£ 60,000

2009 Force India-Mercedes VJM02 Formula 1 Single Seater - SOLD

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Description:

To be offered for auction without reserve by Bonhams at the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed.

The Ex-Giancarlo Fisichella, Adrian Sutil, Vitantonio Liuzzi, Bertrand Baguette
2009 Force India-Mercedes VJM02 Formula 1 Racing Single Seater
Chassis no. VJM02-1R

* Offered without reserve
* Used for testing throughout the 2009 F1 Season
* Offered directly from the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One Team
* Driven by Giancarlo Fisichella, Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi.

Footnotes

The Force India-Mercedes VJM02 offered here is a visually complete and rolling Formula 1 Grand Prix car offered less engine. It has been preserved and maintained by its original constructor since its current use during the 2009 Formula 1 World Championship racing series, and is here offered for public sale for the first time ex-works since the ex-Jordan, ex-Midland, ex-Spyker Force India team was acquired and renamed Racing Point for 2019, and which today has become the current Aston Martin Cognizant Formula 1 operation.

It was largely the fine-tuned and efficient aerodynamic form of the Force India-Mercedes VJM02 which in the words of Formula 1 technical writer Giorgio Piola "...turned the [team's] car – which had [previously] usually been relegated to the last row of the grid, into a protagonist, so much so that it enabled Giancarlo Fisichella to take second place at Spa [in the year's Belgian Grand Prix] and almost win, a victory that finally went to Kimi Raikkonen and his Ferrari, which was only superior because of his defensive use of KERS. It was a result confirmed at the next GP at Monza [the Italian race], where the VJM02 driven by Adrian Sutil started from the front row and finished fourth".

In 2009 the VJM02 design was the Silverstone-based Force India Formula 1 racing team's frontline weapon designed and deployed for that year's Formula 1 racing series. The FIA governing body had mandated numerous regulation changes for that year's relevant World Championship series. They were revised several times to accommodate the findings of the Overtaking Working Group (which had been formed in response to concerns that passing in wheel-to-wheel racing was becoming near to impossible within the aerodynamic turbulence from one car ahead of another) while an increasingly vital need for cost-cutting to enable smaller teams to survive was another major concern.

Slick racing tyres were allowed for the first time since they had been banned from 1998. The aerodynamic regulations were radically altered - permitting front wings to be lower and wider, while rear wings were made higher and narrower. Bodywork overall became more regulated with many refinements seen in previous seasons (including barge boards, winglets and turning vanes) removed. Each rule change made these 2009 cars look noticeably different from those of previous years. The rear underbody aerodynamic diffuser was moved back and raised. Many other minor chassis components were also standardised. The aim of both these new aerodynamic regulations and slick-tyre reintroduction was to decrease reliance on aerodynamic downforce while increasing mechanical grip between tyre and track surface – all aimed to make close-quarter racing more likely.

For the first time, cars were allowed to use driver-adjustable body sections, in the form of adjustable front-wing flaps – limited to six degrees of movement, with only two driver-commanded adjustments per lap; another change intended to enhance overtaking opportunity.

In the powertrain, Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS) – a regenerative electrical device designed to recover some of the vehicle's kinetic energy normally dissipated as heat during braking – was introduced for 2009. The recovered energy being stored electrically for use as additional accelerative power engageable by the driver using a boost button on the steering wheel. The systems were not mandatory, and only four teams opted to use them that year.
The FIA lowered team costs by banning in-season testing, forcing reduced wind-tunnel use, increasing minimum engine lifespan and ordering that gearboxes had to be used for four races, with a five-place starting grid drop penalty should a car's gearbox be replaced during the pre-race weekend.

Each driver was limited to a maximum of eight engines for the season overall, plus four for practice/testing purposes; using additional engines would cost a 10-place grid penalty for each additional engine used. Engines also had to be to hit a maximum of only 18,000rpm, down from 19,000.

Force India's brand-new VJM02 model was revealed in a low-key press event, after the car's first test at Silverstone, on February 28, 2009, before a public test on the Jerez circuit in Spain the following day. The car was finished in the colours of the Indian flag – reflecting the nationality of the team's principal – the Kingfisher beer and airline magnate (and lifelong competition car enthusiast) Vijay Mallya, and was driven by the organisation's same drivers as in 2008 – Giancarlo Fisichella and Adrian Sutil.

The two executives instrumental in the early design of the VJM02, chief technical officer Mike Gascoyne and team director Colin Kolles, had departed in late 2008, after a disagreement with Mallya and it was late in VJM02 development that a Mercedes power unit was adopted in place of the team's former Ferrari allegiance, together with McLaren gearbox and hydraulic system. The McLaren link was completed by appointment of Simon Roberts from that team to complete design of the VJM02 as it eventually emerged.

Adapting to these new components had required a minor redesign of several parts of the car, including the suspension, side-pods and the rear aerodynamics. The scope and pace of such development led the team to forego adoption of the available KERS power recovery system.

Developments were continuous throughout the 2009 season with what was described in period as featuring "....something new at almost every GP, especially as far as the front wing and its end plates were concerned. There were three major steps made in specification, for the Grand Prix races held at Silverstone, Valencia and Singapore. A new front wing appeared in the team's home race which greatly improved the cars' efficiency. New sidepods followed for the European Grand Prix at Valencia which were more concave in their lower region and which – in conjunction with other aerodynamic improvements – were considered to have made the VJM02 seven-tenths of a second faster per lap. It was then in Singapore that the VJM02's distinctive long spinal fin feature made its debut, extending from the engine cover - of which it was an integral part - to the rear wing. The rear-view mirrors were also integrated at that time into vertical fins ahead of each sidepod.

In period this particular chassis – 'VJM02-1R' - was dedicated to testing, during which – in the hands of Fisichella, Sutil, Liuzzi and the Belgian cadet driver Bertrand Baguette - it completed the invaluable total of no less than 4,421kms (2,747.6 miles – the equivalent from London to Luxor, Egypt!) as follows:

Team Test T9 – Silverstone, England – Giancarlo Fisichella – 47kms

Team Test T10 – Jerez, Spain – Giancarlo Fisichella – 375kms
Adrian Sutil - 625kms

Team Test T11 – Barcelona, Spain - Giancarlo Fisichella – 1,119kms
Adrian Sutil – 937kms

Team Test T12 – Silverstone, England – Vitantonio Liuzzi – 177kms

Team Test T20 - Santa Pod Raceway, England - Vitantonio Liuzzi – 146kms

Team Test T31 – Kemble aerodrome, England - Vitantonio Liuzzi – 268kms

Team Test T36 – Kemble aerodrome, England - Vitantonio Liuzzi – 392kms

Team Test T43 – Silverstone, England – Bertrand Baguette – 158kms

Team Test T49 – Jerez, Spain - Vitantonio Liuzzi – 177kms

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