Williams FW25
 Ralf Schumacher driving the FW25 at the 2003 British Grand Prix | |||||||||
| Category | Formula One | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Williams | ||||||||
| Designer(s) | Patrick Head (Technical Director) Gavin Fisher (Chief Designer) Brian O'Roake (Chief Composites Engineer) Mark Tatham (Chief Mechanical Engineer) Antonia Terzi (Head of Aerodynamics) Jason Somerville (Principal Aerodynamicist) Nick Alcock (Principal Aerodynamicist) | ||||||||
| Predecessor | Williams FW24 | ||||||||
| Successor | Williams FW26 | ||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||
| Chassis | Carbon/Epoxy composite monocoque | ||||||||
| Suspension (front) | Double wishbone, torsion bar, pushrod | ||||||||
| Suspension (rear) | Double wishbone, coil spring, pushrod | ||||||||
| Width | 1,800 mm (71 in) | ||||||||
| Height | 950 mm (37 in) | ||||||||
| Wheelbase | Over 3,000 mm (118 in) | ||||||||
| Engine | BMW P83 2,998 cc (183 cu in) V10 naturally-aspirated Mid-mounted | ||||||||
| Transmission | Williams 6-speed longitudinal semi-automatic sequential | ||||||||
| Power | 940 hp @ 19,200 rpm[1][2] | ||||||||
| Weight | 600 kg (1,323 lb) | ||||||||
| Fuel | Petrobras | ||||||||
| Lubricants | Castrol | ||||||||
| Tyres | Michelin | ||||||||
| Competition history | |||||||||
| Notable entrants | BMW Williams F1 Team | ||||||||
| Notable drivers | 3.  Juan Pablo Montoya4.  Ralf Schumacher4.  Marc Gené | ||||||||
| Debut | 2003 Australian Grand Prix | ||||||||
| First win | 2003 Monaco Grand Prix | ||||||||
| Last win | 2003 German Grand Prix | ||||||||
| Last event | 2003 Japanese Grand Prix | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Constructors' Championships | 0 | ||||||||
| Drivers' Championships | 0 | ||||||||
The Williams FW25 is a Formula One car designed by Williams and powered by a BMW V10 engine. The car was used by Williams for the 2003 championship. Three drivers would drive the FW25 in the 2003 season, with Marc Gené replacing regular racer Ralf Schumacher for the Italian Grand Prix after the German suffered a large testing accident at Monza's Lesmo 1 corner prior to that race. The other regular driver Juan Pablo Montoya started all of the season's Grand Prix.
As of 2024, it remains the last Williams car to score a 1–2 finish.
Design
The design of the 2003 Williams FW25 was a marked departure over its predecessor, and was a completely new design compared to the Williams FW24, something that Williams had not done between 2001 and 2002.[3] New to the 2003 design team was ex-Ferrari aerodynamicist, Antonia Terzi, who worked with existing designer Gavin Fisher after the departure of ex-chief aerodynamicist, Geoff Willis.[4]
Season summary
Although the car could have easily won its first Grand Prix during the Australian Grand Prix but for a costly spin by Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya, the car did not establish itself amongst the frontrunners on the grid until the Austrian Grand Prix where Montoya led before retiring with engine failure. Until that race, both drivers complained about understeer due to flaws in the car's design. Montoya cited the FW25 as a favourite of his, praising the balance and the driveability with the powerful BMW engine which suited his aggressive driving style.[5]
A new, wider front tyre introduced by Michelin at the Monaco Grand Prix unlocked the potential of the FW25, which would win that race, score a double-podium at the Canadian Grand Prix, then go on to score dominant 1–2 victories at the European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, and the next race, the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours.[6]
A change to the front tyre width (resulting from a protest lodged by Michelin's rivals Bridgestone, through the Ferrari team, after the Hungarian Grand Prix) caused controversy through the paddock, with Williams tipped to lose their competitive edge after that race due to a slimmer tyre design being raced at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza being seemingly at odds with the wider tyre that Williams brought with great effect to the Monaco Grand Prix. Despite Montoya's second place at Monza, being able to stay with eventual World Champion Michael Schumacher's Ferrari throughout the whole race, the FW25 would not win a race in the final three races of the season, the Italian GP, United States GP and Japanese GP took place after the tyre redesign. In fact, after Montoya's second place at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the FW25 would not earn another podium in the 2003 season, although Montoya led the final race at Suzuka before retiring with a hydraulics problem.[7]
Sponsorship and livery
The FW25 had a very similar livery from its two predecessors, with most of the retaining sponsors. New sponsors including Hewlett-Packard, who bought Compaq in previous year and a brewery brand Budweiser. At the German Grand Prix, the "Budweiser" logo was simplified as "Bud" due to the licensing issues from its parent company, Anheuser-Busch. At the French Grand Prix, the Budweiser logo was completely removed.
In popular culture
On 18 June 2018, it was announced by Codemasters that this car would appear as a classic car in F1 2018.
Complete Formula One results
(key) (results in bold indicate pole position, results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Points | WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | FW25 | BMW P83 3.0 V10 | M | AUS | MAL | BRA | SMR | ESP | AUT | MON | CAN | EUR | FRA | GBR | GER | HUN | ITA | USA | JPN | 144 | 2nd | |
| Juan Pablo Montoya
|
2 | 11 | Ret | 7 | 4 | Ret | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 | Ret | ||||||
| Ralf Schumacher
|
8 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 9 | Ret | 4 | Ret | 12 | |||||||
| Marc Gené
|
5 |
References
- ^ "19,000 RPM BMW Formula One engine". newatlas.com. 4 June 2004. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
- ^ "One of the greatest engines in history of Formula 1: BMW V10". BMW BLOG. 25 July 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
- ^ "Williams launch the FW25". us.motorsport.com. February 2003. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ "2003 Williams FW25 BMW - Images, Specifications and Information". Ultimatecarpage.com. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ "Great racing cars: 2003 William-BMW FW25". Motor Sport Magazine. 23 November 2015. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ "2003 Williams FW25". conceptcarz.com. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ "HP F1 Racing - HP Williams BMW United States Grand Prix and World Championship Preview". www.espn.com. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
External links
Media related to Williams FW25 at Wikimedia Commons
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