BAR awarded for carbon gearbox

The B·A·R Honda Formula One team is the proud recipient of the 2004 Simms Medal awarded by the Royal Automobile Club for the development of its carbon-fibre gearbox. The gearbox is thought to be the main reason why BAR have made such a big step over the last winter.

The Simms Medal is named after Frederick Simms, founder of the Royal Automobile Club, and is presented in recognition of 'a genuine contribution to motoring innovation by individuals or small companies that also exemplify the spirit of adventure'.

B·A·R Honda has been judged by The Royal Automobile Club Motoring Technical Committee to be two years ahead of its competitors in the application of Carbon-Fibre to provide design solutions to critical-mass components in F1 cars. In the opinion of the Club, the results that B·A·R Honda has achieved this season in the FIA Formula One Championships have been aided considerably by these developments.

Although B·A·R Honda is not the first team to use a carbon fibre gearbox, it is the first to fully integrate the gearbox into the overall design of the rear end of the car, including a highly-refined cluster developed by B·A·R and its engine and chassis development partner Honda. This has enabled B·A·R Honda to take full advantage of the strength and weight-saving benefits of this technology.

John Wood, Managing Director of MIRA and Chairman of the Technical Committee commented, "Successful Formula One designs are frequently those in which the engineers have found new ways to exploit the latest technology in the search for the ideal. The need to get the mass where you want it is well understood and hence the desire to create the lightest possible gearbox structure. A number of teams have attempted carbon-fibre gearboxes but it is the small, dedicated team at B·A·R Honda who have actually achieved it and with considerable success."

Professor Gary Savage, B·A·R Deputy Technical Director, added: "I am delighted to accept the Simms Medal on behalf of the B·A·R Honda F1 team. It has taken a year of research and development by a team of dedicated people to bring this current carbon fibre gearbox into existence. We are extremely proud of the performance and reliability of this year's car, the B·A·R Honda 006, and are currently working on an even smaller and lighter gearbox for 2005."