Spirit 101 Hart

Active: 1984
Team: Spirit Racing

Team: Gordon Coppuck, Tim Wright
Drivers: Mauro Baldi (21), Huub Rothengatter (21)

Spirit's 101 was built during the summer of 1983, aimed to race Honda's 1.5l V6 turbo engine. The Japanese engine maker however decided in October to supply Williams instead of Spirit during 1984, requiring the team to adapt its car to take a Hart 415 Turbo engine. The situation was even more difficult halfway through the season, as it would turn out that a shortage of Hart engines required another car modification so that the car could be raced with a naturally aspirated Cosworth DFV V8 engine at the Eastern USA GP in Detroit.

The team, short of money, tried to sign the wealthy Italian driver Fulvio Ballabio, but after that attempt was blocked by the FIA, the car was raced by Mauro Baldi. He finished 8th on three occassions before being replaced by Rothengatter for financial reasons. With two races to go, the team dropped Rothengatter again and put Baldi back in the seat.

Specifications

Construction: Aluminium monocoque
Transmission: Hewland FGB, 6-speed
Fuel capacitiy: 220 l
Dampers: Koni
Brakes: Disc and pads by Lockheed

Engine

Designation: Hart 415T Configuration: Turbocharged inline 4-cylinder
Weight: 140 kg
Construction: Aluminium block and head
Displacement: 1.459 l
Bore / Stroke: 88.0 mm / 61.5 mm
Compression: 7.1:1
Valvetrain: 4 valves / cylinder, DOHC
Fuel feed: Fuel Injection
Power: 650 bhp @ 10500 rpm