking. So, double up and you have the first 6 wheeled F1 Car. The first prototype had to be redesigned when the FIA banned overhead air boxes, so the first Elf Team Tyrell P34 made its debut in 1976 with enough success that Tyrell had three more built. In 1977, they were ready to hit the tacks in earnest with their two drivers, Jody Scheckter and Patrick Depailler, who, at the Swedish Grand Prix placed first and second with Scheckter being the only driver to win in a 6-wheeler. On smooth tracks, the P34 was deadly, but in bumpier tracks like Brands Hatch and the Nurburgring, it was hard to keep more than one wheel on the ground.While Depailler loved the car, Scheckter called it "a piece of junk" and then left the team. Tyrell hired Ronnie Peterson as a replacement. For the following year, the P34 had to be structurally redesigned for aerodynamics as well as Peterson's height. The resultant P34B weighed 190 lbs more and its performance suffered. Widening the front suspension for better handling brought the tires outside the dam negating any benefit from having 4 driven wheels, so for 1978, Tyrell went back to 4 wheels. He kept Scheckter's frame and sold the rest. Other manufacturers began toying with the 6 wheel configuration so the FIA banned the 4 driven wheels concept in 1983.
There are slew of P34 models on the market in scales from 1/43 to 1/12, but for my money, the venerable Exoto beats them all. The replication of the 3.0 liter Ford-Cosworth DFV V8 and the car's intricate suspension is just a thing to behold.
Sorry, I see 'elf' and all I can think about is that stupid Christmas movie...which I've never seen.
Here are three other six wheel designs from Formula One. Tyrrell is the only team to actually race and win a race with a six wheel design before the concept was banned.
Ferrari on Left / Williams on Right, neither the Willams or the Ferrari ever raced these cars.
March F1 car.
But this American race car beat Formula One to the six wheel design by 30 years.
All I know is that when I was kid, and I saw a slot car of that "Blue Elf" with its six wheels, I thought it was pretty cool but had NO idea why the extra front wheels were engineered into the design.
Now I do! 😀 Great pics & history Rich, thanks!
This 6 wheel midget-19 is also interesting. More weight but better traction? 🤔
Interesting note on the Williams six wheel Formula One car, Williams had figured out how to make the car work and that spooked the FIA and Formula One and is what lead to the six wheel cars being banned. Ground effects along with the six wheels was the thing Williams figured out, their car would have been unbeatable if they had been allowed to run it. Williams at one time was one of the if not the most innovative team in Formula One back then. Their active suspension cars were head and shoulders better than any of the other teams that were trying it.
The active suspension Williams was not an easy car to master and you had to have nerves of steel to trust the car, of the drivers who drove the Williams active suspension system Nigel Mansell was the only one to unlock the full potential from the concept. Riccardo Patrese was never fully comfortable with the active suspension system and never was able to match Mansell. Nigel Mansell learned to trust the system and how it reacted and was able to push it to the limit. I remember reading an article several years ago where Patrick Head said Nigel Mansell was a pain in the rear end but he could take the Williams car by the throat and run it hard without breaking it.
@chris If you look closely at that photo of the Kurtis Kraft Roadster you will see the track is brick which leads me to believe that photo was take at Indy and from what I have found the year was 1948. Indy used to be a place with a small rule book and people could really innovate unlike today. That is how the Smokey Yunick Capsule car came about and how Smokey Yunick with assistance from Bruce Crower came up with the wing on his Watson Roadster.
Alfa Romeo also built a six wheeled race car, it was not a Formula One Car.
In secret testing almost two weeks (April 1 to be exact) after the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring race Alfa Romeo arrived at Sebring with their one-of-a-kind, six-wheeled, twelve cylinder Alfa-Romeo T33/6/12. Designed to give the Porsche 917 and Ferrari 512 a run for its money, the Alfa Romeo sported a 5-liter V12/60 degrees/4v engine and six wheels in total.
The six-wheel Alfa Romeo T33 project was cancelled abruptly after teens from a local high school snuck onto the raceway at night and stole the car from its hanger/garage. The chassis was found two weeks later in a nearby orange grove minus the engine.
The P34 has always held an enormous fascination for me. Many decades ago, I built the Tamiya 1:12 scale. It was extremely detailed but had horrible decals. Ultimately, my model was damaged in an Earthquake, and I sold the remains on eBay. I have the Exoto P34 in 1:18 scale.
There is a 1:8 scale "subscription" model by Hatchette. The complete subscription is usually around $3,000.
